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Fluorspar Mine to Open in Livingston/Crittenden

By Chris Taylor

Salem, KY – A Fluorspar mine is opening in the Pennyrile area and will be the only one found in the US. Cave-in-Rock, Illinois-based Hastie Mining and Trucking Company is investing more than $3 million in Livingston and Crittenden counties to mine fluorspar, also known as calcium fluoride, which is an integral component in steel production. For the past three decades, China has dominated the Fluorspar market, but rising prices have made domestic mining a lucrative option again. The Paducah Sun reports Hastie Mining has begun digging at a site south of U.S. 60 between Salem and Burna in Livingston County, where it expects to extract at least 4 million tons of the ore