U.S.-Greenland Technical Engagement on Mining Sector Education and Training

MEDIA NOTE

OFFICE OF THE SPOKESPERSON

NOVEMBER 23, 2020

The United States and Greenland are advancing mutual commitments to sound mineral sector governance through technical engagement with the Greenland School of Minerals and Petroleum (KTI Råstofskolen, or KTI).  The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Energy Resources (ENR) signed a $1.2 million cooperative agreement with the University of Utah to support the development of KTI’s mining engineering curriculum.  The agreement is part of a broader ENR initiative to support Greenland’s capacity to address a growing mineral sector through technical engagement, formalized in a memorandum of understanding with Greenland’s Ministry of Mineral Resources in 2019.

Under this three-year agreement, the Department of State and the University of Utah will work with KTI to develop its underground mine training facility, create a search and rescue program, and offer various topical courses to train a generation of sector experts and specialists to fill niche employment needs in Greenland as the extractives sectors continue to develop.  The team includes experts from the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Mining and Petroleum Training Service and has significant experience in mining research and workforce development in the Arctic and other remote regions.  The agreement leverages the University of Utah’s award-winning student mine rescue team and relationships with state agencies, mines, and professional associations in Utah and Alaska.

This agreement supports a strengthened understanding of U.S. and leading industry standards, as well as perspectives on how mining sector projects should be undertaken and managed for the benefit of all.

For further information, contact Donald Kilburg, Spokesperson for the Bureau of Energy Resources, at [email protected] or visit www.state.gov/e/enr.  Additional information is available on Twitter at @EnergyAtState.