Greenland blocks Australian miner's request for licence renewal over uranium ban
COPENHAGEN - Greenland said on Friday it has rejected an application from Greenland Minerals, a unit of Australia's Energy Transition Minerals (ETM), to renew its exploration licence for the Kuannersuit rare-earths project.
"Further exploration in the area is not deemed likely to lead to the discovery of deposits that can be exploited in accordance with the Uranium Act," the government said in a statement.
In 2021, the then-ruling Inuit Ataqatigiit party in Greenland banned uranium mining, effectively halting development of the Kuannersuit rare-earths project, also known as Kvanefjeld, which has uranium as a byproduct.
ETM said in April it had received a draft decision from the Greenland government indicating that the mineral resources ministry intended to recommend that the application be declined.
The Australian miner said in an emailed statement its project would bring jobs, training and revenue to Greenland and the town of Narsaq.
"Greenland has positioned itself as open for business. This decision creates a different impression," ETM said.
It added that Greenland's Ministry of Mineral Resources had its application for nine months before giving the company 48 hours to respond to technical geological assessments, refusing a one-week extension.
"The compressed timeframe meant the decision did not take account of ETM's recent exploration results, which identified new mineralised zones across the wider licence area," it added.
Mute Egede, Greenland's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Mineral Resources, said on Facebook the government had made the decision based on legislation passed by parliament.
"At the same time, we are listening to the people — especially in South Greenland — who have made their position clear for many years. We remain committed to the course Greenland has chosen," said Egede, who was Prime Minister when the uranium mining ban was imposed in 2021.
