National Mining Association (NMA) President and CEO Hal Quinn has praised the US Senate for passing the Energy Modernization Policy Act of 2016, which includes modernisation of the federal permitting systems to improve access to minerals critical for energy, manufacturing and technological innovation:

“The Energy Modernization Policy Act of 2016, passed by the Senate, includes much needed improvements in the nation’s permitting systems for metal and mineral mines to better position our country to achieve a truly all-of-the-above energy portfolio. Simply put, mineral security is a critical element to US energy systems and Senator Murkowski’s bill promotes better access to the raw materials that make it all possible.

“Although the US is home to one of the world’s largest mineral reserves, access to these resources is hampered by protracted permitting delays. Our outdated and duplicative permitting process can last on average seven to 10 years, discouraging investment and jeopardising the growth of downstream industries, technological innovation and supply-chain security.

“We applaud the Senate for advancing policies that responsibly utilise our significant resource abundance in order to strengthen both our energy supply and economy. We now call on Congress to build on this achievement and conference the Senate-passed minerals provisions with those included in H.R. 1937, the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act, which passed the House for the fourth time last October.”