Planning for business continuity management in Greenlandic mining

This paper addresses the growing need to investigate risk management and business continuity (BC) in the Arctic. With the increase in industrialisation and the development of large mining projects in the region, the need for knowledge regarding the management and planning for disruptions is likewise increasing. The Greenlandic context provides an excellent setting for studying how these companies plan for risk and business disruptions. This study investigates four mining operations in Greenland that are either in production, under construction, or in the planning phases. This paper addresses uncertainties that are salient in connection with operating in the Arctic through focusing on company centred value chain risks as well as events affecting their ability to operate by impacting on critical activities. The particular research question is thus: How do mining companies in Greenland plan for BC events? The findings show that they do this by engaging in a series of mitigating strategies and plans for business recovery. However, a series of shortcomings are identified. Should they be addressed, they will be able to improve the identification, mitigation and planning for events disrupting critical activities. These include plans for the utilisation of indigenous or local knowledge, effects of climate change, reputation management, access to qualified labour and applying a multi-layered BC management system.