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| Europe |
| Inside the [sudden] race for Greenland's mineral wealth |
| 2025-01-28 |
| [BBC] President Donald Trump has said he thinks the US will gain control of Greenland, underlining his persistent claim on the Arctic island, on one occasion pointing to "economic security" as the reason. While the autonomous Danish territory has been quick to say it isn't for sale, its vast and mostly untapped mineral resources are in great demand. Jagged grey peaks suddenly appear before us, as the motorboat navigates choppy 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 executive of mining company Amaroq Minerals. After sailing for two hours we stepped ashore at a remote valley beneath Nalunaq mountain, where the firm is drilling for gold. It's also scouring the surrounding mountain range and valleys, hunting for other valuable 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 mobile buildings and bright orange accommodation tents housing more than 100 staff, including Greenlanders, Australians, and British former coal miners. From there a road climbs up the valley, and we drive by car into the gold mine, following a dark tunnel upwards inside the mountain. "See here!" says Mr Olafsson pointing to a seam of white quartz and a thin dark line. "Gold, gold, gold. All the way over. Isn't that extraordinary?" The mine, which Amaroq bought in 2015, had operated for most of the preceding decade, but closed due to then falling gold prices, and high operating costs. Amaroq is confident that the mine will now be profitable. And it plans to ramp up production this year, where it has built a brand new processing plant to crush the ore and refine the precious metal 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 opportunity because its huge mineral reserves are largely untouched. "It can be the supplier of all the minerals the Western world will need for decades," adds Mr Olafsson. "And that is a very unique position." |
| Posted by:Skidmark |