JACKSON, Miss. — The Mississippi Development Authority released a report titled “2026 Mississippi Natural Resources Summit: Critical Minerals in the State” that outlines a strategy to position the state as a domestic producer of critical minerals, the report says.
The report identifies lithium-rich brines in the Smackover Formation beneath southern Mississippi as an immediate opportunity, saying historical data show concentrations of more than 340 milligrams per liter in places, exceeding the 200 milligrams per liter threshold generally considered commercially viable.
It recommends using direct lithium extraction technology and repurposing existing oilfield infrastructure to support domestic production, and it lists five pillars needed to advance the effort: legal certainty, operational capability, fiscal strategy, industrial ecology and social license. The report also calls for evaluating statutory and regulatory policies to attract large-scale global investment.
The report highlights the Mississippi Mineral Resources Institute at the University of Mississippi as the state’s research and development engine for mineral resources. It says the institute is integrating high-performance computing and artificial intelligence to create digital subsurface models intended to reduce drilling risks for private-sector partners.
Gov. Tate Reeves said, “Critical minerals are essential to America’s economic strength, energy independence, and national security. This report gives Mississippi the framework to build out a new critical minerals industry in our state, and it aligns with the Trump administration’s Energy Dominance agenda. Mississippi is once again proving to the world that we’re not just attracting the industries of the future, we’re building them. I’m excited about the opportunities this new industry can create for Mississippi and America.” MDA Executive Director Bill Cork said, “Mississippi has everything it takes to compete and lead in one of the most strategically important industries in the world. We have the right geology under our feet and the expertise and infrastructure in place to support the critical minerals that power our economy and safeguard our nation.”
Dr. David T. Dockery III, state geologist and director at the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality Office of Geology, said evaluation of the Smackover Formation indicates the state contains “one of the most prospective critical mineral-rich brine systems in the world,” including lithium, boron, magnesium and potassium, and noted the state can leverage a subsurface archive of cores and samples with a reported replacement value of $13.5 billion. John C. Higginbotham, vice chancellor of research and economic development at the University of Mississippi, and Dr. Leonardo Macelloni, director of the Mississippi Mineral Resources Institute, said the partnership will use research and advanced geomodeling to help de-risk investments and train the next generation of geologists.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
