The Arctic This Week Take Five: Week of November 22, 2021
Greenland Strips Chinese Coal and Iron Ore Importer Of License
As reported by Reuters on November 22, General Nice, a Chinese coal and iron mining firm, has been stripped of its mining license by the Greenlandic government after failing to fulfill agreed activity and payment deadlines. The Greenlandic government announced that the site, near Nuuk, will be made available to new companies once formalities with General Nice are completed. This includes the delivery of 1,5 million DKK (225 000 USD) in overdue payments, as well as the return of geological data and environmental restoration of the site. (Arctic Today, Reuters)
Take 1: The newly elected government of Greenland has repeatedly made its commitment to sustainability clear. However, the decision to offer the mining site to new companies demonstrates the increasing pursuit of the island’s mining potential, an industry which Greenland is using to secure future economic independence from Denmark- as promised by the 1979 Home Rule Act and subsequent Self-Government Act in 2009. The decision by the Government of Greenland to ban future oil drilling in its territorial waters over climate concerns while promoting continuation of mining at the same time offers an interesting view on what its self-described claims to sustainability means. Is mining contrary to sustainability? What even is sustainability to begin with? Asserting Indigenous sovereignty over development and offering an alternative path beyond standard binary understandings of ‘sustainability’ gives opportunities for the global community to think about the implementation of international agreements and goals.
Italy Can Provide Loan to Russian Arctic LNG Project
As reported by Reuters on November 22, Italy’s export credit agency SACE may insure a loan of approximately €500 million to finance a plant for Novatek, the largest independent natural gas producer in Russia. The financing for the deal will be provided by Italian state lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), and international banking group Intesa Sanpaolo. The plant is expected to produce about 20 million tons of liquefied natural gas per year starting 2026. (Arctic Today, Reuters)
Take 2: The investment shows the kinds of plans by which countries like Italy, France, and Germany can include themselves in Arctic resource development. However, these single state involvements feature within the larger context of the European Union’s (EU) increased involvement in Arctic affairs alongside increasing tensions over gas exports from Russia to Europe. Three EU states are members of the Arctic Council, while several more are observers. The EU is also present in the Barents Euro-Arctic Council. France, Germany, and Italy’s strategies of planting themselves as key partners within Arctic resource developments are also matched by other international powers. For instance, China’s plans to establish a Polar Silk Road is seen by many as a strategic method to gain economic hegemony, but one which also poses potential security risks as well. However, Big Power politics aside, this economic Arctic positioning also begs another point of view. Offering both state and local perspectives on resource development in the Arctic allows for more complexity and nuance: how will Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2 be received by locals? (Arctic Council, BBC, CSIS, The Guardian)
Norway’s Northernmost Ferries to Go Electric
As reported by the Barents Observer on November 23, the Bognes-Skarberget car ferry in Tysfjord, Arctic Norway is set to become battery-powered by the end of 2022. This ferry is the last remaining ferry connection along European route E6, the main highway between southern and northern Norway, to transition to electric energy. The two other ferry routes across the fjord of Tysfjord, Bognes-Lødingen and Drag-Kjøpsvik, are also set to go zero-emission, the Norwegian Public Road Administration informed in a press release. (Barents Observer, Barents Observer)
Take 3: The battery-powered ferries speak to a broader Norwegian development strategy of electrifying all the country’s transportation networks, even those including short-distance aviation. With 8 out of 10 new cars sold in the country powered by electricity rather than hydrocarbons, Norway is dramatically increasing the share of renewables travelling by its citizens. However, Norway’s domestic electrifying strategy contradicts the country’s stubborn promise to continue offshore oil drilling beyond 2050. It seems Norway wants to have its cake and eat it too, building an energy-independent nation that utilizes the country’s extensive hydroelectric grid, while still profiting off of the country’s main extractive source of revenue. The definition of sustainability comes into question. Economic viability is paramount to the country’s ability to survive and remain sovereign. Norway’s bid of diversifying its energy production comes from an understanding of international and domestic pressures to respond to international climate agreements by offering clear plans of phasing out non-renewable energy. However, hitting targets in terms of climate goals does not necessarily indicate true sustainability. In powering these ferries, a fall into greenwashing or green colonialism is only one step away- as exposed by the current tensions surrounding the construction of windfarms on Saami herding lands. Norway’s emphasis on continuing its oil drilling plans can also be understood as a wish to remain influential within the Arctic region. Therefore, while celebrating this week’s news, we should be aware that economic competitiveness seems to trump genuine concerns over climate change in Norway- for now. (Journal of Community Psychology, Reuters)
India to Invest in Russian Arctic Oil Mega-Project
As reported by Mint on November 22, three state-run Indian oil companies are considering jointly investing in the Russian state-owned company, Rosneft’s Vostok Oil project located in the Russian Arctic, in the Krasnoyarsk region. The Indian consortium consists of ONGC Videsh Ltd, Indian Oil Corp Ltd, and Oil India Ltd. While negotiations over commercial feasibility are still in the preliminary stages, the companies have already completed technical evaluations for 30 of the 52 total license areas. (High North News, Mint)
Take 4: India is presenting itself as one of many international powers rushing to settle assets in the Arctic region. However, India’s positioning of its resource companies in the region is fueled by more complex regional politico-economic dynamics than simply a straightforward rush for Arctic oil. India truly exemplifies the saying of ‘what happens in the Arctic doesn’t stay in the Arctic.’ An observer to the Arctic Council since 2013 (and re-elected as such in 2019), India has partially claimed this representation on its claims to shared challenges between the Arctic and its very own Himalayan region in the face of climate change. This potential Indian investment is an illustration of the scope of international interests in the Arctic, interests that can be scientific, economic, and (geo)strategic. (Arctic Council, Arctic Yearbook 2013, ORF)
Push for Inuit Self-Government in Nunavut
As covered by High North News on November 23, Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (NTI) is seeking to negotiate with the Government of Canada to fully realise Inuit self-government in Nunavut. An Inuit territorial organization mandated to defend the rights and promote the interests of Nunavut Inuit, NTI released a statement claiming that living conditions and overall governance powers have declined to unsatisfactory conditions since the creation of the independent Government of Nunavut 22 years ago. The announcement follows a resolution passed by board members at NTI’s annual general meeting to pursue the negotiation mandate with the Canadian government. (High North News, NTI)
Take 5: The push for self-determination over social, political, and economic matters by Nunavut Inuit exists within wider decolonial issues. Self-government, as comparable to the Greenlandic Self-Government Act of 2009 forms the last step of devolution before actual independence. The unilateral decision in 2016 by Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau to impose a moratorium on Arctic offshore oil and gas development left local Indigenous decision makers and communities with a bitter taste. Economic viability and livelihood opportunities are necessary for community development within the relatively option-scarce Arctic. This made the moratorium appear as just the latest restriction imposed Indigenous economic development- a move made particularly unjust by the continued profit of Canada from offshore drilling further south. This example poses a fundamental contradiction. The transfer of power in pursuit of self-government ultimately requires the approval of the dominant sovereign power- and this will only be given when in accordance with the state’s interests. Despite the ambitions of the negotiations, the future of Nunavut self-government remains uncertain. (Nunatsiaq News)