US company raises $70 million for oil exploration in east Greenland
An American energy company has raised $70 million to fund two exploration wells in Jameson Land, a remote and entirely undrilled sedimentary basin on Greenland’s east coast that geologists say shares a geological profile with the North Sea.
Greenland Energy Company plans to deliver drilling equipment in the third quarter and begin drilling in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to approval from Greenland’s government. So far, authorities have only granted permission for equipment to be brought ashore, Sermitsiaq reports.
The license area spans more than two million hectares and is held by London-based 80 Mile PLC through its subsidiary White Flame Energy. Under the deal, Greenland Energy covers all drilling costs in exchange for a 70 percent working interest. The companies cite an independent estimate of 13 billion barrels of prospective oil resources.
But experts urge caution. Per Nikolaj Bukh, professor at Aalborg University, told Sermitsiaq the resource figures are unproven and un-risked — meaning volumes have not been probability-adjusted.
“There are still very large uncertainties associated with the project itself,” he said. “And then there are all the uncertainties related to legislation and permits, and the entire logistical challenge, which hasn’t been solved either.”
Greenland banned new oil exploration licenses in 2021 on climate grounds, but the moratorium did not revoke permits already in force. The Jameson Land licenses have continued under their original terms and were extended by four years in 2024.
Greenland Energy has signed drilling services agreements with Halliburton and logistics contracts with Canadian Arctic operator Desgagnés. The two wells will each target a depth of 3,500 meters.
Bukh also noted the political backdrop, which he says fits the narrative coming from the White House.
“It fits neatly into the American narrative that Greenland is just one shovel-turn away from economic independence,” he told Sermitsiaq. “But the truth is that the project is very uncertain and risky, and not particularly far along.”
Greenland has no oil production infrastructure. All refined fuels are imported, meaning any commercial production would be entirely export-dependent.
