USA Banner

Official US Government Icon

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure Site Icon

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Milestone Extension: Section 10 Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and Section 404 Clean Water Act

Submitted by craig.litteken… on

USACE requests extending the Section 10/404 Final Verification/Permit Decision Rendered, Issuance of a Final EA, and EA Process Concluded milestones from November 20, 2026, to May 3, 2027, to accommodate delays in the project sponsor securing the Section 401 Clean Water Act Water Quality Certification (WQC).  This schedule revision stems from the project sponsor’s delayed submission of a complete application to the Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) and a recent state court ruling that found deficiencies in Imperial County’s environmental review of the project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Compliance with CEQA is a prerequisite for RWQCB’s WQC as mandated by 23 California Code of Regulations Section 3856. USACE cannot finalize the Section 10/404 permit decision without a valid WQC.

Action
Project Name:
Hell's Kitchen Critical Minerals & Power
Responsible Agency:
US Army Corps of Engineers - Regulatory
Status:
In Progress
POC Name:
L. Kasey Sirkin
POC Title:
TREC Team Lead
POC Email:
l.k.sirkin@usace.army.mil

Milestones:

Pre-construction Notification (PCN)/Form ENG 4345/Joint Application Form Received (Applicant Action)
Completed Date:
Complete Pre-Construction Notification (PCN)/Application Received (Applicant Action)
Completed Date:
Publication of Public Notice (Agency Action)
Completed Date:
Final Verification/Permit Decision Rendered (Agency Action)
Current Target Date:

Additional Milestones:

Additional Milestones
Complete New Information provided by Applicant (Applicant Action)
Completed Date:
Completeness Determination of New Information (Agency Action)
Completed Date:
Publication of public notice (Agency Action)
Completed Date:


View Action's Modification History

Milestone
Final Verification/Permit Decision Rendered (Agency Action)
Current Target Date:
Project

All dates below are specific to the schedule of the Environmental Review and Permitting processes for this project.

In Progress

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING STATUS
IN PROGRESS

icon_calendar

ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING
05/03/2027

0 out of 4

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING PROCESSES
COMPLETED

Mining

SECTOR
Mining

Project Category

CATEGORY
Project Category FAST-41 Covered Projects

Department of the Army

LEAD AGENCY
Department of the Army, US Army Corps of Engineers - Regulatory

View FAST-41 Postings by Agencies

Other Agencies with Actions or Authorizations:

Department of the Interior

Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service

Description:

The Hell’s Kitchen Critical Minerals & Power Project will convert geothermal brine into steam to generate electrical energy.  The power plant will use the geothermal brine to produce electrical power from its steam and the direct lithium extraction plant will convert the dissolved lithium into battery-grade lithium hydroxide and/or lithium carbonate for the battery industry.  The Project is located southeast of the Salton Sea, Calipatria, California.

The Executive Director granted a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers request to extend completion dates for all actions on October 10, 2025.  The Executive Director Determination is posted here.

The Executive Director granted a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers request to extend the completion date for the Endangered Species Act consultation on May 20, 2026.  The Executive Director Determination is posted here.

field_status
Approved
System Comments
Furthest out
Original Target Date: 09/01/2026
Milestone: Final Verification/Permit Decision Rendered (Agency Action)

Requested extensions greater than 30 days for this Action are shown below:

Final Verification/Permit Decision Rendered (Agency Action) extended by 244
From: 11/20/2026
To: 05/03/2027
Approver Comments
Executive Director determination signed on 10/20/26 approving the milestone extension.
Missed Date Process
No
Missed Date Triggered by Extension
No
Original Milestone
Final Verification/Permit Decision Rendered (Agency Action)
Current Target Date:
Furthest Original Target Date Milestone
Final Verification/Permit Decision Rendered (Agency Action)
Current Target Date: