Greenland Day in Perth 2016
Licence Department
Geography and basic conditions in
Greenland
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Area: 2,166,086 km²
Ice-free area: 410,449 km²
Coastline: 44,087 km
Largest distances: North-South
2,650 km, East-West: 1,050 km
 Terrain of the ice-free area: narrow,
mountainous, barren and rocky
 Climate: Arctic to subarctic; cool
winters and cold summers in which
the average temperature does not
normally exceed 10°C
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Population in Greenland
 Population: 55,847 (Jan. 2016)
 Capital: Nuuk (17,316)
 Human habitats: 17 towns, 54
settlements, 5 sheep farms and 5
stations
 Population growth rate: -0.2 per
cent (2016)
 Ethnic groups: Born in Greenland –
89.2 per cent, born outside
Greenland – 10.8 per cent (Jan.
2016)
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Infrastructure in Greenland
 Roads between habitats: None
 Railways between habitats: None
 All towns and other locations of
interest are within reach by
airplane, helicopter or boat
 Cargo is transportable through a
network of ports in 16 towns and
harbours in 60 settlements
 Helicopters ensures that most
locations are reachable for the
transportation of equipment and
personnel
 14 airports, 7 heliports
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Organization
Government of
Greenland
Ministry of Nature,
Environment and
Energy
Environment
Agency for Mineral
Resources
Activities (EAMRA)
Ministry of Mineral
Resources
Ministry of Industry,
Labour and Trade
Mineral Licence
and Safety
Authority (MLSA)
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Organization of the Ministry of
Mineral Resources
Legal advisors
and economists
Ministry of Mineral
Resources
Mineral Licence
and Safety
Authority
Licence
Department
Geology
Department
Gemstone unit
Inspection and
Technical
Department
Department of
Analysis and
Control Functions
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Regulations
Mineral
Resources
Act
Licence terms
Standard terms and
guidelines for activities
Approvals for specific activities
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Regulations, continued
 Large Scale Mining Act (the act is administered by the Ministry of Industry,
Labour and Trade)
 The act makes it possible for a Licensee to use international tender and
international workforce on international terms in the construction phase
 The act is relevant for projects with a CAPEX larger than 5 billion DKK
(almost 1 billion AUD)
 It is a requirement before international tender and international workforce
may be used, to determine which jobs and contracts to offer to
Greenlandic enterprises and labour
Anti-corruption policy – is applicable to all employees of the MMR and its
subordinate institutions
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Mineral licences
 Prospecting licences: 12
 Exploration licences: 55 (of which 9 are from Australia, 5 from Canada and 6
from the United Kingdom)
 Special exploration licences for large areas in North and East
Greenland (≥ 1,000 km², licence period 3 years, lower explorations
commitments)
 Exploitation licences: 6
 Small scale licences for Greenlandic residents (independent of ethnicity)
 Non-exclusive licences: 19
 Exclusive licences: 33
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Prospecting licences
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Non-exclusive standard areas (West-, East- or North Greenland)
All minerals except radioactive minerals and hydrocarbons
5 year licence period
Non-renewable
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Exploration licences
 Exclusive for all minerals except radioactive minerals and hydrocarbons
 5 year licence period
 If all obligations are met, licensee has a legal entitlement to have the
licence period renewed with 5 years
 Licence periods can then be renewed with 3 years at the time
 Up to 5 sub-areas, each area shall be at least 5 km²
 Exploration obligations based on size of licence area
 Excess spending can be carried forward as credit
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Exploitation licences
 Exclusive for specific minerals
 30 years
 Can be extended to 50 years
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Exploration and prospecting licences
– process for application
 Application form on MLSA website
 Application fee of DKK 5,000 (approx. 970 AUD) for EL and DKK 3,000
(approx. 580 AUD) for PL
 Evaluation criteria:
 Technical/geological capability
 Financial capability
 Previous experience in Greenland or other areas with similar conditions
 Average processing time is 3 months
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Exploitation licences – application
material to be submitted
 Terms of Reference for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Social
Impact Assessment (SIA)
 Feasibility study:
 A declaration that the deposit is commercially viable accompanied by a
statement that the licensee intends to exploit the occurrence
 Description and evaluation of the deposit with respect to geology and
specification of the assumptions as regards exploitation technology,
economics, environmental matters, etc.
 EIA and SIA incl. non-technical summaries
 Navigational Safety Investigation (NSI report)
 Exploitation plan incl. plans for production and all constructions and
timetable from development activities up to commencement of production
 Closure plan
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Exploitation licences – process for
application
 Terms of References are subject to minimum 35 day public consultation
 EIA, SIA and NSI are subject to minimum 8 week public consultation
 Public meetings will be held in the communities that may be affected by the
project
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Approvals, etc. to be obtained before
production can commence
 Exploitation licence (Section 16)
 Impact Benefit Agreement
 Negotiated between the government of Greenland, the relevant
municipality and the applicant
 Approval of production and closure plan (Section 19 and 43)
 Approval of specific activities (Section 86)
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Fees and other expenses related to
an exploitation licence
 Granting fee of DKK 100.000 (approx. 19,400 AUD)
 Royalty
 Introduced in 2014
 Different percentages dependent on the commodity (REE: 5%, Uranium:
5%, Gemstones: 5.5%, all other minerals: 2.5%)
 Further training of MRA employees upon negotiation
 All costs and expenses related to the Mineral Resource Authority’s case
processing, supervision and other administrative work and administration in
connection with the exploitation licence and activities under the licence
 Including costs related to assessments conducted by external consultants
 Half of the costs for the public meetings held during the public consultation
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More information…
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