Governor Stitt Responds to Inola Moratorium on Primary Aluminum Facility

OKLAHOMA CITY (September 15, 2026) - Governor Kevin Stitt is concerned that the City of Inola’s seven-month moratorium on the lawful permitting process for the proposed primary aluminum facility sends a troubling message to future job creators considering Oklahoma.

"For more than a decade, this has been a locally led effort: PSO began preparing for major industrial growth in 2014; Inola zoned this area for heavy industrial use in 2017; and the Port Authority began developing its industrial park in 2019 with the help of State and Federal funding," said Governor Kevin Stitt.

"In 2023, the Port Authority pursued the competitive RFP process to bring this project to Inola, and the city remained an engaged and active partner in preparing to bring the safest, most modern aluminum facility in the world right here to Oklahoma. The State has since partnered to help protect electricity rates for everyday consumers and bring updated infrastructure to the area."

"Local voices should continue to speak into the process, but changing the rules in the middle of a multi-year permitting process undermines the certainty job creators need to invest billions of dollars and create thousands of jobs. Oklahoma must remain a state where valid zoning, good-faith negotiations, and established legal processes mean something; this reversal sets a damaging precedent that should be carefully reviewed under our Constitution."

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