The United States and New Zealand are to co-fund a major upgrade to a port in the Cook Islands, in a move expected to support the territory’s ambitions for deep-sea mining while strengthening Western influence in the Pacific.
The Penrhyn Port project was announced in Palau on Tuesday, 1 September, by Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters and US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau.
Washington will provide US$50 million, subject to work with Congress, while New Zealand will contribute NZ$17.5 million. The investment will upgrade the port on Penrhyn, also known as Tongareva, the northernmost island in the Cook Islands. ([beehive.govt.nz](https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/united-states-cook-islands-and-new-zealand-announce-penrhyn-port-project?utm_source=openai))
The site, at the village of Omoka, was built with US involvement more than 80 years ago, along with an airstrip, when the atoll was used for military purposes. The upgraded facilities are also intended to make landings safer, improve access to services and strengthen transport links for the northern Cook Islands. ([beehive.govt.nz](https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/united-states-cook-islands-and-new-zealand-announce-penrhyn-port-project?utm_source=openai))
Mr Landau said the development could help unlock “the enormous potential” of deep-sea minerals, which he described as important to economic development around the world.
“We look forward to working with the Cook Islands how they wish to proceed with the development of this resource and we look forward to partnering with them with responsible and effective development,” he told reporters.
Deep-sea mining involves recovering mineral-rich nodules from the ocean floor. The industry has not yet been commercialised anywhere in the world and remains controversial, with environmental groups and some Pacific governments warning that its effects are not sufficiently understood.
Mr Brown’s government has backed further exploration of the resource, while saying that any move towards extraction should be guided by regulation and science. He said the port investment would help diversify the Cook Islands’ economy and improve its resilience.
The agreement also reflects a wider contest for influence in the Pacific, where the US and its partners have sought to counter China’s growing economic and strategic presence. The announcement builds on a critical minerals framework agreed between Washington and the Cook Islands earlier this year, according to Mr Landau. ([beehive.govt.nz](https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/united-states-cook-islands-and-new-zealand-announce-penrhyn-port-project?utm_source=openai))
Mr Peters, who has pressed for greater US engagement across the region, described the agreement as a major achievement for his “quiet diplomacy”.
“It’s a big, big, day for the region,” he said.
The deal comes after tensions between New Zealand and the Cook Islands over the latter’s growing relationship with China. The Cook Islands governs in free association with New Zealand, whose citizens hold New Zealand passports and whose defence arrangements cover the territory.
New Zealand suspended aid to the Cook Islands last year after Mr Brown signed a strategic partnership with Beijing. He said the agreement was intended to support economic development rather than security cooperation.
Mr Peters said the dispute had been resolved, declaring that the relationship between the two countries was “back to its best footing ever”. He also rejected suggestions that New Zealand should dictate whether the Cook Islands pursued seabed mining.
“It’s over to the Cook Islands people when you talk about that resource,” he said. “We can’t sit back in New Zealand and say you can or you can’t if it means their future wealth and their future wellbeing.”
