On Friday, the Biden administration implemented new measures to prohibit oil and gas operations on vast expanses of Alaskan territory and also effectively declined a road construction endeavor necessary for extracting substantial copper deposits in the region.
The Department of the Interior (DOI) has recently implemented a plan that will limit future oil leasing and development on approximately half of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A).
This area, which is roughly the same size as Indiana, was originally designated by former President Warren Harding as a strategic fuel reserve for the U.S. Navy.
The DOI has effectively rejected the Ambler Access Project, a previously authorized plan for a mining corporation to construct a 211-mile road necessary for extracting copper reserves with a potential value in the billions of millions.
Upon assuming office, the Biden administration discarded the previous analysis conducted by the Trump administration and initiated a new review process for the roadway improvement project.
This project is crucial for Ambler Metals to extract copper deposits that have an estimated value of over $7.5 billion.
The decision on the Ambler Access Project has the potential to damage the president’s green energy strategy, as the copper reserves in question have use in wind turbines, transmission lines, and solar cells.
China predominantly controls the worldwide supply chain and refining capacity for numerous vital raw materials required for the production of environmentally friendly technologies, which the Biden administration is actively advocating.
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