STAMPS, Ark.—Global corporations are flocking to southwest Arkansas to invest millions in plants that will extract dissolved lithium from an ancient saltwater sea trapped under the Smackover Formation, a bounty that could generate billions, maybe trillions, of dollars in profits.
The “white gold rush” for the critical mineral essential in manufacturing lithium-ion rechargeable batteries that power modern electronics will create thousands of construction jobs in the coming years, and hundreds of full-time positions in the coming decades across Arklatex—southwest Arkansas, northwest Louisiana, and east Texas.
