About M-Cubed
The Awe of Ore
M-Cubed is an independent exploration company with no stake in mining. We work for the good of developing countries.
Founder
Michael Saunders
MScR Geosciences (Geochemistry), University of Edinburgh
MSc (Hons) Geological Oceanography, Bangor University
A lifelong passion for discovery has taken me from an aspiring mining engineer – to a research scientist advising against a $250,000 alluvial gold project that would have destroyed reclaimed Chilean farmland – to a founder exploring and mapping marine mineral deposits for sovereign good.
M-Cubed exists to pursue the awe of ore without the damage of extracting it: independent exploration, owned by the countries whose waters we survey.
The Story So Far
A Lifetime of Curiosity
- 2003
Aged six, I opened a geode with my granddad. Curiosity has been the gift of a lifetime ever since.
- 2013
Set on becoming a mining engineer.
- 2018
As a research scientist, a literature review of the Rio Choapa in Chile showed a planned $250,000 alluvial gold project was targeting a buried estuary, not a river system. I advised against it; the project was not pursued, sparing reclaimed farmland.
- 2023
Founded M-Cubed Research Consulting to offer exploration without exploitation.
- 2024
Launched Own Your Ocean, pitching exploration-only services to coastal developing countries.
- 2026
Our journal manuscript on submarine critical minerals in the EEZs of 75 developing countries is under editorial review.
What We Stand For
Independence
No stake in mining means no incentive to overstate or understate what we find.
Sovereignty
The country owns every dataset, every sample and the mineral rights – and makes the decision.
Science
Surveys designed with academic partners, giving early-career scientists the chance to go to sea.