Greenland, a remote and sparsely populated island nestled between the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans, finds itself at the center of a burgeoning mineral exploration boom. The island, profoundly impacted by the climate crisis, has seen its landscape transform significantly over recent decades. Ice sheets and glaciers have given way to wetlands, shrublands, and barren rock, revealing one of the world’s largest untapped reserves of critical minerals, including lithium, hafnium, uranium, and gold. This newfound accessibility is drawing international interest, particularly from the United States, eager to develop closer mining ties with Greenland.
The retreat of Greenland's ice has facilitated logistical advantages for mining companies, although significant challenges remain due to the island's harsh climate, remote geography, and lack of infrastructure. The waters around Greenland now open earlier and close later each year, enhancing access to its mineral-rich terrains. Despite these advancements, mining operations face hurdles such as the absence of railways or roads, often necessitating helicopters for travel between towns like Qaqortoq and Nuuk.
"There is huge potential [in Greenland] but, at the moment, there is not actually much mining going on," said Jakob Kløve Keiding.
Keiding further elaborates on Greenland's status as a "greenfield exploration area," highlighting that while the island is in the early stages of exploration with limited data on many deposits, it does possess some large and well-established deposits with known resources. The receding ice caps continue to expose rocks and potential mineral deposits previously hidden from view.
"Now, the ice probably only really forms for three or four months in the very northern latitudes and the rest of the country is seeing receding ice caps that is exposing rocks and potential mineral deposits that haven't been seen before," Keiding added.
The transformation in Greenland’s ice cover presents a stark contrast to regions like Siberia in Russia, where permafrost and ice still dominate yet do not hinder mining activities. Tony Sage draws parallels between these regions while assessing Greenland's potential.
"You can imagine, it's easier now to do these things. If you go into Russia, for example, in Siberia, it's under a lot of permafrost and ice and they still manage to mine a lot of minerals, as well as oil and gas. So, yes, there will be a mini gold rush into Greenland," he stated.
However, Sage also points out logistical challenges due to historical infrastructural limitations.
"It's just logistics. The Danes never built a railway [and] didn't build any roads," Sage noted.
Roderick McIllree emphasizes the evolving accessibility around Greenland's waters, attributing it to changing climatic conditions which have altered traditional seasonal patterns.
"What's happening now is interesting because the waters around Greenland are opening up earlier and earlier each year and closing down later and later each year. And the ability to get into these far-flung places is a lot easier than it was 20, 30, 40 or 70 years ago," McIllree observed.
The geopolitical implications of Greenland's resource potential have thrust the island into an international spotlight. As a Western alternative to China's dominant position in rare earth elements, Greenland offers a strategic opportunity for diversifying global supply chains. A recent 2023 survey assessing Greenland's resource potential evaluated 38 raw materials on the island. Most of these materials demonstrated relatively high or moderate potential for development.
Greenland's vast landscape and sparse population present both opportunities and obstacles for mining endeavors. While the climate crisis has inadvertently opened doors for exploration by unveiling previously inaccessible mineral deposits, substantial investment in infrastructure will be crucial to overcoming logistical barriers. The potential economic benefits for Greenland are immense if these challenges can be addressed effectively.