Flying budgets: Ilulissat airport must find billions

Greenland Airports needs an additional 1.1 billion and is hoping for a loan from the Self-Government, while the national treasury is already bleeding.

Building airports in the Arctic is expensive – Greenland Airports has now learned this with the new airport in Ilulissat.

According to Sermitsiaq.ag, the company writes in their annual report that they will need to find an additional 1.1 billion kroner to complete the construction.

Originally, they estimated that the airports in Nuuk and Ilulissat would cost a total of 3 billion kroner.

But now the price is expected to land at 4.8 billion kroner, writes Sermitsiaq.ag.

Loans from the Self-Government

In the management report, Greenland Airports writes that they are in dialogue with the owners to find the remaining financing for the airport construction in Ilulissat.

The company informs Sermitsiaq that they would rather take out a loan from the Self-Government or the Danish state than receive a subsidy.

Last week, the National Treasury reported that the national treasury had a deficit of 257 million kroner in 2024, even though it expected a surplus of 287 million kroner. The deficit is expected to continue in 2025, when it is expected to have a deficit of 357 million kroner.

One of the main reasons for the deficit was, among other things, that 100 million kroner was given to Greenland Airports.

The Treasury can issue large loans if a report has been made showing that society ultimately benefits more from the construction than it costs to build.

This clause became one of the biggest points of contention during last year’s negotiations on the Finance Act. This was because a dormitory building worth 188 million kroner was removed from the budget and placed under the scheme.

Although the dormitory construction was based on questionable calculations, which showed that society might not make a profit until after 46 years.