President Trump has approved the Ambler Road Project in Alaska, a 211-mile road designed to access an estimated $7 billion copper deposit and other critical minerals deemed essential for the U.S. artificial intelligence industry, particularly for powering AI data centers. This decision, which reverses a prior federal denial, aims to bolster domestic mineral supply to counter China's market dominance, with the U.S. government acquiring a 10% stake in Trilogy Metals, a Canadian mining company with claims in the area. The project's construction is being significantly expedited, signaling a broader policy shift towards increasing domestic mineral production to support strategic industries.
President Donald Trump approved on Monday the construction of a 211-mile road right through the Brooks Range Foothills and across the Northwestern Alaskan Arctic, including 26 miles of Gates of the Arctic National Park. The administration justified its decision to allow a mining company to carve through the arctic foothills with a simple explanation: Building the road will benefit the American artificial intelligence industry. Trump’s approval of the Ambler Road Project is a reversal for the federal government. Only last year, the Bureau of Land Management released its Record of Decision selecting “No Action” on Ambler Road, in cooperation with Alaska tribal councils, the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and many others. In the document, the impact on fish habitat, water and air quality, disruption of groundwater flow, hazardous materials from spills, and the negative impact on the Western Arctic caribou herd, which has been steadily declining since 2017, were all cited as reasons for denial. The Record of Decision also stated that the Ambler Road Project would forever alter the culture and traditional practices of Alaska Native communities, who have lived and thrived in the region for centuries. Thanks to the BLM’s findings, the Biden administration denied the Ambler Road Project on June 28, 2024. The project resurfaced after the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority filed a direct appeal to Trump over his predecessor’s denial of transportation permits. Trump’s decision to approve the Ambler Road Project comes months after his administration announced plans to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, opening 45 million acres of national forest land to logging and road construction. While the Ambler Road Project is not directly tied to the “roadless rule,” it’s one of a growing list of examples of the U.S. government prioritizing corporate interests over the natural world. Ambler Road will begin at milepost 161 on the Dalton Highway, near the towns of Wiseman and Coldfoot, before crossing over 3,000 streams and multiple rivers. It will require up to 50 various bridge projects, as well as aid stations, airstrips, turnouts, and culverts, before ending at the proposed mining site near the town of Ambler. On Monday, Trump sat in the Oval Office with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Energy Secretary Chris Wright and made it clear that he was approving the project to stay ahead in what he considers an AI race against China. “Ambler Mining District, at the end of [the 211-mile road] has some of the richest mining deposits in all of America,” Burgum said, while gesturing at a map of Alaska behind the Resolute desk. “These are minerals that are absolutely essential to defense, to industry. … Just take copper alone. This is one of the richest copper locations in the country.” The haul at the end of the 211-mile road is presumed to be a copper deposit worth more than $7 billion. Copper has many uses, among them being the primary component to efficiently help power and cool the massive data centers that run AI applications. As a result, and as AI advances, copper is in massively high demand. According to the 2025 Global Critical Minerals Outlook, copper supplies will fall 30 percent short of the required demand by 2035. “China controls 85 to 100 percent of all the mining and refining of all the top 20 critical minerals,” Burgum said. “And in this mine area up here, we got copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, gallium, germanium — rich in all of the minerals that we need to win the AI arms race against China.” Burgum said that the U.S. has “gotten out of the energy and mining area,” and that when Trump said, “Drill, baby, drill,” he also meant “Mine, baby, mine.” Trump emphasized that the copper was needed to power AI data centers — but also immediately contradicted himself on whether it’s needed to surpass China, or rather to maintain what he described as America’s undisputed lead in AI. “We get a road done, and with that, we unleash billions and billions of dollars in wealth,” Trump said to the press on Monday. “It’s pretty amazing when you think of it. And it’s wealth that we need if we’re going to be the number one country. We’re number one now with AI, you’ve probably read. We’re beating everybody with AI at levels that nobody ever thought even possible.” But Trump said the U.S. currently lacks the power to support its tech companies, so he has greenlit them to “build their own power.” Immediately after taking office, Trump announced a $500 billion investment in artificial intelligence — led by OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank — called the Stargate Project, aiming to create a nationwide network of AI data centers. The first opened in Abilene, Texas, in September, after which five more were immediately announced. Also in September, Trump hosted a roundtable of AI giants to discuss AI innovation and investments into its future. Included in the guest list were OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Each of whom, coincidentally, donated exactly $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. AI data centers significantly impact the environment due to their immense electricity consumption, high water usage, greenhouse gas emissions, and demand from local power grids. But along with the AI craze, a modern copper rush has begun, and it’s moving quickly. What was originally proposed as a three to four-year timeline for the Ambler Road Project appears to have been significantly sped up. Burgum said that construction will begin next spring with “planning throughout the winter.” “We’ll get it done in less than a year,” Trump added. Following the announcement of the approval for the Ambler Road Project, Burgum stated that the Department of War and the U.S. government will take a 10 percent stake in Trilogy Metals, a Canadian mining company with claims in the area. “America was a mining powerhouse for a long, long time, and our mining industry got squelched,” Burgum said. “Now we’re seeing it come back to life.” In March 2025, Trump signed an executive order to take immediate measures to increase American mineral production. The order states: “It is imperative for our national security that the United States take immediate action to facilitate domestic mineral production to the maximum possible extent.” In April, the Trump administration fast-tracked a controversial transfer of ownership of Oak Flat, Arizona, from the U.S. Forest Service to Resolution Copper. The Apache Stronghold, who have sacred and ceremonial ties to the land, have been in lengthy legal battles to try to halt the transfer. Resolution Copper, a conglomerate owned by British and Australian mining companies, plans to blast a hole 2 miles wide and 1,000 feet deep, decimating the sacred Apache site to gain access to the deep copper reserve. In August, a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judge put a temporary injunction on the land transfer, and Trump released a scathing post on Truth Social in which he called the 9th Circuit “radical left” and the Apache Stronghold “anti-American.” On October 6, the Supreme Court declined to hear the Apache Stronghold case. The proposed destruction of public land — held sacred by Native Americans at Oak Flat and the Northwestern Arctic of Alaska — and numerous other sites, every year across America, in the name of progress, is merely one more example of a continued and very pointed genocide of Native American culture. In response to Trump’s approval of the Ambler Road Project, environmental advocacy groups blasted the decision, saying it’s another example of Trump protecting business interests over the planet. “As with every other shortsighted, self-serving decision by this administration, this move is silencing the people who will be impacted the most,” said Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee. “Trump is sidestepping the views of Native Alaskans and short circuiting the federal government’s obligation to hear from them.” “We build a road that’s over 200 miles long through a very beautiful area of the world,” Trump told reporters on Monday. “It’s incredible when you look at it. But a rough area from the standpoint of building.” IT’S EVEN WORSE THAN WE THOUGHT. What we’re seeing right now from Donald Trump is a full-on authoritarian takeover of the U.S. government. This is not hyperbole. Court orders are being ignored. MAGA loyalists have been put in charge of the military and federal law enforcement agencies. The Department of Government Efficiency has stripped Congress of its power of the purse. News outlets that challenge Trump have been banished or put under investigation. Yet far too many are still covering Trump’s assault on democracy like politics as usual, with flattering headlines describing Trump as “unconventional,” “testing the boundaries,” and “aggressively flexing power.” The Intercept has long covered authoritarian governments, billionaire oligarchs, and backsliding democracies around the world. We understand the challenge we face in Trump and the vital importance of press freedom in defending democracy. We’re independent of corporate interests. Will you help us? 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This move is justified by the administration as crucial for securing domestic mineral supply for the U.S. artificial intelligence industry, citing an 'AI race' against China and the high demand for copper in AI data centers. The decision underscores a strategic imperative to reduce reliance on foreign critical mineral sources, particularly given China's significant market dominance in refining. The project involves the U.S. government acquiring a 10% stake in Canadian mining company Trilogy Metals (TMQ), which holds claims in the region. With copper supplies projected to fall 30% short of demand by 2035, the expedited construction timeline, aiming for completion in less than a year, highlights a clear policy shift towards prioritizing domestic production and aligns with broader initiatives to increase American mineral output. While strategically beneficial for national security and AI development, the project faces significant environmental and social opposition, including concerns from tribal councils and environmental groups, mirroring other controversial mining projects fast-tracked by the administration. This approach potentially exposes involved companies to ESG risks, legal challenges, and reputational damage. Investors should weigh the geopolitical advantages of supply chain de-risking against these inherent stakeholder challenges, noting the mixed general sentiment but highly positive sentiment for TMQ.
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