The Stetten salt mine is one of the oldest and yet most modern salt mines in Germany. In 1852, "Saline Stetten" near Haigerloch, Germany was built as proposed by the Prussian king Friedrich Wilhelm IV.
-
Aerial picture of the above-ground facilities
Production commenced as early as 1854, at first focusing on table and animal feed salt. Following World War I the mine became the property of "Preußischen Bergwerks und Hütten AG," today's Preussag. In 1924, WACKER leased the mine to cover its rising rock salt needs, eventually buying it in 1960.
Today, the Stetten salt mine annually produces some 500,000 metric tons of industrial and road salt. A large portion of the rock salt is shipped to the Burghausen plant for producing silicones, hyperpure polysilicon, organic intermediates and pyrogenic silica.