Contango Ore’s Johnson Tract Critical Metals Project Gains FAST-41 Coverage, Alaska
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The Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council has approved FAST-41 coverage of Contango Ore’s Johnson Tract Critical Metals Project in Alaska. The mining project is expected to provide a domestic source of vital minerals to include copper, zinc, gold, silver, and lead.
“I am thrilled to welcome the 51st critical mineral and mining project to FAST-41,” said Emily Domenech, Permitting Council Executive Director.
“Listing the Contango Ore Johnson Tract Critical Metals project will continue the growth of our strategic and unique partnership with the state of Alaska, as we work together to boost American critical minerals production in support of President Trump’s national energy dominance goals,” added Domenech.
Located 40 miles west of Ninilchik, Alaska on the west side of Cook Inlet, the Contango Ore Johnson Tract Critical Metals project is a planned small footprint underground mining operation. Originally explored from 1982 to 1995, the project site was inactive for almost 25 years prior to 2019. The 21,000-acre property has significant exploration potential for a range of critical minerals.
“Contango Ore would like to thank the Permitting Council for including the Johnson Tract Critical Metals project to the full coverage projects list in the FAST-41 program,” said Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse, Contango Ore president and CEO.
“We look forward to working closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, cooperating state and federal agencies, and CIRI and their stakeholders. We are committed to advancing the Johnson Tract Critical Metals Project through the permitting process with enhanced coordination, predictable timelines, improved public transparency, and accountability to ensure this project meets the highest standards of environmental stewardship and regulatory compliance,” added Nieuwenhuyse.
“We appreciate the Council’s continued guidance and partnership, and we look forward to ongoing engagement as the Johnson Tract Critical Metals project progresses under the FAST-41 covered projects framework,” concluded Nieuwenhuyse.
The project is sponsored by J T Mining, a wholly owned subsidiary of Contango Ore. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is the lead federal permitting agency.
Learn more about the Contango Ore Johnson Tract Critical Metals project on the federal permitting dashboard HERE.
The Permitting Council coordinates federal environmental reviews and authorizations for projects that seek and qualify for FAST-41 coverage. FAST-41 covered projects are entitled to comprehensive permitting timetables and transparent, collaborative management of those timetables on the Federal Permitting Dashboard. FAST-41 covered projects may be in the energy production, electricity transmission, energy storage, surface transportation, aviation, ports and waterways, water resource, broadband, pipelines, manufacturing, mining, carbon capture, semiconductors, artificial intelligence and machine learning, high-performance computing and advanced computer hardware and software, quantum information science and technology, data storage and data management, and cybersecurity sectors.
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