A US energy exploration company has sparked an outcry by unloading drilling equipment without authorisation on the east coast of Greenland, the autonomous Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. "With this unauthorised unloading of equipment, the company has really not improved its chances with the Greenland authorities," said Anne Merrild, a professor at Aalborg University and Arctic specialist. But the exploration licences under which Greenland Energy operates were issued earlier, in 2015 and 2018, and therefore remain valid. Activities are subject to specific permits, and Greenland Energy still hopes to obtain full approval to begin drilling soon in order to determine the quality of potential deposits. "We continue to be encouraged by the progress being made toward the remaining approvals required for drilling," Greenland Energy said in a letter to shareholders.