Steady Demand Leads to Modernizations, Expansions at North American Salt Mines

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Written by Eric Funderburk for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land Texas)

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Summary

Salt miners in the U.S. and Canada are gearing up to modernize and expand their facilities, both at underground mines and those using evaporation techniques.

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Steady Demand

As Winter Storm Fern eases its hold over much of the U.S., one thing seems almost certain--a lot of road salt was spread on roads throughout the storm's area. Mississippi, hardly the most northern locale for Fern's arrival, used 167,800 gallons of salt brine in the state's largest-ever pretreatment operation ahead of the storm, the state's Department of Transportation reported. Most mined salt is used to salt roads, with a much smaller amount arriving on the dinner table or for use in industrial chemical production.

While estimates for 2025 salt production aren't in yet, most market watchers peg the U.S.' 2023 and 2024's salt production at between 40 million and 42 million tons for each year. The U.S. Geological Survey puts Canada's 2023 salt production at 12 million tons.

Despite the strong production, both countries still import salt. The Observatory of Economic Complexity (Boston, Massachusetts) reports that Canadian salt exports were C$179 million (US$130.6 million) from November 2024 through October 2025, while imports during this time accounted for C$245 million (US$178.8 million). Reporting a perceived market gap for potential investors, London-based Crux Investor states that "North American road salt demand is government-mandated and recession-proof. Yet 20-35% of supply, approximately 8 to 10 million tonnes annually, depends on imports from Chile, Egypt, and Morocco."

And as there appears to be a continuous demand from both the U.S. and Canada, resulting in a shortfall for their own needs, salt miners in both countries are performing various upgrades, equipment modernizations and expansions at their mines to ensure steady or growing production.

Three Types of Salt Production

There are three main methods to produce salt; underground rock salt mining, solar evaporation, and solution mining. The names speak for themselves, as underground mining involves sinking a shaft into a salt bed, then using drilling, explosives and/or continuous boring to produce salt. This type of mining primarily produces road salt. Solution mining is often employed when a salt deposit is too deep for conventional mining. Wells are drilled into the deposit, water is injected to dissolve the salt deposits, and the resulting brine is pumped to the surface, where the water is evaporated, resulting in a high-purity product fit for human consumption or industrial applications such as chemical manufacture.

Underground Salt Mine Projects

Compass Minerals (Overland Park, Kansas), one of North America's biggest salt producers, has been at work on a program to rebuild, replace and maintain a fleet of seven continuous miners at its mine near Goderich, Ontario, since 2022. Expected to be wrapping up toward the end of this year, the program will allow the mine to continue its annual production of 6.5 million tons of salt per year, although it is rated for somewhat higher production capacity. Compass claims that the Goderich mine is the largest salt mine in the world. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can learn more by viewing the project report.

Compass later this year plans to replace the 16-foot-high headframe at its 2.2 million-ton mine in Franklin, Louisiana. While that project is expected to be completed by the end of this year, an even larger project at the mine could kick off next year.

Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project reports on the headframe replacement and mine expansion, as well as Compass' 2026 and 2027 preventative maintenance programs at the mine.

One of the largest underground salt mine projects being tracked by Industrial Info is Atlas Salt Incorporated's (Saint George's, Newfoundland and Labrador) planned grassroot mine in Newfoundland. Atlas is planning a mechanized room-and-pillar operation to produce about 4 million tons of road salt over a 24-year mine life. Construction of the mine could possibly begin next year, but the operation would take an estimated two years or more to begin full production. Subscribers can click here to learn more about the project.

North American Solution Salt Mine Projects

North American solution-mining projects are fewer, but one of the major players includes Cargill Salt, a subsidiary of U.S. agricultural and food giant Cargill Corporation (Minnetonka, Minnesota). Since 2024, Cargill has been replacing outdated manufacturing equipment, including that of the evaporation processing plant, at its mine Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. The project could wrap up by end of this year but could potentially bleed over into 2027. Cargill's end goal with the project is to maintain the mine's production of 250,000 tons of salt per year. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project report.

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About IIR News Intelligence
IIR News Intelligence is a trusted source of news for the industrial process and energy markets, powered by Industrial Info Resources' Global Market Intelligence (GMI).

About Industrial Info Resources
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 Trillion (USD).