RE: Drill, baby drill - Greenland, the final frontier?9 Mar 2026 09:27
Continued....
AMERICAN BACKING
The contrast with UK investors could hardly be starker. 80 Mile has struggled for years to fund its Greenland ambitions from London, leaving the company “moribund in the UK”.
Now American partner March GL has committed $70 million. It is raising this through a combination with a SPAC, to create Greenland Energy. This is due to start trading on NASDAQ from 18 March.
“The money [for drilling] is already raised,” McIllree said, citing “high profile shareholders” including Paul Glazer’s Glazer Capital. Where 80 Mile had budgeted $35 million for the first well, the Americans have committed $70 million for both.
March GL takes a 70% stake while 80 Mile retains 30%, McIllree noted. The two companies had competed for the licences when they went up for tender in 2015.
For 80 Mile, the increased interest from the US – and especially President Donald Trump – has all helped.
Trump has publicly stated there’s “a lot of oil” on Greenland’s east coast, while his administration’s focus on Arctic sovereignty adds strategic weight to the project.
“America knows how to do one thing, mate, and it’s to defend its oil fields, right? From a geo-strategic perspective, that’s coming into play.”