Greenland Ruby Goes on the Market Amid Restructuring 

Greenland Ruby will sell its operations and restructure its business, citing an inability to generate sufficient income to pay off its debts. 

The company, which acquired a license for gemstone extraction in 2016, has seen low sales volumes and profitability over the past two years. The company closed temporarily at the end of 2022 to reduce running costs. 

“Despite successful extraction and substantial investments in facilities and in the Greenlandic community, increased interest rates and inflation have made the gemstones market significantly more challenging in recent years,” Greenland Ruby CEO Arnt Eirik Rørnes said last week. “[The company] has made considerable investments in both facilities and infrastructure related to the mining facility in Aappaluttoq as well as in the Greenlandic community. Furthermore, the company has developed new, modern channels for the sales and distribution of the gemstones.” 

Despite its hefty investment into operations, as well as its assurance in September that it was not shutting down, but only on pause, Greenland made the decision to restructure following consultations with its largest creditor, it explained. The process involves appointing administrators who will help identify the best solution for the company’s creditors and for its future. During that process, all payments to creditors will be put on hold. 

“The board has decided to pursue a restructuring as it still believes in Greenland Ruby and its operation in Greenland,” added Rørnes. “The company holds an extraction license to one of the world’s richest ruby deposits and has developed an innovative business model by offering certified and traceable gemstones of the highest quality on a global marketplace. The board also considers Greenland Ruby to have an unrealized potential to create jobs and value in Greenland.” 

The miner’s restructuring will include its market-oriented subsidiaries in the US and France but not its service company in Thailand, it said. Meanwhile, Greenland will continue with the marketing and sales of rubies and pink sapphires, which the mine also produces, during the restructuring process.

 Image: A worker holding a ruby. (Greenland Ruby)