Inside the race for Greenland’s mineral wealth | EUROtoday
Business reporter

President Donald Trump has mentioned he thinks the US will acquire management of Greenland, underlining a declare on the Arctic island that he has repeated a number of occasions not too long ago, on one event pointing to “economic security” as the rationale. While the autonomous Danish territory has been fast to say it is not on the market, its huge and principally untapped mineral sources are in nice demand.
Jagged gray peaks all of a sudden seem earlier than us, because the motorboat navigates uneven coastal waters and dramatic fjords at Greenland’s southern tip.
“Those very high pointy mountains, it’s basically a gold belt,” gestures Eldur Olafsson, the chief government of mining firm Amaroq Minerals.
After crusing for 2 hours we stepped ashore at a distant valley beneath Nalunaq mountain, the place the agency is drilling for gold.
It’s additionally scouring the encompassing mountain vary and valleys, looking for different priceless minerals, having snapped up exploration licences spanning over 10,000 sq km (3,861 sq miles).
“We’re looking for copper, nickel, and rare earths,” says the Icelandic boss. “This is uncharted, and still has the potential to have multiple big deposits.”
The base camp is a cluster of cell buildings and brilliant orange lodging tents housing greater than 100 employees, together with Greenlanders, Australians, and British former coal miners. From there a highway climbs up the valley, and we drive by automotive into the gold mine, following a darkish tunnel upwards contained in the mountain.
“See here!” says Mr Olafsson pointing to a seam of white quartz and a skinny darkish line. “Gold, gold, gold. All the way over. Isn’t that extraordinary?”
The mine, which Amaroq purchased in 2015, had operated for many of the previous decade, however closed as a consequence of then falling gold costs, and excessive working prices.
Amaroq is assured that the mine will now be worthwhile. And it plans to ramp up manufacturing this 12 months, the place it has constructed a model new processing plant to crush the ore and refine the dear metallic into gold bars.
“We can either walk off site every month with a suitcase of gold, versus a 30,000 tonne ship [carrying the ore]”Explains Mr Olafsson.
He says that Greenland presents an unrivalled alternative as a result of its large mineral reserves are largely untouched.
“It can be the supplier of all the minerals the Western world will need for decades,” provides Mr Olafsson. “And that is a very unique position.”

Yet presently there are simply two energetic mines on your entire island.
Greenland is a self-governing territory that’s a part of Denmark, however controls its personal pure sources.
It’s endowed with the eighth largest reserves of so-called uncommon earth components, that are very important for making all the pieces from cellphones to batteries and electrical motors. It additionally has giant quantities of different key metals, comparable to lithium and cobalt.
There is oil and gasoline too, however new drilling is banned, whereas deep-sea mining has additionally been dominated out.
Christian Kjeldsen, director of Greenland’s Business Association, says that the worldwide “geopolitical situation right now is driving interest in the world’s biggest island”.
He factors to China having the world’s largest reserves of uncommon earth metals, whereas the West needs to safe different provides.
“You have a very strong China sitting very heavily on the critical raw materials,” he says.
That has fuelled a rising focus amongst Western nations to get entry to Greenland’s minerals. China has additionally been eager to get entangled, however its presence is proscribed.
Reuters not too long ago reported that the US lobbied an Australian mining agency to not promote Greenland’s largest uncommon earth venture to potential Chinese patrons.
Greenland’s Minister for Business, Trade and Raw Materials, Naaja Nathanielsen, says that curiosity within the territory’s minerals has “absolutely increased within the last five years or so”.
She provides: “We’re used to being a hotspot for the climate crisis. We want to be a part of the solution.”
Permits have now been given for 100 blocs throughout Greenland, the place firms are looking for viable deposits. British, Canadian and Australian mining corporations are the largest overseas licence holders, whereas Americans maintain only one.
But there are numerous extra steps earlier than these websites turn into potential mines.

Yet whereas Greenland could also be sitting on mineral riches, any “gold rush” continues to be sluggish to materialise.
The financial system, which has an annual GDP of simply over $3bn (£2.4bn), remains to be pushed by the general public sector and fishing. And the territory additionally depends on an annual $600m subsidy from Denmark.
Greenland’s politicians hope that mining revenues will cut back reliance on the annual $600m subsidy from Denmark, and assist increase independence efforts. But within the meantime Greenland is making extra money from tourism.
Officially mining remains to be necessary for independence, says Javier Arnaut, head of Arctic Social Sciences at Greenland University. “But in practical terms, you can see that there are very few mining licenses awarded.”
Ms Nathanielsen concedes that whereas there are partnerships being developed with the US and EU, “we still have not seen large amounts of money flowing into this sector”. She hopes that there might be one other three to 5 mines working inside the subsequent decade.
However mining shouldn’t be straightforward in Greenland due to its distant geography and climate. It’s the world’s largest island and 80% of it’s coated by an ice sheet. It has rugged mountains and no roads between settlements.
“It’s an arctic terrain,” says Jakob Kløve Keiding, from the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, which has mapped the territory’s deposits. “We have problems with harsh conditions in terms of the climate and limited infrastructure. So it’s quite expensive to open a mine.”
Those excessive prices, coupled with low world metallic costs, have held again traders.
Others blame purple tape for the sector’s sluggish progress. The territory has strict environmental laws and social influence necessities, and getting permits can take time.
Ms Nathanielsen maintains that almost all communities do help mining, and that it boosts native economies. “They [overseas miners] are shopping in the local shop. They’re employing local employees. They’re chartering a local boat or helicopter,” she says.

Yet within the south’s largest city, Qaqortoq, resident Heidi Mortensen Møller is sceptical whether or not new mines will result in employment for locals. “When they say they’re going to add jobs, who are they talking about?”
Jess Berthelsen, head of native labour union, SIK, says that many individuals suppose mining earnings “will leave the country”, and never profit Greenland. But he helps the expansion of the sector. “Greenland needs more income and to earn money from other ways than fishing.”
It’s unclear how Trump’s newest gambit on Greenland will play out. However, the territory’s prime minister Mute Egede mentioned earlier this month that “we need to do business with the US” and that it was “doors open in terms of mining”.
Mr Kjeldsen from the enterprise affiliation, hopes it is going to be carry “much needed investment” to the sector. “On the other hand, if the uncertainty surrounding the signals from Trump drag on for a longer period, there is a risk that this might impact the investment environment negatively.”
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9d5jwvw9nlo