 The importance of keeping a Norwegian mining operation was articulated both in lieu of keeping a Norwegian presence on archipelago, which would soon fall under Norwegian sovereignty, but also in the need for keeping Norwegian jobs.A deal was struck whereby the ministry bought 30,000 tonnes of coal for NOK 6 million, while the owners were obliged to not sell the company without state permission.By 1921 the number of women living in Ny-Ålesund grew to twenty-two and there were twenty-three children who spent the winter.