On the same day that Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo touted lithium as “economic salvation” for Nevada, the state’s lone Republican congressional representative said he has intervened following reports that a loan essential to carrying out the massive Thacker Pass lithium mine is suddenly in jeopardy under the Trump administration. 

On Friday, the Washington Free Beacon and Politico reported that a high-ranking Department of Energy (DOE) loan official is questioning the viability of Thacker Pass, located in Northern Nevada’s Humboldt County near the Oregon border. The project hinges on federal signoff on the $2.3 billion loan issued by former President Joe Biden’s administration late last year. Without the loan, Lithium Americas, the developers of the project, would have to secure alternate financing for the project.

Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV) had a call Friday morning with Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright to voice his “unequivocal support,” the congressman’s office told The Nevada Independent. The pair discussed their desire to reach an agreement on the loan. 

Amodei’s office said he would remain in close communication with the Energy Department moving forward, but it did not share any other details. 

A spokesperson for Lombardo did not respond to multiple requests for comment on Friday.

Tim Crowley, vice president of government and external affairs for Lithium Americas, said in an email that the company cannot comment on the details of discussions with the Department of Energy and General Motors, the lead investor in Thacker Pass, only stating that conversations are “ongoing.” 

A reversal of the loan would throw into question the future of a project that was poised to put Nevada, and the nation, at the forefront of a lithium industry currently dominated by overseas interests. 

Lithium Americas has projected the project would be the largest lithium mine in the world; the Trump administration issued permits for the mine during the final days of his first term in 2021. The project broke ground in 2023, with construction ramping up heavily this year. 

Nevada has also hinged much of its recent economic development on creating a “lithium loop,” or a start-to-finish lithium extraction, production and recycling industry in the state. 

Creating the “lithium loop” has been a bipartisan priority in the Silver State, as officials look for ways to diversify its tourism-dependent economy. Lombardo and Amodei published a joint op-ed last week touting Thacker Pass as “the single most significant opportunity to build a secure, reliable North American lithium supply chain.”

In remarks at a Latin Chamber of Commerce event on Friday in Las Vegas, Lombardo referred to the lithium industry as a “long-term economic salvation,” and said it could help the state be “recession-proof.” The developments came as his office was co-hosting a two-day summit focused on the industry’s potential.

Conditions of the federal loan required up-front investment from General Motors; the company has already invested nearly $1 billion in the project. 

Now, the Beacon reports, the DOE wants General Motors to agree to a clause binding the automaker to purchase a set amount of lithium produced at the Nevada facility over the next two decades before it will issue the loan. 

Reporter Isabella Aldrete contributed to this report.