Mining Intelligence and News
United States

Magnolia Mine

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Summary

Mine TypeIn-Situ
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Bromine
Mining Method
  • Brine mining
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SnapshotThe facilities at Magnolia consist of brine production and injection wells; and two separate production plants, the South Plant (latitude 33.1775°N, longitude 93.2161°W) and the West Plant (latitude 33.2648°N, longitude 93.3151°W).

In addition, the Magnolia facilities include the brine ponds, pipelines between the plants and wells, a laboratory, storage and warehouses, administrative offices, as well as a fleet of owned and leased equipment. Albemarle has more than 50 brine production and injection wells that are currently active on the property.

Albemarle has continued to drill new production and injection wells, as needed, to maintain production profile targets.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Albemarle Corp. 100 % Indirect
Albemarle Corporation owns the operations at the Magnolia bromine brine field.

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • Brine

Summary:

Deposit Type
The deposit that occurs on Albemarle Corporation Property is a confined bromine enriched brine deposit. The brine is confined within the porous intervals of the Jurassic Smackover Formation mostly in the upper 300’ of the formation. This being the aquifer, it is bounded at the top by the impermeable anhydrite and shale of the Buckner Formation. The base of the aquifer is bounded by impermeable carbonate mudstones and shale in the lower Smackover. There are no lateral boundaries to the east and west as well as to the north. Although no boundary is found on the south side, the porous interval does thin to less than 50 feet just south of the Property boundary.

Mineralization
High concentrations of bromine (Br) are found on Albemarle Corporation Property in South Arkansas. The bromine exists as sodium bromide (“bromide”) in the formation waters or brine of the Jurassic age Smackover Formation in the subsurface at a depth of 7000 to 8500 feet below sea level. The bromine on the Property was first mined in 1965 by pumping the brine through well bores that penetrated the Smackover Formation.

The bromine concentrations, from independent sources to 6609 parts per million with an average of 5702.

The samples have good scatter across the Property with concentrations highest in the West Field diminishing slightly to the east in the South Field. These independent samples taken from producing oil or brine wells indicate excellent distribution of the bromine mineralization within the brine on the Property.

The upper and middle Smackover have porosities that range from 1% to over 28% and permeabilities from .1 millidarcy to over 8900 millidarcies. The rock with sufficient porosity ranges in thickness from 35 feet in the southern portion of the South Field to 262 feet in the northern portion of the South Field. Throughout most of the Property the porosity thickness is greater than 100 feet except in the southern half of the South Field where the average is less than 100’. The thick intervals tend to trend east and west following the depositional strike. The connectivity of the porous body of the upper Smackover is very good throughout the Property and can be recognized in the well performance between production and injection wells.

The mineralization occurs within the highly saline Smackover Formation waters or brine where the bromide has an abnormally rich composition. The bromine is more than twice as high as that found in normal evaporated sea water . The bromine mineralization of the brine is distributed throughout the porous intervals of the upper and middle Smackover on the Property. The very good permeability and porosity of the Smackover grainstones provide excellent continuity of the bromine mineralization within the brine.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Heavy Mobile Equipment

Fleet data has not been reported.

Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

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Commodity Production

CommodityUnits20242023202220212020
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All production numbers are expressed as brine.

Production Costs

Commodity production costs have not been reported.

Personnel

Mine Management

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Workforce

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Aerial view:

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