Arkansas Positions River Ports For Lithium Growth
A report on developing Arkansas’ abundant deposits of lithium in underground brine took up a big chunk of the Arkansas Waterways Commission’s September 24 meeting.
Fred Lewis, director of strategic initiatives for the Arkansas Economic Development Corps (AEDC), delivered the report after being introduced by Joe Bailey, executive director of the commission. AEDC is supporting the industry through Lithium Learns, Lithium Works and the Arkansas Lithium Technology Accelerator.
The Smackover Formation, which spreads underground from Texas across Louisiana, Mississippi, southern Arkansas, Alabama and Florida, holds enough lithium in brine to supply U.S. needs for decades to come.
Lewis said discussions are noting a market shift from nickel magnesium cobalt batteries to lithium iron phosphate chemistry due to better cost profile, safety and stability. A significant gap exists in domestic cathode production, he said; while China currently dominates, there is a push for completely “compliant” (i.e., non-Chinese) supply chains by 2030.
“We need between six and eight plants producing compliant material,” Lewis said. Washington is providing significant financial incentives to phase out Chinese imports and jump-start U.S. production. Current production credits are set to expire in 2030, he said, while it may take two years to build an extraction plant, so industry leaders are pressing Washington to extend the credits.
Lewis said Standard Lithium’s direct lithium extraction commercial plant for its South West Arkansas Project is scheduled to break ground in the first quarter of 2027. The $1.4 billion to $1.5 billion production facility has been awarded a $225 million grant from the Department of Energy. Additionally, a recently concluded agreement will supply South Korean firm LG Energy, the world’s second-largest maker of batteries for electric vehicles and the largest non-Chinese one, with 8,000 tons of lithium a year for 10 years. Those revenue streams “de-risked” the SWA plant, according to business publications.
Where Does Barging Fit In?
Lithium processing plants can be located next to drilling sites, avoiding long hauls of the corrosive brine. The chemicals and powders that result from the extraction and refining process are usually carried by pipeline, rail or truck.
However, extraction units require massive industrial equipment most cost-effectively transported by barge, including specialized processing skids, high-capacity pumps, absorption columns, multi-megawatt generation units and other large pieces of equipment. The Port of Little Rock is well positioned to function as a hub for large project cargoes, with a 175-ton Manitowoc crane and a 125-ton American crane. The ports of Pine Bluff and Fort Smith also handle large quantities of steel and bulk commodities.
Lithium plants also require large amounts of chemicals for processing, some of which are petroleum products most cheaply carried by barge.
Bromine Advantage
Besides being the Saudi Arabia of lithium, Arkansas holds competitive advantages over other Smackover states, including stable royalty rates, industrial power rates and existing brine expertise in Columbia, Miller and Union counties. Arkansas is the furthest ahead in developing commercial lithium extraction, mainly because it has a decades-old commercial bromine industry. “We have people who know how to do brine extraction,” Bailey said. “From a logistics standpoint, we’re there.”
Bromines have wide global industrial uses in a number of products, including fire retardants, disinfectants, insecticides, heating and cooling systems and in drilling fluids for oil and gas drilling. They also are used as building blocks for various pharmaceuticals. The infrastructure for drilling, pumping and re-injecting brine is already mature. Commercial bromine extraction began in 1957 in Union County, Ark., and Great Lakes Chemical Corporation built the world’s largest bromine plant in south Arkansas in 1961.
Smackover Abundance
Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles account for about 87 percent of global demand for lithium. The Smackover Formation has been estimated by the U.S. Geological Survey to contain between 5 million and 19 million metric tons of lithium, or enough to meet projected 2030 global demand for electric vehicle batteries approximately nine times over.
Right now, the nation’s only active commercial lithium mine is in Nevada, through solar concentration (which takes months) and chemical precipitation. A more modern method is the direct lithium extraction (DLE) method that the South West Arkansas project will use, which can produce battery-quality lithium powder in a few hours.
Financial Update
Bailey said the fiscal year began on June 1, and the commission’s budget remains on track. He announced that the next grant cycle will open next month, with more than $3 million available for distribution to grantees.
Greg Richardson, executive director of the Port of Columbia, discussed a new strategic master plan for the M167 corridor. Using a DRA grant to match funds, the project aims to provide communities with data-driven tools to utilize the river and pursue independent grants. The plan focuses on the condition of the locks in Columbia, which are critical for regional navigation and water sources.
Libby Ogard, president of Prime Focus LLC, and Sean Cleark, executive director of the Port of Columbia County, are developing an interactive map to identify areas of opportunity and need within the corridor. The project is being administered by Ogard in partnership with various river entities, utilizing consultants from Go Group.
