T5 Smackover Partners is Developing a Geothermal Plus Lithium Extraction Project in Northeast Texas

      It was only a matter of time before the hot Smackover brines would be tapped for geothermal baseload power as well as direct lithium extraction. The East Texas part of the Smackover has some very high lithium concentrations as well as sufficient heat for commercial geothermal power. In addition, other important minerals can be extracted, including bromine, magnesium, and potassium. While I mostly agree with Art Berman’s recent analysis that concluded that geothermal power is mostly hype, he did not seem to consider some economic co-benefits, like the extraction of these critical minerals. This has been happening in the Salton Sea region of Southern California, where shallow brine is tapped for geothermal power. The economics work much better with the added value of the extracted minerals. However, there have also been some operational issues with the wells, exacerbated by the high mineral content. It remains to be seen whether there will be operational issues with a standard geothermal binary Organic Rankine cycle project involving a producer and an injector well in the Smackover. Bromine and other minerals have been extracted for decades in the Smackover in Southern Arkansas, and lithium is about to be developed in the Smackover from Southern Arkansas, Northern Louisiana, and East Texas.  

    T5 Smackover initially plans to develop up to 10 geothermal wells. According to a press release:

“Originally permitted as a geothermal well, T5's initial development has exceeded temperature expectations, validating the formation's ability to support scalable, baseload geothermal power. Leveraging this resource, T5 plans to deploy modular Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) turbines designed for rapid deployment and fast time-to-market power generation.”

“In parallel with its geothermal success, T5 has identified multiple zones within the Smackover Formation containing some of the highest lithium concentrations reported globally. The company has also confirmed significant concentrations of other critical and strategic minerals, including potassium and strontium, and anticipates world-class bromine deposits across its acreage.”

     The initial project is expected to produce about 35,000 to 50,000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) per year, making it one of the biggest U.S. lithium producers.

“…T5's modular geothermal, ORC, and Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) infrastructure is designed for phased deployment, allowing production to begin materially sooner as capacity is added incrementally.”

     The company expects meaningful lithium production volumes in 2026 and acceleration in 2027. The initial acreage is on the site of a former coal mine.

“The project also includes ultra-fast electric vehicle charging infrastructure intended to accelerate EV adoption and lower transportation-related emissions.”

“In addition to this, mobile, dispatchable energy storage is planned to support grid resilience, emergency response, and disaster recovery.”

     Below, the company shows how its project can be integrated into other projects around the country, supplying lithium and other critical minerals.

     I would expect some similar projects to arise along the Smackover lithium trend.

     A February 2025 paper in Proceedings, 50th Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering at Stanford University, utilized AI/machine learning to assess both the temperature variation in the Smackover brines and the lithium concentrations. The abstract and some important maps from the paper are shown below. T5’s project area includes Franklin, Titus, and Dallas counties along the northeast corner of Texas.

References:

 

The T5 Smackover Partners Unveiled a Landmark Project in East Texas. Debra John. PR Newswire. February 11, 2026. Clean the Sky - Texas-Based Mineral Projects

T5 Smackover Partners Unveils Landmark Geothermal, Lithium, and Critical Minerals Project in East Texas. Yahoo Finance. February 10, 2026. /C O R R E C T I O N -- T5 Smackover Partners/

T5 Smackover Partners. Website. T5 Smackover Partners

Data-driven Lithium and Geothermal Resource Assessment in the Smackover Formation. Xiang Huang, Bulbul Ahmmed, Mohamed Mehana, Shuvajit Bhattacharya, and Chelsea Neil. PROCEEDINGS, 50th  Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering. Stanford University, Stanford, California, February 10-12, 2025. SGP-TR-229. Data-driven Lithium and Geothermal Resource Assessment in the Smackover Formation