Greenland grants 30-year mining permit to EU-backed project

The resource-rich Arctic island has seen rising activity in its mining sector over the past month, after US president Donald Trump expressed an interest in purchasing it earlier this year.
The permit was granted to the ­Toronto-listed Greenland ­Resources, a company backed by the European Raw Material Alliance, which holds the ­licence to the Malmbjerg project in eastern Greenland, the country's government said in a statement.
The open pit Malmbjerg mine can produce an average 32.8 million pounds of concentrated molybdenum per year, potentially supplying around 25pc of Europe's molybdenum use, according to the company.
Molybdenum is a silvery-white ­metal used primarily to strengthen steel and improve its resistance to heat and ­corrosion, making it critical for industrial applications such as defence and clean energy.
China imposed export controls in early February on five metals, including molybdenum-related products, in response to Mr Trump's tariff on ­Chinese goods.
China accounted for about 40pc of global molybdenum production last year, according to the United States Geological Survey. Molybdenum is considered a critical mineral by both the EU and the US.
Earlier this year, Greenland ­Resources signed off-take agreements with ­Finland's Outokumpu and Italy's Cogne Acciai Speciali.
Although rich in natural resources, the development of Greenland's mining industry has been slow due to ­bureaucracy and lack of financing.
However, Greenland last month granted an exploitation licence to the Danish-­French mining group Greenland Anorthosite Mining, while the EU this month picked 13 new critical material projects, including a graphite project in Greenland, to increase supply of metals and minerals.
Last week, the US government's export credit agency said Critical Metals Corp, a company developing a large rare earth mine in Greenland, had met initial requirements to apply for a $120m (€105m) loan.

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