Regarding Section 106, on June 18, 2026 the Alaska State Historic Preservation Office (“SHPO”) concurred with four eligibility determinations, but did not concur with fourteen other eligibility determinations for identified cultural resources. The SHPO requested additional analysis and consideration of these fourteen cultural resources. USACE is requesting additional time to conduct the additional analysis, necessary consultation with the SHPO and consulting parties, and development of a Memorandum of Agreement to provide adequate mitigation for impacts to cultural resources.
Milestones:
All dates below are specific to the schedule of the Environmental Review and Permitting processes for this project.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING STATUS
IN PROGRESS
ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING
09/24/2027
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING PROCESSES
COMPLETED
SECTOR
Mining
CATEGORY
Project Category
FAST-41 Covered Projects
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, Fish and Wildlife Service
Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Description:
The Graphite Creek Project is a proposed graphite open pit mine to extract graphite ore and produce a graphite concentrate for further processing and manufacturing of Coated Spherical Graphite, primarily for the electric vehicle lithium-ion battery and energy storage markets, as well as other high grade graphite products. Graphite ore mined from the Graphite Creek Property, situated on the Seward Peninsula about 37 miles north of Nome, Alaska, would be processed into concentrate at a mineral processing plant to be located adjacent to the mine.
The Executive Director granted a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers request to extend the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) completion dates on September 26, 2025. The Executive Director determination is posted here.
The Executive Director granted a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers request to extend the Clean Water Act Section 404 permit and the Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act review completion dates on July 27, 2026. The Executive Director determination is posted here.
Original Target Date: 08/28/2026
Milestone: Section 106 consultation concluded (Agency Action)
Requested extensions greater than 30 days for this Action are shown below:
Section 106 consultation concluded (Agency Action) extended by 212
From: 08/28/2026
To: 03/28/2027