What happened
Extending their climb from Wednesday, shares of The Metals Company (TMC -3.61%) are looking more lustrous in investors' eyes today. The seafloor mining company reported encouraging news regarding its pilot module collector vehicle.
As of 12:31 p.m. ET, shares of The Metals Company are up 3.7%, retreating from their earlier climb of 12.9%.
So what
This morning, The Metals Company reported a successful drive of its collector vehicle in the North Sea. In addition to testing the vehicle's mobility, The Metals Company and its partner, Allseas, tested other systems including the raising and lowering of the vehicle's collector heads.
Image source: Getty Images.
Addressing the company's recent success, CEO Gerard Barron said, "The tests show that the collector can be controlled with a very high level of accuracy that will enable us to build and execute detailed mine plans that respect the bathymetry, sediment characteristics and ecology of the deep seafloor."
Now what
It's understandable why the market's earlier jubilation about the company's recent progress is waning today. Although the collector drive test in the North Sea was a success, the commencement of actual mineral -- nickel, cobalt, and others -- production isn't expected until the end of 2024. Nonetheless, electric vehicle battery investors, among others, should expect more news to be forthcoming shortly; the company plans a deepwater test of the pilot collector system in the Atlantic this April.
