Long called “white gold,” lithium is the backbone of electric mobility and renewable energy storage. Without it, there would be no electric vehicles, no battery farms for solar or wind power. For years, the United States has relied on imports for this critical mineral — but new findings from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) may change that narrative. Beneath the Jurassic Smackover formation in southwest Arkansas, researchers have identified an enormous lithium resource estimated between 5 and 19 million tons in place.
What Exactly Was Found Beneath Arkansas
The discovery centers on deep saline waters — known as brines — trapped within porous rock layers of the Smackover formation, where bromine and hydrocarbons have long been extracted. By combining new sampling data from 2022 with historical well records, USGS hydrologists trained a random forest model to predict lithium concentrations across the region. The results showed levels ranging from trace amounts to peaks near 477 mg/L.
Factoring in porosity estimates between 10% and 30%, scientists converted these concentrations into a total “resource-in-place.” The outcome — millions of tons of lithium potentially sufficient to offset U.S. imports if extraction technologies such as Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) can be successfully scaled.
“Our study provides the first regional assessment of lithium content in the southwestern Smackover Formation of Arkansas,” said hydrologist Kathryn Knierim of USGS.
Why This Discovery Matters for Industry and Climate
A domestic lithium base could significantly reduce supply-chain vulnerabilities for battery manufacturing, create new jobs in mining and processing, and cut the carbon footprint associated with long-distance raw material transport. Moreover, existing bromine infrastructure in the Smackover region could be adapted for lithium recovery, minimizing new land use and environmental impact.
Still, the USGS stresses that these are preliminary resource estimates — not proven reserves. The report serves as an “address book” for engineers, ecologists, and investors to identify promising pilot zones. The next steps include pilot-scale DLE testing, water and energy balance assessments, sorbent stability trials, and environmental permitting.
How DLE Technology Could Shape Arkansas’s Lithium Boom
The economic viability of these projects will hinge on low capital expenditure per ton of lithium and the ability to monetize co-products such as bromine, boron, strontium, and calcium salts. The residual geothermal heat from brines could even power Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) generators, adding energy efficiency to operations. Flexible offtake agreements that reward low-carbon production would help keep margins stable, even in bearish market cycles.
Pros and Cons of Smackover Lithium Brines
| Advantages | Challenges |
|---|---|
| Domestic U.S. resource base reduces import dependency | Technological risk in scaling up DLE processes |
| Existing bromine extraction infrastructure can be reused | High variability in brine chemistry across wells and depths |
| Smaller land and water footprint than evaporation ponds | Uncertainty over long-term sorbent performance and regeneration |
| Modular, skid-based system enables rapid deployment | Requires strict reinjection and pressure monitoring programs |
Frequently Asked Questions
How much lithium can actually be extracted?
So far, only “in-place” resources have been estimated. The technically recoverable quantities will depend on upcoming DLE pilot projects and the feasibility studies of specific production sites.
What happens to the processed brine?
After lithium is extracted, the brine is typically re-injected into the same or an equivalent geological layer through dedicated wells, under strict pressure and microseismic monitoring protocols.
While commercial extraction is still years away, this discovery positions Arkansas — and the U.S. — at the center of a potential lithium renaissance, bridging the gap between clean energy ambitions and mineral independence.
