14 DAY TRIAL // Beowulf Mining, a British company operating in Jokkmokk, Northern Sweden has been widely criticized for illegal drilling. A new Sapmi report reveals that the enterprise has been carrying on with its work even hough it did not have a valid work plan.
The Swedish Sami Association was alerted on this and compelled the British company to stop all the projects developed in that area.
“The company's work plan expired already in November 2010, yet, despite this, Beowulf has continued to drill. The company's behavior is very strange and suggests a lack of respect for both Swedish law and for those communities affected by the drilling”, notes Jenny Karlsson Wik, a lawyer working for the Swedish Sami Association.
Even though authorities picked up on the illegality, Beowulf Mining is saying that it's fully aware of the Swedish legal framework and, at the same time, keen on improving the lives of the locals.
The incident could negatively impact the image of the company, given that the Swedish state was forced to intervene and put an end to the illegal drilling.
All in all, authorities involved in the matter say the British company is definitely not trustworthy, suggesting that its operations could have threatened the balance of the entire ecosystem.
“This could be a joke if it did not have such serious implications for our communities. Without a work plan we don’t know when or where the company is drilling, and we may have had reindeer in the area without knowing that the company was drilling there,” indicates Mattias Pirak from the Jåhkågasska Saami community.
Surprisingly, this is not the first time when the activity of Beowulf is being criticized. It has been accused of deceiving shareholders, while trying to convince them that residents had a word to say in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
On the other hand, residents say the company carried on with its plans without even trying to contact them.