Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Monday that Elon Musk 's SpaceX is falling "behind" the U.S. timeline to return to the moon with Artemis and he will open the contract to other companies.

"We're not going to wait for one company," Duffy, who is currently the acting NASA administrator, told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Monday. "We're going to push this forward and win the second space race against the Chinese. Get back to the moon, set up a camp, a base."

SpaceX did not immediately return a request for comment.

SpaceX is among the various contractors participating in NASA's Artemis mission , which aims to establish the "first long-term presence on the Moon" and prepare for missions to Mars. Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin, Boeing , Lockheed Martin and Northrop

See Full Page