Two Dallas-area energy players are trying to turn oilfield wastewater into the region's next big battery story, laying out a plan for a chain of lithium carbonate plants across the Midland Basin.
Select Water Solutions and LibertyStream said this week they have struck a deal to build at least four commercial lithium production hubs in West Texas, anchored by a 1,000-tonne-a-year unit at a Select facility in Howard County, just north of Midland. Site preparation for the first plant is slated to start in March, with commissioning targeted for December 2026. Under the agreement, Select will handle pretreatment and provide pipeline access for produced water, while LibertyStream will fund, build and operate the direct lithium extraction and refining units. LibertyStream has also signaled it may shift its corporate headquarters to Dallas as the company gears up for a larger buildout.
Three-Stage Rollout Targets Quick Ramp-Up
The partners are pitching a three-stage buildout. For Stage 1, site work on the first plant is scheduled to kick off in March 2026, with full construction expected in the second quarter and commissioning planned by the end of December 2026. That initial hub is being designed with a nameplate capacity of up to 1,000 tonnes of battery-grade lithium carbonate per year.
Stage 2 is expected to add another similar-sized unit by mid-2027. Stage 3, if it proceeds as described, would layer in at least two additional carbonate facilities spread across Howard, Martin, Midland, Upton and Glasscock counties, according to Select Water.
Using Old Pipelines To Feed New Batteries
Select's existing produced-water pretreatment and pipeline network is the backbone of the plan. The companies say that infrastructure effectively strips out a major pre-treatment step for direct lithium extraction, cutting both upfront capital needs and operating costs. In return, Select is set to receive a royalty on carbonate production rather than own and operate the lithium units itself.
LibertyStream has already run demonstration-scale extraction and refining work in Reeves County and says it has scaled its direct lithium extraction and refining processes over the last 18 months. Those trials are the basis for the partners' argument that they can now move to commercial volumes, as reported by The Midland Reporter-Telegram.
LibertyStream Lines Up A Dallas Move
To match its footprint in West Texas, LibertyStream is pushing a legal and geographic reset. The company has called a special shareholder meeting for March 31, 2026, asking investors to approve re-domiciliation to Texas and the creation of a corporate head office in Dallas as it prepares for commercial operations and a potential U.S. exchange listing.
LibertyStream says the shift would align its legal base with where it expects to spend more of its capital and time. Senior executives moved to Dallas in 2025 to be closer to field operations. According to LibertyStream, the record date for the March 31 vote is February 20, and the information circular is scheduled to go out in March.
Water Volumes, Red Tape And Brine-To-Battery Hurdles
The Permian Basin already turns out staggering volumes of produced water, measured in the billions of barrels each year by multiple assessments. That makes handling, testing and independent verification central questions for any plan to turn brine into battery-grade minerals.
Supporters argue that projects like this could deliver new jobs and a domestic stream of battery materials. Regulators, environmental groups and local reporters, however, have repeatedly pointed out that tight permitting, third-party certification of results and dependable offtake contracts will likely all be required before large commercial shipments materialize. Coverage has flagged both the upside and the oversight challenges for Permian brine projects, as documented by The Texas Tribune and bets Permian wastewater can fuel a new lithium mine.
Site work on the first hub is due to begin in March, and the companies say they will report construction and certification milestones through 2026. The March 31 shareholder vote and any announced offtake deals will be the clearest early signals of whether this concept can really stretch to the four-hub network now on paper. The initial Select-LibertyStream agreement and its timeline were reported by the Dallas Business Journal, and local permitting schedules and contract negotiations will determine how fast Permian brine can be turned into battery-grade product.
