White House advisor John Podesta says permitting reform a ‘top priority’, warns of China ‘chokehold on critical minerals’

White House advisor John Podesta said Monday that permitting has “never been a top priority”in the US until now, with permitting support in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), an upcoming bill from Senator Joe Manchin and a revitalized act from 2005.

Permitting bottlenecks have been a growing concern across the energy industry for both traditional fossil fuels and clean energy projects. Oil and gas companies are concerned about the slow movement of permitting on federal land, while projects like carbon capture and electricity transmission lines face a lack of staffing and priority for permitting.