The U.S. Interior Department's recommendation to end the project in its current form could come in an environmental analysis due later this week, the report said.

The Interior Department did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The Ambler project sought to open a remote area rich in copper, zinc and lead and could yield deposits of rare earths used in weapons manufacturing. Trilogy Metals is one of the region's potential developers.

Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, has been pushing Democratic President Joe Biden to approve construction of the road project.

(Reporting by Gnaneshwar Rajan in Bengaluru; Editing by Leslie Adler)