Trump Says Greenland Oil, Gas and Mineral Exploration Is 'Getting Ready to Begin', Gives No Details

President Donald Trump said Wednesday, Oct. 14, that "Massive Oil, Gas, and Mineral Exploration is getting ready to begin in our new and beautiful Greenland!" He made the claim in a Truth Social post.

The post gave no details about the exploration plans: no companies, no sites, no licenses and no start date.

Trump also said "there are experts that are saying that the amount of easily available oil is far greater than that of almost any land, anywhere in the world." He did not name those experts or cite a reserve figure.

The security pitch

Much of the post was about defense, not drilling. Trump wrote that "any future attack on the United States will have to come across Greenland, where our Defense will routinely knock down drones, missiles, or any other form of weapon not yet even conceived."

"It gives us time, location, and sightline, like nowhere else in the World!" he added.

The geography argument is not new. Since his first term, Trump has cited Greenland's strategic location as a reason for greater U.S. control over the island, and he has even suggested purchasing it from Denmark or using military force. Pituffik Space Base, the northernmost U.S. military installation, already serves as an early-warning system for incoming missiles.

What the September agreement says

The United States, Denmark and Greenland signed a security agreement in late September, aimed at ending tensions after Trump's repeated threats to take control of the island. Trump has long said he wants the U.S. to control Greenland and has at times refused to rule out military or economic force.

The deal lets the U.S. expand Pituffik. It also allows additional U.S. bases at Narsarsuaq and Mestersvig, which are roughly 950 miles apart. It paves the way for Trump's "Golden Dome" missile defense system.

Any of the three parties can propose more "defense areas," subject to approval by the others. The agreement has no expiration date. It blocks non-NATO countries from establishing bases on the island without agreement from the parties.

On resources, the text is thin. It mentions resource extraction and "minerals cooperation" between the two countries but specifies no details.

Sovereignty and the word "our"

Trump called Greenland "our new" territory. The island is not American. It remains a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark.

The agreement itself reaffirms Danish sovereignty and Greenlanders' right to self-determination.

The licensing problem

Greenland stopped issuing new oil and gas exploration licenses in 2021, citing environmental and climate concerns. Licenses granted before then remain valid.

That is Greenland's own policy, set by its own government. Nothing in the Trump post says it has changed.

Some industry experts believe Greenland's mineral resources have only been lightly explored, and until now the cost of extraction has not made economic sense for private companies. One cited estimate puts U.S. Geological Survey figures for the area north of the Arctic Circle at about 6 billion barrels of oil and 70 trillion cubic feet of gas. There is no production on the island, and exploration there faces technical and environmental constraints.

The timing

The post lands more than seven months into the war with Iran, with global energy prices still elevated. Trump's post did not mention energy prices.

What is still unanswered

Trump's post did not say which companies would explore, which licenses or permits they would use, or when work would start.

It is unclear whether the "minerals cooperation" mentioned in the September agreement turns into actual licensing, and whether Greenland's government would reverse its 2021 halt on new oil and gas licenses to allow it.