Mining Firm Acquires Cruise Ship to House Project Workers in Greenland
A U.S. mining, exploration, and development company has become the latest owner of a former Soviet passenger ferry that was later converted to a cruise ship. In recent months, the ship gained prominence for housing troops and personnel in Greenland.
Critical Metals Corp., which is undertaking a major rare earth mineral project in Greenland, has acquired the former expedition cruise ship Ocean Endeavour at a cost of €7.5 million ($8.5 million) to house about 300 workers for its Tanbreez project in Greenland.
The vessel was owned by SunStone Marine Group and has been chartered to various companies. Early this year, the Danish Defence chartered the 12,900 gross ton vessel that has a capacity to accommodate 190 passengers and a crew and staff of 124 to house Danish and NATO troops during the Arctic Endurance exercise.
The Ocean Endeavour has an interesting history, having been built in Poland in 1982 as a Soviet passenger ferry. The vessel originally operated as Konstantin Simonov in the Baltic Sea and has changed ownership several times. In the early 2000s, she was converted to a cruise ship and briefly operated for an Israeli company before being outfitted for polar cruising in 2015. Last month, SunStone announced that the 137-meter vessel was up for sale.
The Nasdaq-listed Critical Metals said it has purchased the ice-strengthened vessel owing her proven operating history in both the Arctic and Antarctic environments. It said it would make the ship well-suited to support year-round activities associated with the development of the Tanbreez critical minerals project.
The company highlighted that Ocean Endeavour will provide flexible housing capacity for up to 300 project personnel, in effect minimizing demand on local housing and hotel capacity in Greenland. For Critical Metals, providing self-contained accommodation for its workforce means there will be minimal strain on the limited hotel and tourism infrastructure in Qaqortoq and the surrounding region. The vessel will be moored adjacent to the Tanbreez project.
“The Ocean Endeavour provides us with a flexible, proven platform that will support our workforce, improve logistics, and enhance operational efficiency as we continue to progress our development activities in Qaqortoq,” said Tony Sage, Critical Metals Chairman.
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He added that the vessel strengthens the company’s ability to execute its long-term growth plans while maintaining a strong focus on safety and operational excellence in a geographically and culturally sensitive area with limited infrastructure capacity.
In 2024, Critical Metals acquired a controlling stake in the Tanbreez project that has been touted as one of the world’s largest undeveloped rare earth projects. Located in southern Greenland, the project is said to contain significant concentrations of heavy rare earth elements that are critical for defense applications, clean energy transition, and next-generation technologies.