CMP News & Events

Energy Exploration Technologies entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Compass Minerals. Per the agreement, the companies will explore the development of EnergyX's projected 30,000 tons-per-annum commercial-scale DLE and refinery facility near the Great Salt Lake in Utah. Under the terms of the agreement, EnergyX plans to design, fund, construct and operate a commercial DLE and refining facility on land owned by Compass Minerals. The Ogden, Utah, site has been identified as a significant domestic resource of approximately 2.4M metric tons of lithium carbonate equivalent. As per the terms being explored, EnergyX will lease land from and pay a lithium production license fee to Compass Minerals, which will assign to EnergyX its existing lithium infrastructure and bear no capital costs in connection with the project. The concept under consideration would enable EnergyX to develop the project in two phases, with the first up to 10,000 tpa derived from ponds currently used by Compass Minerals for the production of its salt, sulfate of potash and magnesium chloride products. The second phase of an additional potential ~20,000 tpa is to be sourced from upstream brine concentration ponds. Across both phases, lithium will be extracted without incremental withdrawal from the Great Salt Lake. EnergyX plans to invest approximately $400M in the project, taking advantage of its industry-low CapEx costs of $12,500 per ton. The project is expected to create nearly 200 jobs in the region. This development in Ogden would mark a major milestone for EnergyX, serving as the company's second flagship U.S. project alongside its operations in the Smackover Formation of Texas and Arkansas. Together, these projects represent transformative steps toward securing a sustainable domestic supply of battery-grade lithium and strengthening the United States' critical minerals independence. The planned lithium facility in Ogden will be powered by EnergyX's proprietary GET-Lit DLE and refining technologies, supported by more than 140 patents.

This week, during the first visit of a U.S. President to the People's Republic of China since 2017, President Donald Trump reached consensus with President Xi Jinping on several issues. China will purchase at least $17B per year of U.S. agricultural products in 2026, 2027, and 2028, in addition to the soybean purchase commitments that it made in October 2025. Additionally, China "restored" market access for U.S. beef by renewing expired listings of more than 400 U.S. beef facilities and adding new listings. China has also resumed imports of poultry from U.S. states determined by the USDA to be free of highly pathogenic avian influenza. China approved an initial purchase of 200 American-made Boeing (BA) aircraft for Chinese airlines. Publicly traded companies in the space include Andersons (ANDE), Archer Daniels (ADM), Bunge (BG), CF Industries (CF), Compass Minerals (CMP), Intrepid Potash (IPI) and Mosaic (MOS).