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Greenland competes with other countries for the attraction of lasting jobs. The Government of Greenland is preparing a discussion of the framework conditions regulating large scale projects like the aluminum project.Can and should we offer special conditions for large scale projects? Does it make sense, and why is there a difference between large scale projects and the normal projects that we are familiar with. These are some of the issues discussed in the “Whitepaper on framework conditions for large scale business projects in Greenland”.

Flemming Drechsel has decided to leave his position as Managing Director of Greenland Development as of March 5, 2012.Flemming Drechsel has chosen to step aside as Managing Director of Greenland Development to look for new opportunities.Flemming Drechsel has been in charge of the company since it was established by the Government of Greenland in the fall of 2006 as a dedicated project company for the aluminum project. During this time the company has delivered a long line of analyses and reports to support the political decision making process.

A new industry raises new questions. Some of these questions were in focus when Greenland Development delivered a presentation on the Aluminum Project for the students and teachers of the ‘Environment and Resources’ class at Niuernermik Ilinniarfik – the Nuuk business school on February 23, 2012. And if Greenland is to get the most out of this project, education is important.The presentation going through a range of issues was named ’Environmental Politics globally, nationally and locally’. The local impacts were of particular interest to the students.

The knowledge and attitude assessment 2011 is published December this year. HS Analyse every year since 2007 asked the population in Greenland of their knowledge of and attitude towards the Aluminum Project.The survey is carried out by telephone interviews in the period from October to November 2011. In total 976 respondents have answered questions in the survey. The survey was carried out before the information programs about the project were shown on national TV.

There are shared fundamentals for aluminum industry in China and Greenland. Even though China is far from Greenland and society differs in many ways there are common traits with the aluminum smelter project in Maniitsoq. Minister Ove Karl Berthelsen visited China Power Investment’s (CPI) new Xinye smelter in the western Chinese province of Qinghai in November 2011. This province has historically had agriculture as the primary industry. The precondition for the project here has been the availability of energy and the wish to develop society.

What are the framework conditions for a Greenlandic aluminium project?Read the new information on the website about the aluminium industry's framework conditions. The framework conditions determine, among other things, the project's construction and operating costs. It includes energy and labour as some of the major costs. The conditions for a given project are largely determined by the geographical location of the project. Whether Greenland is able to compete in a global context is determined by the framework conditions that Greenland gives to the industry.

To present a view into the global context of the Greenlandic aluminum project, we will in the following two weeks publish a short series of stories on the aluminum industry.The stories will aim at providing relevant background information and the future prospects of the aluminum industry and consequently the aluminum project in Greenland.The first week we will publish a story that puts focus on the consumption of aluminum. What is the consumption now and how will it develop in the future.