Icelandic landowners reject government’s airport plan, put Hvassahraun land up for sale

The owners of the majority of Hvassahraun, a 2,200-hectare land in the northern part of Reykjanesskagi, have decided not to anticipate the government’s purchase of their land for an airport. Consequently, they have put the land up for sale. The government had previously estimated the value of the land at 17 billion krona.

Farmers from Reykjavik, who were in need of grazing land, purchased the land in the sixth decade of the last century. They established a company, Sauðafell, which still owns the land. The number of shareholders in Sauðafell has significantly increased and is currently well over one hundred. The highest offer Sauðafell received for the land was one billion krona, but the offer was rejected. Offers have come from private investors.

Guðlaugur Jónasson, Chairman of Sauðafell and spokesperson for the landowners, said that one billion is too low. The owners are considering offers that are at least twice as high. In a 2015 report by the government, Reykjavík City and Icelandair on airport options, the government had planned to spend 17 billion krona on the purchase of Hvassahraun. That amount would be 24 billion at today’s value. The same can be seen in the 2019 report of the Ministry of Transport and Local Government.

The land at Hvassahraun has a significant amount of fresh water that runs through the lava on which we stand, said Jónasson. Not only is there groundwater, but there are also geothermal areas and the possibility to utilize the sea for various processing.

The eruptions in Reykjanes have significantly influenced the owners’ decision to sell the land. Jónasson pointed out that although the construction of an airport would have dramatically changed the landscape, the presence of the water resource remains unchanged.

Another report from Reykjavík City and the government about an airport in Hvassahraun is ready, but its publication has been postponed until August. Jónasson said that it will be exciting to read the report, but he does not expect airport construction to be the top priority.