But he has no patience for the country’s biggest cultural export, Björk, who has lent her name to that opposition.

Beaty, the mining magnate who has stormed the geothermal industry in the past two years, refers to the pop star as a “misinformed fanatic” and says her involvement has elevated a minor business story to a subject of international attention.

Magma had hoped to close the last tranche of its acquisition of Orka, the country’s largest geothermal producer, boosting its stake to 98.5%