性视界传媒

性视界传媒淭he key thing we wanted to tell you is, you guys are sitting on a gold mine.性视界传媒�

That性视界传媒檚 how GeoFrame Energy CEO Bruce Cutright opened a meeting this past month in a packed conference room in Mount Vernon, population 2,500, a half hour east of Sulphur Springs in Franklin County.

He was talking about lithium, the mineral found in almost all modern batteries, from the one nestled in every cell phone, to the banks of lithium ion cells powering electric cars and storing energy for cities across Texas.

Present for the meeting were members of the city性视界传媒檚 government, economic development corporation, residents and the county性视界传媒檚 nonprofit industrial foundation. They sat squashed into a ring of chairs around a conference table inside Alliance Bank.

Many in the crowd had heard the first part of Cutright性视界传媒檚 pitch from other companies seeking to slurp up the lithium rich salt water 性视界传媒� or brine 性视界传媒� two miles beneath them, where the highest lithium concentrations in North America were sampled in 2023.

In fact, Mount Vernon, Franklin County性视界传媒檚 largest city, was a hotbed of resistance to lithium extraction just a year ago, influenced by local battles over battery storage and conflicts in nearby Lamar County where solar arrays extend for miles.

But Austin-based GeoFrame, which incorporated in 2020, appears to have consolidated local support for its project in a way its competitors have struggled to, even turning formerly apprehensive residents into advocates.

The company is offering landowners comparatively high royalties for their brine while putting an uncommon emphasis on transparency in an otherwise tight-lipped industry.

性视界传媒淚 found their attitude of transparency interesting, because that has not been the norm for these companies,性视界传媒� said B.F. Hicks, a local attorney who previously expressed serious concerns about the potential of lithium extraction to damage the area性视界传媒檚 landscape with brine spills.

Promises to create more than 100 local jobs, transform Mount Vernon into America性视界传媒檚 largest single lithium producer and triple the city budget through an influx of tax revenue brought several county and city officials on board, including Mayor Brad Hyman.

An aid for U.S. Rep. Nathanial Moran was in attendance for the April meeting, underscoring the growing federal interest in securing critical minerals amidst a trade war with China, the world性视界传媒檚 largest supplier of lithium batteries.

GeoFrame性视界传媒檚 president Dan Pfeffer 性视界传媒� who co-founded the company alongside Cutright 性视界传媒� said the benefits of the project don性视界传媒檛 end there: 性视界传媒淓verything we do is to avoid environmental impact.性视界传媒�

The extraction plant will power itself with geothermal energy producing zero air emissions; water usage for the company性视界传媒檚 lithium extraction process is supposedly negligible.

If this all sounds too good to be true, Franklin County will find out soon enough. GeoFrame plans to begin hiring this summer and open its initial lithium processing plant by the first or second quarter of 2026.

The company has obtained its drilling operators permit and is hoping to submit its site plan to Mount Vernon officials for review this week or next.

GeoFrame性视界传媒檚 approach

GeoFrame has leased a contiguous block of 8,000 acres from landowners just south of Mount Vernon where a projected total of only four well pads will supply the plant with brine.

Like its Canadian-based competitor, Standard Lithium (also active in Franklin County), GeoFrame is making use of Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) technology, a relatively new approach to separating the battery metal from brines trapped deep underground in the Smackover Formation, which forms a thin vein coursing from Northeast Texas through Southwest Arkansas and beyond.

Multiple wells will branch from each above-ground pad like tree roots. Once the scalding brine is retrieved from 12,000 feet below in the Earth性视界传媒檚 mantle, the excess heat will generate geothermal energy, powering the plant above without external electricity sources, Pfeffer said. And after the reservoir is tapped out (30 to 50 years by GeoFrame性视界传媒檚 estimates), the plant can continue to provide 30 megawatts of geothermal power in perpetuity, the company claims 性视界传媒� enough electricity for approximately 30,000 homes.

The specific process employed by GeoFrame to strip out the lithium is called solvent extraction. It was developed by the University of Melbourne in Australia and licensed by the Australian company Ekosolve, which is a partner on the project.

Residents won性视界传媒檛 see the vast evaporation ponds of Bolivia性视界传媒檚 lithium mines or pits the size of city blocks associated with hard rock lithium mining in Australia and those proposed for the Thacker Pass lithium clay project in Nevada.

性视界传媒淭he fluid that we性视界传媒檙e using, which is just brine, just salty water, goes right back into the ground roughly a mile beneath the aquifer,性视界传媒� Pfeffer said.

The brine processing plant will start small and grow with each of the three phases, all to be completed by early 2029 at the latest. At that point, GeoFrame hopes to produce 85,000 metric tons of lithium a year.

The United State性视界传媒檚 has a lithium demand of around 60,000 metric tons, according industry experts. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Energy under the Biden and Trump administrations has promoted domestic lithium production as a cornerstone of the country性视界传媒檚 future energy security as tensions rise with China.

If GeoFrame性视界传媒檚 production target is achieved, the Mount Vernon project would produce more lithium than any single mine on the continent and almost as much as Standard Lithium advertised for its Arkansas and East Texas operations combined.

性视界传媒淚 think that God has blessed this particular area with an asset that性视界传媒檚 going to raise all the boats,性视界传媒� said Lanny Ramsay, a Mount Vernon attorney. Ramsay sold property to GeoFrame to house the processing plant. 性视界传媒淲hether you own property or not, everybody in this area is going to be improved because of the taxes going to the schools, the counties.性视界传媒�

What about water?

性视界传媒淲e get a lot of questions about water use,性视界传媒� Cutright said, and understandably so given that some DLE processes need large volumes of water to operate.

At the same time, water security has become a galvanizing issue among East Texans, too, with controversial reservoir and pipeline proposals generating immense outrage throughout the Cyprus River Basin.

But GeoFrame is adamant that the water use of its own DLE process will be negligible.

性视界传媒淎t full buildout性视界传媒� we性视界传媒檒l be using the equivalent of about five garden hoses if you left them on each day,性视界传媒� Cutright said.

Some Mount Vernon residents are more concerned about water contamination from spent brine reinjected back into the ground.

LeeAnn Sears is one of them. She性视界传媒檚 a Realtor with Century 21 Butler Real Estate, the primary brokerage on Lake Cypress Springs, the county性视界传媒檚 largest reservoir and water supply and a magnet for summer tourism.

性视界传媒淪o of course we性视界传媒檙e concerned about chemicals being used and reinjected into the ground,性视界传媒� she said, 性视界传媒淏ut I feel a bit better after this meeting. These guys have been so forthcoming with information.性视界传媒�

Minutes earlier, the GeoFrame execs had offered their cell phone numbers to all in attendance.

性视界传媒淚 still think there性视界传媒檚 a lot of research that still needs to be done,性视界传媒� Sears concluded.

Pfeffer said the company性视界传媒檚 Mount Vernon project will neither store brine on the surface as many fracking operations do nor release any effluent into waterways. Their commitment to environmental safety extended below the surface, his co-founder added in a follow up statement to the News-Journal.

性视界传媒淭he production wells will have at least three layers of high-strength steel and concrete between the innermost well tubing and the exterior freshwater aquifers,性视界传媒� Cutright said. 性视界传媒淯pon installation, these wells will be tested to confirm the integrity of the well casings and cement and will have follow-up testing on an annual basis to ensure their continuing integrity.性视界传媒�

As for the pipelines gathering brine from the wells and directing it to the plant, those will be buried underground to prevent accidental damage from a vehicle, a falling tree or East Texas target practice, Pfeffer said, jokingly.

And with Texas struggling to plug thousands of abandoned or so-called 性视界传媒渙rphan性视界传媒� wells left over from oil and gas exploration, mining regulators at the Texas Railroad Commission are requiring all lithium wells to be fully bonded.

That means companies 性视界传媒� rather than local landowners or the state 性视界传媒� are financially responsible for the cleanup of any abandoned wells.

Prepping for boom town

Almost nobody in Franklin County had heard of brine leases when lithium companies began approaching landowners around 2023.

Lithium extraction was certainly new to Ramsay, the Mount Vernon attorney. And the suitors kept lining up. He decided to wait and see how the situation developed before signing a contract, advising his friends and legal clients around the county to do the same and weigh their options.

In GeoFrame, Ramsay and others found a lithium buyer who was willing to negotiate.

性视界传媒淭he (mineral) royalties are the big enchilada with this whole lithium thing,性视界传媒� he said. 性视界传媒淚n other words, what are they going to pay you if they性视界传媒檙e going to produce lithium from your land? GeoFrame was far and away above the others on that.性视界传媒�

Mount Vernon officials saw an opportunity to make the burgeoning battery metal industry work for all residents, too.

性视界传媒淐ities are all always struggling for financing to improve infrastructure,性视界传媒� said Mount Vernon City Manager Craig Lindholm. 性视界传媒淢ost cities, especially older and smaller cities like ours, we have infrastructure in the ground here that性视界传媒檚 100 years old.性视界传媒�

Tax revenue from GeoFrame性视界传媒檚 project is anticipated to triple the city性视界传媒檚 budget. Most of those dollars will go toward preparing tiny Mount Vernon for population growth, at least in the short term, Lindholm said.

City planners recently assessed a housing shortfall of around 350 units over the next five years. That was before the arrival of the lithium industry and the more than 100 new jobs GeoFrame promises to bring. Upgrading services and utilities are an urgent priority as well.

But Mount Vernon性视界传媒檚 budget growth could eventually bring new amenities for residents.

性视界传媒淭hat means improvements in the downtown area, enhancement to the park and amphitheater and recreational opportunities for little kids and older adults. It means pickleball courts,性视界传媒� Lindholm said. Approval for spending decisions is ultimately in the hands of Mount Vernon性视界传媒檚 City Council, however.

Residents and city officials alike shared a common refrain as they chatted at the corner of Mount Vernon性视界传媒檚 quaint downtown after the April meeting concluded.

GeoFrame seemed to intuit something of Franklin County性视界传媒檚 tight-knit community fabric: the fact that everyone talked 性视界传媒� 性视界传媒渁nd most everyone likes each other.性视界传媒�

性视界传媒淭he neat thing about Franklin County, Texas, is that we性视界传媒檙e all swimming together,性视界传媒� Lindholm said.

If the company does cement Mount Vernon as the nation性视界传媒檚 lithium capital, GeoFrame性视界传媒檚 ability to navigate the subtleties of small town life in East Texas could prove to be as pivotal as its approach to extracting brine in hindsight.

Setting aside the lucrative brine contracts he helped broker, Ramsay appreciated an ineffable quality to his interactions with GeoFrame.

性视界传媒淲e just liked the sense we got from them.性视界传媒�