US offshore mineral lease sales in the Pacific are facing opposition from territorial leaders, as the Northern Mariana Islands demands economic compensation and Guam calls for a complete halt.
In a letter dated 16 October to US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Marine Minerals Administration acting director Mike Olson, Northern Mariana Islands Governor David Apatang requested revenue sharing, local hiring priority, contractor opportunities, and seaport infrastructure investments before proceeding with Pacific Minerals Lease Sale 2 (PACM-2), scheduled for 16 December 2026.
“Achieving dominance and greatness in the critical mineral supply chain should not be the sole focus for all Americans, including people living in the territories like the CNMI [Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands], who are also proud Americans,” Apatang wrote.
He also requested environmental monitoring, fishery protections, and an emergency response fund, while urging federal officials to postpone PACM-2 until 65,585 public comments are reviewed.
“The CNMI expects no less than economic benefits converted from aspirational commitments into measurable, transparent, and enforceable obligations,” Apatang said.
Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero also opposed PACM-2 in a 20 October 2026 letter, citing risks to marine ecosystems, fisheries, tourism, cultural assets, and submarine cables as the proposed lease area expanded to 27.96 million hectares.
Proposed mining could occur 74km offshore Guam, where local legislation bans seabed mining and extraction fleets from local ports.
Leon Guerrero says: “As Governor of Guam, I object to the Marine Minerals Administration’s plans to lease the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) offshore Guam for seabed mining.”
Leon Guerrero says: “Guam stands with the people of the Northern Mariana Islands. Our two governments draw a line on a map, but the ocean does not recognize it.”
The Guam Bureau of Statistics and Plans’ (BSP) Guam Coastal Management Program (GCMP) has also issued its objection to the US federal determination, which said that issuing mineral leases in areas surrounding the Marianas will have no negative effect on Guam’s coast.
The Marine Minerals Administration finalised terms on 19 October 2026 for PACM-1 offshore American Samoa, setting an auction for 19 November 2026 across two blocks covering 12.75 million hectares. Exploration leases require further federal approvals before commercial mining begins.
Write to Paula Fabe at Mining.com.au
Main image: Yuichi Yamazaki/AFP via Getty Images
