# Barite

A heavy barium sulfate mineral ground into drilling mud to keep oil and gas wells under control.

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/

Industrial minerals · No. 58

- EU critical 2023
- US critical 2025
- HHI 1,360 · unconcentrated
 Industrial minerals · Foundation · Matter

More than 90% of US barite is ground to powder and poured down oil wells to hold back the pressure.

Chart: Illustration: Barite

##### Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

Barite, barium sulphate, comes from bedded sedimentary deposits and veins, often with fluorite or lead-zinc. Most is dug from open pits, upgraded and ground to a fine powder.

##### Three things to know

1. US barite sales rose in 2025 even as rig counts fell from 599 to 564, because wells are being drilled deeper.
2. Only about 740 Mt of the world's roughly 2 billion t of barite resources have been identified.
3. The EU imports 74% of its barite at the extraction stage and recycles 0% at end of life.

##### The journey

1. 1 **Deposit**Bedded or vein barium sulphate
2. 2 **Mining**Open pits, then hand or jig sorting
3. 3 **Grinding**Crushed to API specific gravity 4.1-4.2
4. 4 **Shipping**Bagged or bulk ground barite
5. 5 **End use**Weighting drilling mud at the well
 Covered in [What makes something a commodityCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/what-is-a-commodity/)

##### Go deeper pick a tab to open it in full

## Other sections

- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/correlation/index.md)
- [Extraction](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/extraction/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/production/index.md)
- [Stocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/stocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/movement/index.md)
- [Criticality](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/criticality/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/barite/links/index.md)