Italian navy gears up for Mediterranean rare earth mining bonanza

ROME — The Italian navy could soon be protecting sub-sea , rare earth mining in the Mediterranean, adding to its defense of internet cables on the sea bed, an Italian minister has predicted.

Urgently needed for making batteries, phones, lasers, satellites and microchips, rare earth minerals, as well as lithium, are in high demand in the West, which has lagged behind China’s sourcing of stocks.

The hunt for rare earths that can be mined on land is underway in Europe, but surveys show rich seams are also present under the oceans.

“We know there are rare earths below the sea floor of the Mediterranean – we can make up the gap by going under the sea,” Italian junior defense minister Matteo Perego di Cremnago told Defense News.

The Italian navy is already talking to industry to plan how it could offer security to such a strategic endeavor, he added.

“The navy could contribute divers, submarines, minesweepers ... and unmanned technology will be important,” he said.

“Drones that will have the ability to recharge autonomously with solar energy by coming to surface will be able to monitor infrastructure and sub-sea mining,” the minister added.

Lithium, which is essential in car batteries and key to the world’s shift away from gas-fueled vehicles, is mainly mined in Australia, China and South America.

As Europe predicts it will need 35 times more lithium by 2050, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has said the white powder “will soon be even more important than oil and gas.”

Environmental groups have claimed sub-sea mining will damage natural habitats on the sea bed and urged a moratorium.

The need to safeguard strategic undersea infrastructure has become more urgent since the Nord Stream gas pipeline attack in the Baltic Sea last year.

In the wake of the attack the Italian navy committed to use its submarines to monitor and deter sabotage of undersea internet cables in the Mediterranean as part of a deal with Italy’s biggest private cable provider.

This year, Italy took the lead on a new project in the EU’s Permanent Structured Cooperation, or PESCO, scheme which will seek to beef up sub-sea security for energy pipelines and internet cables criss-crossing the world on the seabed.

Italian naval officials have suggested that in the near future, undersea naval drones patrolling pipelines and cables will be able to stop off at charging stations on the seabed to top up their battery and drop off data, letting them stay submerged for months.

Perego di Cremnago said future roles for the navy in protecting sub-sea infrastructure would be worked on at a new undersea technology centre due to open at La Spezia in Italy next year, which will bring together companies, universities, research centers and the navy.

“This will put us in the forefront. It will put everything together,” he said.

Tom Kington is the Italy correspondent for Defense News.

罗马——一位意大利部长预测，意大利海军可能很快就会在地中海保护海底稀土矿开采，这使其在保护海底互联网电缆的职责增加一分。

制造电池、手机、激光器、卫星和微芯片急需稀土矿物以及锂，西方对这些材料的需求量很大，而西方在这些材料的采购方面落后于中国。

欧洲正在开展陆地稀土矿开采工作，但调查显示，海洋下也存在丰富的稀土矿藏。

“我们知道地中海海底蕴藏着稀土——我们可以通过海底勘探来弥补这一缺口，”意大利国防部副部长马泰奥·佩雷戈·迪·克雷姆纳戈告诉《防务新闻》。

他还补充说，意大利海军已经在与业界进行洽谈，计划如何为这项战略行动提供安全保障。

“海军可以提供潜水员、潜艇、扫雷艇……无人技术也将非常重要，”他说。

部长补充说：“能够通过浮出水面利用太阳能自主充电的无人机将能够监测基础设施和海底采矿活动。”

锂是汽车电池的重要组成部分，也是世界摆脱燃油汽车的关键，其主要产地是澳大利亚、中国和南美洲。

欧洲预测到 2050 年锂的需求量将增加 35 倍，欧盟委员会主席乌尔苏拉·冯德莱恩表示，这种白色粉末“很快将比石油和天然气更加重要”。

环保组织声称海底采矿会破坏海底的自然栖息地，并呼吁暂停海底采矿活动。

自去年波罗的海北溪天然气管道遇袭事件以来，保护战略性海底基础设施的需求变得更加迫切。

袭击事件发生后，意大利海军承诺利用其潜艇监控和阻止地中海海底互联网电缆遭到破坏，这是与意大利最大的私营电缆供应商达成的协议的一部分。

今年，意大利在欧盟永久结构性合作（PESCO）计划中牵头开展了一个新项目，旨在加强海底能源管道和互联网电缆的安全保障，这些电缆纵横交错于世界各地的海底。

意大利海军官员表示，在不久的将来，巡逻管道和电缆的水下海军无人机将能够在海底充电站停下来补充电池电量并传输数据，从而使它们能够潜伏数月之久。

佩雷戈·迪·克雷姆纳戈表示，海军在保护海底基础设施方面的未来角色将在明年于意大利拉斯佩齐亚开设的一个新的海底技术中心进行研究，该中心将汇集公司、大学、研究中心和海军。

“这将使我们处于领先地位。这将把一切都整合起来，”他说。

汤姆·金顿是《防务新闻》驻意大利记者。