Welcome back to the 3rd annual conference on Deep Sea Minerals, in Bergen, Norway. The first two conferences saw massive attendance by representatives from the nascent deep sea mineral ecosystem, including mining companies, service companies, academia, as well as politicians, environmentalists, authorities, and people with a background in law and finance. Coupled with the need for the industry to network, share and learn from each other and the best, we are confident that another well-attended and exciting conference lies ahead of us.