Gold in Icelandic Ground

“There is gold in the earth in Iceland,” Þórdís Björk Sigurbjörnsdóttir, CEO of Iceland Resources ehf., tells Morgunblaðið. “The question is whether a sufficient amount of it will be discovered to make mining possible.”

“We will be doing research drilling for the purpose of gold search in Þormóðsdalur valley this summer,” she notes. “Preparation for further research is under way, and our next projects are fully funded.”

“The search for gold here [in Iceland] has a history of more than a 100 years, and a great deal of data have been collected,” she continues. “Many people have taken part in the search. Iceland Resources has collected and acquired all data relevant to gold search in Iceland. Our specialists are processing those. Our strength lies in our data bank.”

The company has valid research permits in Þormóðsdalur, about 20 km east of Reykjavík, on the Tröllaskagi peninsula, North Iceland, and in Vopnafjörður fjord, Northeast Iceland.

“We are expecting foreign specialists to arrive this summer, who will review the situation with us and figure out what’s interesting,” Þórdís states. Between ten and 15 people will participate in the research this summer. An Icelandic company will be in charge of drilling. No mining permits for gold mining have been issued, and applying for those takes a few years.

Iceland Resources cooperates with Icelandic and foreign specialists in the field of geology and gold mining. Dr. Helen Salmon and Vincent Barbier are the company’s senior geologists, and geologist Hjalti Franzson is one of the advisory board members.

Samples are sent from Iceland to an international laboratory in Ireland, which specializes in this field.

“I see a great opportunity for Icelanders in utilizing this natural resource,” Þórdís states. “Mines [in Iceland] will never be large, and we have a good idea of how we’d like to do things in an environmentally friendly and neat way.”