Governing Mineral Extraction in the High North: Lessons from the Nasa Mountain Mine

The High North in Norway plays a strategic role in Europe’s green transformation through its potential to supply critical minerals needed for renewable technologies, such as solar panels, batteries, and wind turbines. As Europe seeks to reduce dependency on imports from authoritarian regimes like China, and conflict-ridden countries like DR Congo, Norway’s mineral resources, especially in rural and northern regions, are increasingly seen both as vital and more sustainable. However, the quartz extraction project at Nasa Mountain in Northern Norway reveals deep tensions between the global demands for so-called ‘sustainable minerals’ and local Indigenous rights, environmental concerns, and regional development. The case illustrates how fragmented governance, and conflicting priorities create a ‘wicked problem’ for local planners and raises several paradoxes. It also highlights the need for more integrated and holistic planning processes which balance the needs and objectives of all actors at all levels of governance (local, national, and international) simultaneously.