Join our daily newsletter At The Bell to receive exclusive market insights
- Shares in Greenland Minerals (GGG) have fallen more than 44 per cent after Greenland’s anti-mining party took a sweeping victory in Wednesday’s election
- The left-leaning Community of the People party has campaigned aggressively against Greenland Minerals’ Kvanefjeld Project in the country’s south
- The company had submitted a mining application in July 2019 for the Kvanefjeld Project, which is thought to hold the largest deposit of rare-earth metals outside of China
- It’s also forked out more than $100 million preparing the mine and has proven processing technology in collaboration with its Chinese partner Shenghe Resources
- Greenland Minerals is down 44.37 per cent to 8.9 cents per share and will remain in a trading halt until an announcement is released to the market
Shares in Greenland Minerals (GGG) have fallen more than 44 per cent after Greenland’s anti-mining party took a sweeping victory in Wednesday’s election.
The left-leaning Community of the People party, which campaigned aggressively against Greenland Minerals’ Kvanefjeld Project in the country’s south, took 37 per cent of the votes and secured 12 out of the 31 seats in the Greenlandic national assembly.
“There are two issues that have been important in this election campaign: people’s living conditions is one,” said the party’s chairman Mute Egede. “And then there is our health and the environment.”
The pro-mining Forward — or “Siumut” — party had predominantly been in power since 1979.
Greenland Minerals had submitted a mining application to the country’s government in July 2019 for the Kvanefjeld Project, which is thought to hold the largest deposit of rare-earth metals outside of China and has been engaged in a public consultation process ever since.
The Community of the People party campaigned strongly to halt the project which, aside from rare earths like neodymium, also contains uranium.
“We must listen to the voters who are worried,” Egede continued. “We say no to uranium mining.”
Greenland Minerals has already forked out more than $100 million preparing the mine and has proven processing technology in collaboration with its Chinese partner Shenghe Resources.
“This will without doubt hamper mining development in Greenland,” said Mikaa Mered, lecturer on Arctic affairs at HEC business school in Paris.
“It’s not that Greenlanders don’t want mining, but they don’t want dirty mining.”
While many in the country see the resources sector as an important factor in achieving greater independence, the Kvanefjeld Project has been a major point of contention, sowing deep divides in the government and the broader community.
“Greenlanders are sending a strong message that for them it’s not worth sacrificing the environment to achieve independence and economic development,” Mered added.
Greenland Minerals entered a trading halt this morning “pending an update to the market regarding the results of the recent election in Greenland,” but not before its shares slid 44.37 per cent to 8.9 cents each.
