For months, the world has puzzled concerning the said objective of the president of the United States to accumulate Greenland. Is he merely expressing a need to make America larger once more by way of territorial space? Is it a query of safety coverage? Or are important minerals—and particularly Greenland’s immense uncommon earth riches—a key issue?
The primary two questions can’t actually be answered and not using a fuller understanding of the administration’s motives and methods than is presently obtainable publicly. However for that third query, there exists a wealth of knowledge and context, each historic and modern-day.
Let’s begin with the trendy day. U.S. industries, like these of any developed financial system, depend upon important supplies. Plenty of consideration now’s targeted on the rare earths, a gaggle of components of bizarre significance due to their indispensability in important industrial, protection, and industrial purposes. Roughly 90 p.c of processed uncommon earths come from China, creating supply-chain vulnerabilities that many international locations are actually attempting to keep away from, notably since China announced restrictions on the export of heavy uncommon earths in April 2025. Systematic studies have indicated that Greenland has 10 important deposits of uncommon earth components.
However in mining, it’s the small print that matter. To grasp the worth of a minerals deposit it’s vital to consider the history and to make a actuality test of documented sources. The information and the apparent conclusions don’t at all times attain decision-makers, buyers, and the media.
Greenland Is the World’s Greatest Island, However It’s Not as Large as You Suppose
Greenland is the most important island on the earth, however folks typically get an exaggerated impression of how large it’s as a result of the generally used Mercator projection distorts the dimensions of landmasses near the poles. Greenland is about 2 million sq. kilometers. Nonetheless, the ice-free half—which may way more feasibly be mined than the opposite half—is roughly the dimensions of California, and with none scenic coastal highways. Touring between settlements is feasible solely by boat or airplane.
Greenland has had 9 completely different mines since World Warfare II, however just one, for the mineral anorthosite, is energetic immediately. One other one, for gold, is anticipated to succeed in full manufacturing later this yr.
Greenland’s solely totally operational mine as of Could 2025 extracts anorthosite rock at a web site referred to as White Mountain, on the central west coast of the island.Flemming Getreuer Christiansen
Greenland took over the dealing with of all mining licenses from Denmark in 1998 and full authority in 2010 after self-governance was launched. Greenland has developed a contemporary licensing system for mining with a component of competitors between corporations and clear procedures for public enter on environmental and socioeconomic issues. The variety of licenses granted by the federal government has been excessive and comparatively fixed for a few years, however the stage of precise actions, resembling drilling, has been low over the previous decade. A number of licenses have been relinquished or revoked with none mining ever going down.
The explanations are many. A significant one is lack of human sources. The inhabitants of Greenland is just 57,000, scattered round an space 3 times the dimensions of Texas. One more reason is excessive operational prices because of the harsh local weather and lack of infrastructure. Others embody restrictions favoring labor from Greenland or Denmark. Nonetheless others embody puzzling latest bureaucratic modifications within the authorized framework of mining associated to the necessities for useful resource assessments and feasibility research, and in addition environmental and socioeconomic necessities for acquiring an exploitation license. Complicated royalty schemes and comparatively excessive company taxes contribute to uncertainty and dangers that many buyers have been unwilling to take. That is at a time when Greenland sorely wants investments to gasoline its desires of financial and political independence from Denmark.
In the summertime of 2021, the Greenland authorities mentioned no to issuing additional petroleum licenses. It didn’t matter very a lot as a result of by then, all the most important oil and gas corporations had already left Greenland because of declining oil costs and growing prices attributable to the modifications to rules. Because the Nineteen Seventies, some 40 corporations have been concerned, however they drilled solely 15 exploration wells and made no industrial discoveries.
The Ivittuut mine, seen right here in 1953, extracted enormous quantities of cryolite throughout World Warfare II. Ivittuut was one of many few locations on the earth identified to have deposits of cryolite, which was crucial for the smelting of aluminum. The mine closed in 1987.Kaj Skall Sørensen/Danish Arctic Institute
Nonetheless, there have been some industrial actions. Throughout World Warfare II, the Ivittuut mine in South Greenland produced cryolite for aluminum manufacturing and was essential for the U.S. battle effort. Since that point, U.S. corporations have proven solely a modest curiosity in Greenland; of the whole of 250 corporations which have been granted exploration licenses over the previous a number of many years, 10 have been American. Of fifty corporations from varied international locations which have been drilling in Greenland, 4 have been from america, and of the 15 corporations which have utilized for an exploitation license, exactly zero have been American. So traditionally the U.S. fingerprint on mineral exploration in Greenland is negligible, despite the fact that the door has been open for many years.
The Deposits Are Large however Have Low Concentrations of Uncommon Earth Components
According to the European Union, Greenland has nice untapped potential for 25 of the 34 minerals recognized within the Union’s official record of uncooked supplies, together with uncommon earth components, graphite, platinum group metals, and niobium. these in additional element, nonetheless, a extra advanced image emerges. In 2023, an investigationfor the Center for Mineral Resources and Materials of the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland discovered that Greenland’s mineral sources included all the things from minor occurrences to substantial deposits scattered across the island.
Of Greenland’s 10 vital rare earth deposits, solely two, Kvanefjeld (Kuannersuit) and Kringlerne (Killavaat Alannguat), have attracted a lot consideration.
Regardless of being situated just some miles aside in the identical advanced in South Greenland, these two uncommon earth deposits are very completely different for all parameters: geology and mineralogy, stage of exploration, and documented sources. They’re alike, nonetheless, in that each deposits have some critical drawbacks when put next with energetic mines or superior tasks elsewhere within the West.
The Kvanefjeld plateau, close to the southern tip of Greenland, is the positioning of huge deposits of uncommon earth oxides, uranium, thorium, and different components of commercial significance.Jan Richard Heinicke/laif/Redux
Kvanefjeld is the one challenge in Greenland with well-documented reserves, however it suffers from–or, some would say, may doubtlessly profit from–a excessive content material of uranium and thorium.
In 2021, when the challenge was within the remaining section of getting an exploitation license, the Greenlandic authorities dug in its heels and made it unlawful to mine deposits with greater than 100 components per million of uranium. The brand new rules have been used in opposition to the Australian firm behind the Kvanefjeld challenge, rendering nugatory years of heavy investments; greater than US $100 million was reportedly spent on drilling and different work.
The corporate filed a request for arbitration in 2022, and in 2024 it commenced authorized proceedings in opposition to the Greenland and Danish governments. It might be years earlier than these circumstances are resolved. Within the meantime, this case is more likely to hurt funding in Greenland because of the local weather of excessive political threat it suggests.
The uncommon earths on the Kringlerne deposit are contained inside an igneous rock referred to as kakortokite.Jan Richard Heinicke/laif/Redux
At Kringlerne there are a lot decrease concentrations of uranium. The privately owned firm that has invested within the web site, Tanbreez, claims that it’s the largest deposit of its form on the earth, however that perception relies on little or no drilling. In 2020, the corporate acquired an exploration license despite not having supplied documentation of sources, up to date research of feasibility, or of environmental and socioeconomic affect. Deadlines for offering monetary safety and plans for mining and closure have been prolonged for a few years. Tanbreez was partly taken over by a New York–based company registered on the NASDAQ, and the brand new homeowners have been obligated to observe worldwide requirements and disclose a confidential useful resource estimate from 2016. The report revealed significantly extra disappointing numbers with regard to ore grade and different traits.
Nor do Greenland’s deposits fare nicely compared with different mines or deposits. Typical ore grades at profitable mines or enticing deposits are between 4 and eight p.c uncommon earths. The ore on the mines at Mount Weld in Australia and Mountain Pass in California, and the deposits at Nolans Bore in Australia and Bear Lodge in Wyoming, all fall inside that vary. In Kvanefjeld the quantity is 1.4 p.c, and in Kringlerne, it dips as little as 0.38 p.c. The Greenlandic mines would consequently require bigger open pits and way more power for crushing, separation, and refining, which might inevitably drive up prices for establishing mines and for really working them.
Nonetheless, the latest U.S. curiosity in Greenland led to some shocking reactions on the inventory market, mixed with excessive volatility. The share value of Kvanefjeld tripled after intense buying and selling in the beginning of 2025. The share value of Kringlerne has dropped considerably for the reason that new homeowners have been listed on the NASDAQ, however with many ups and downs following all kinds of inventory bulletins that referenced miscellaneous analyses of outdated cores.
Greenland’s Flirtations With China Might Backfire
After the Trump administration touched off a tariff battle, the geopolitical skirmishing between america and China over uncommon earths grew to become a way more sophisticated conflagration involving america, the European Union, and China.
And the Greenland authorities has continued to fan the flames by courting Chinese language funding. In March, for instance, Greenland’s overseas minister, Vivian Motzfeldt, reportedly identified closer cooperation with China as a precedence, and even touted the potential of a free commerce settlement between Greenland and China. In accordance with a report in The Diplomat, Motzfeldt’s actions have been ”largely pushed by the idea…that a mining boom, fueled by Chinese language funding, was probably the most life like path towards independence from Denmark—a objective shared by most Greenlandic events.” Perhaps so, however such strikes have been extensively perceived as a provocation in opposition to Denmark and america. No matter their motivation, they may very nicely result in elevated U.S. strain. For america it will be a geostrategic nightmare if China opened a mine in a distant a part of Greenland, with a city, communication strains, harbor, and an airfield that would clearly be used for functions aside from useful resource extraction and export.
Since Greenland took management of its mineral sources, Denmark has been reluctant to become involved in mining tasks. That would very nicely change. Denmark and the E.U. might come underneath strain to put money into much-needed infrastructure and power tasks and supply loans on extra favorable situations, if for no different cause than to maintain america at bay.
Although the state of affairs is very unstable, it’s vital to attempt, no less than, to separate the geopolitical posturing from the realities of mining. In that vein, it’s secure to say there shall be no working uncommon earth mines in Greenland throughout the time period of Donald J. Trump.
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