Beowulf Mining

Beowulf Mining plc (formerly Luxmit Limited from 1988–1989, Britcan Minerals plc from 1989–2000, E.Ruby plc from 2000–2001, Alamos plc from 2001–2003 and Beowulf Gold plc from 2003–2005)[1] is a UK registered Nordic focused exploration and development company listed on the AIM in London and Spotlight in Sweden. The CEO is Kurt Budge.[when?] The company was formed in 1988 as Beowulf Gold.[2] Through subsidiaries Jokkmokk Iron Mines AB and Fennoscandian Resources, it is active in developing open-pit mining in Sweden and Finland respectively; its plans to mine for magnetite iron ore at Kallak, west of Jokkmokk in northern Sweden, and for graphite in Heinävesi, Finland, are controversial.

Kallak

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Main article: Kallak mine

The company's main focus since the early 2010s has been the Kallak mine in Jokkmokk Municipality.[3] Beowulf Mining's Swedish subsidiary, Jokkmokk Iron Mines, has conducted exploratory mining for iron ore at sites in northern Sweden. These plans are opposed by environmental groups, nature tourism companies and the Sami people,[4][5][6] while the company says their operations and the Sami's traditional reindeer herding can "coexist".[7][8] The company argues that exploitation of the Kallak North and South sites will both directly and indirectly benefit the contracting economy of Jokkmokk Municipality.[9][10][11] Opponents of the mining project also argue that longer-term investments in the area are better for job creation: the company had promised the creation of almost 400 jobs for 14 years, whereas a tourist centre in nearby Sarek National Park could create 500 jobs.[4] Opponents also cite dangers from mining in the area including the railroad used to supply the mining operation, one local herdsman saying that trains on the local line had killed up to 1,200 reindeer. Protests took place at the site in 2013,[12] culminating in August in dozens of protesters digging themselves in.[13] Two had tied themselves to pipes, and at one point protesters delayed test blasting by sitting in trees.[14] All were removed by local police.

In 2013, Jokkmokk Iron Mines applied for a permit for Kallak[15] to start a 103 ha (250-acre) open-cast mine with a production of 10 million tons of iron ore per year and a 14-year operating time. The impacted area, e.g. by roads, the building process and the residuals of the mining is estimated to be up to 1,500 ha (3,700 acres). The licensing authority Länsstyrelsen Norrbotten refused to grant the permit in 2017 finally, citing the serious consequences for indigenous reindeer herding, as the mine divides pasture areas and migration routes. This means that there is a risk for local reindeer herders that it will become impossible to keep reindeers.[16][17] This contrasts with the opinion of the state authority Bergstaten, which considers the granting of the licence to be legal.[18] As a consequence of the different views of the two authorities, the decision lies with the Swedish government. The Swedish Greens used to be the force holding back the Kallak project.[19] However, as they left the governmental coalition in late 2021, the allowance for mining project started to be reconsidered,[20] with Swedish prime minister Magdalena Andersson expressing the opinion that Sweden needs more mines.[21] In February 2022 advisors of the U.N. Human Rights Council[22] and protests opposing it were held by local Saami population backed by Greta Thunberg.[23] Despite the resistance, the mine got governmental approval on March 22, 2022.[24] The approval included a list of conditions that the mining project needs to meet before it starts and it still has to win the approval of the Swedish environmental court.[25]

One issue in the conflict is lack of Sami ownership of the land and a lack of protection of their indigenous rights; Sweden, unlike Norway, has not signed on to an international treaty protecting those rights.[26][27] The Sami Parliament of Sweden responded to the Kallak project in August 2013 with a statement against further exploitation of Sápmi (Lapland) for mineral extraction.[28] Beowulf Mining has been ranked as one of the worst oil, gas, and mining companies on indigenous rights and resource extraction in the Arctic.[29]

Heinävesi graphite mining project

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On 24 January 2019 the Beowulf Mining's Finnish subsidiary's CEO Rasmus Blomqvist announced that the graphite mining project is postponed by years because of the mining project's significant impact on the environment.[30] The graphite mining project in Heinävesi has been facing major concerns by the local community. Fennoscandian Resources, was granted an exploration permit by the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency in 2016 for graphite mining in Heinävesi.[31] The project has been opposed by local residents, by politicians including MEP Petri Sarvamaa and also by the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation[32] as the site is close to the Saimaa nature preserve. Lintula Holy Trinity Convent has expressed fears the project will endanger the herb cultivation on which it depends for income.[33] A municipal initiative against the mining project was signed by over 3000, with over 800 residents.[34] The Provincial Government of Southern Savonia reports of a concern towards the mining project on Heinävesi's Aitolampi. The regional strategy for Southern Savo raises the purity of waterways and the attractiveness of tourism to the top objectives of the province. The open pit mining in the vicinity of major waterways and valuable natural environments is a high risk to Saimaa's tourist livelihood and the natural values, and thus contradict the objectives of the regional strategy.[35]

Other sites

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In 2006 the company was granted an exploration permit for a deposit of iron and titanium at Ruoutevara near Kvikkjokk, also in Jokkmokk Municipality.[2] In 2010 they planned to build a processing plant there and use it to also process iron ore from Kallak.[36] In 2013 they announced they would not renew the exploration permit for the site because of inadequate infrastructure and concerns which had been expressed about potential impact on Sarek National Park.[37]

Through a joint venture with Energy Ventures, Wayland Copper, Beowulf Mining is also active at Ballek, in Arjeplog Municipality, where it conducted exploratory operations for mining copper in 2013[7] and expanded them in 2014.[38]

References

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  1. ^ "Beowulf Mining plc overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". Companies House. 21 December 1988. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  2. ^ a b Kasteel, Kyran (1 October 2009). "Feast, Famine and Faith". Engineering and Mining Journal. Archived from the original on 16 March 2016.
  3. ^ Ford, Alastair (23 March 2011). "Beowulf Mining Begins To Contemplate Project Finance For The Kallak Iron Ore Deposit In Sweden". Minesite.com. Archived from the original on 13 November 2011.
  4. ^ a b Törnkvist, Ann (13 August 2013). "Swedes' anger mounts over Beowulf mine plans". The Local. Archived from the original on 26 August 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  5. ^ Hughes, Stuart (30 July 2014). "The reindeer herders battling an iron ore mine in Sweden". BBC News. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  6. ^ Zachrisson, Anna; Beland Lindahl, Karin (1 December 2019). "Political opportunity and mobilization: The evolution of a Swedish mining-sceptical movement". Resources Policy. 64: 101477. doi:10.1016/j.resourpol.2019.101477. ISSN 0301-4207.
  7. ^ a b Harrington, John (28 August 2011). "Beowulf Mining ironing out the wrinkles". Proactive Investors. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  8. ^ Webb, Mariaan (1 February 2018). "Beowulf maintains Kallak mine and reindeer herding can co-exist". Mining Weekly. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  9. ^ "Beowulf hopeful of progress in epic Swedish adventure". Proactive Investors. 24 February 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  10. ^ Beowulf Mining plc (7 September 2017). "KALLAK: A real asset, and a real opportunity to transform Jokkmokk" (PDF). Copenhagen Economics.
  11. ^ Sjöberg, Karin (4 December 2017). "Kallak: 'Länsstyrelsen ger en ensidig bild'". Norrländska Socialdemokraten (in Swedish). Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  12. ^ "Tre anhållna efter att ha stoppat järnbrytning" (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio P4. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  13. ^ "Indigenous protesters rally against Sweden iron mining plans". United Press International. 26 August 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  14. ^ "Aktivister i träd stoppade gruvbolag". Norrbottens-Kuriren (in Swedish). Tidningarnas Telegrambyrå. 21 August 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  15. ^ "KALLAK En verkligtillgång och en möjlighet att omvandla Jokkmokk" (PDF). Beowulf Mining. 7 September 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 November 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  16. ^ "Yttrande över Regeringskansliets begäran om komplettering gällande ansökan om bearbetningskoncession för Kallak K nr. 1 i Jokkmokks kommun" (PDF). Sverigesradio. 30 November 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 January 2022. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  17. ^ "Länsstyrelsen säger nej till Kallak" (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio P4. 2 October 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  18. ^ "Bergsstaten går emot länsstyrelsen om brytning i Kallak" (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio P4. 13 February 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  19. ^ Liedtke, Simone (5 March 2018). "Beowulf continues to lobby Swedish govt for Kallak North concession". Mining Weekly. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  20. ^ "Greta Thunberg condemns UK firm's plans for iron mine on Sami land". the Guardian. 11 February 2022.
  21. ^ "Beowulf Mining shares soar on Swedish mining hopes". UK Investor Magazine. 3 December 2021.
  22. ^ "UN advisers urge Sweden to stop mine in home of indigenous Sami". Reuters. 10 February 2022.
  23. ^ "Thunberg protests against Sweden iron mine on Sámi land". www.euractiv.com. 7 February 2022.
  24. ^ "Sweden gives qualified go-ahead for northern Kallak iron ore mine". Reuters. 22 March 2022.
  25. ^ Welle (www.dw.com), Deutsche. "Sweden gives green light to controversial iron mine | DW | 22.03.2022". DW.COM.
  26. ^ Rising, Malin; Mac Dougall, David (29 August 2013). "Sweden's indigenous Sami in fight against miners". U.S. News & World Report. Associated Press. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  27. ^ Persson, Sofia; Harnesk, David; Islar, Mine (November 2017). "What local people? Examining the Gállok mining conflict and the rights of the Sámi population in terms of justice and power". Geoforum. 86: 20–29. doi:10.1016/j.geoforum.2017.08.009.
  28. ^ "Sametinget kan inte acceptera fortsatt exploatering av Sápmi" (in Swedish). Sami Parliament of Sweden. 27 August 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  29. ^ Overland, Indra (2016). "Ranking Oil, Gas and Mining Companies on Indigenous Rights in the Arctic". ResearchGate. Arran. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  30. ^ "Heinäveden Aitolammen kaivoshanke lykkääntyy vuosilla – Yhtiö: "Syynä on paikallisten suuri huoli"". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). 24 January 2019. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  31. ^ "Aitolampi". Beowulf Mining.
  32. ^ "Akkuihin grafiittia louhiva kaivos saamassa tylyn vastaanoton Heinävedellä - 'Oli vaikeuksia saada yleisö olemaan rauhallisen keskustelevainen'". Tekniikka&Talous (in Finnish). 19 July 2018.
  33. ^ Rastas, Riina (13 July 2018). "Luostari huolissaan suunnitellusta kaivoksesta: 'Luostarin elinkeino on vaarassa, jos ilma ja vesi saastuvat'". Turun Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  34. ^ "Yli 3 000 vastustaa Heinävedelle suunniteltua grafiittikaivosta – Luostarit, luontoväki ja brittiyhtiö napit vastakkain". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). 11 September 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  35. ^ Maakunta, Etelä-Savo – Saimaan. "Maakuntahallitus kokoontui 24.9.2018 - Etelä-Savo – Saimaan Maakunta". www.esavo.fi. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  36. ^ Crust, Julie (23 February 2010). "Beowulf ups iron ore estimate at Ruoutevare project". Reuters. Archived from the original on 18 July 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  37. ^ Nyberg, Micke (17 May 2013). "Gruvbolag lämnar Laponia" (in Swedish). Sveriges Television. Archived from the original on 30 August 2013.
  38. ^ "Beowulf to drill deep at Ballek project in Sweden with early copper signs". Mining Technology. 27 January 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
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