Khewra Salt Mine: Inside the World's Largest Pink Himalayan Salt Mine
- Zayan Rauf
Key takeaways
- The Khewra Salt Mine in Punjab, Pakistan is the world’s second-largest salt mine and the only commercial source of authentic pink Himalayan salt
- The salt deposits are around 600 million years old, formed when an ancient inland sea evaporated during the Precambrian Ediacaran period
- The mine produces approximately 385,000 metric tons of salt every year, with reserves estimated between 82 and 600 million tons
- Salt is extracted using the room and pillar method — only 50% of the salt is removed, leaving 50% as supporting pillars to keep the mine stable
- All authentic pink Himalayan salt sold anywhere in the world originates from this single mine — no other country has the same geological deposit
All the pink Himalayan salt sold around the world comes from a single mine in Pakistan, the Khewra Salt Mine. It is the second-largest salt mine on earth, located in Punjab Province about 160 kilometers south of Islamabad. The mine sits inside the Salt Range, a hill system formed roughly 600 million years ago when an ancient inland sea evaporated. This guide explains where the mine is, how old its salt is, how the salt is extracted, and why all genuine pink Himalayan salt originates here.
Where Is the Himalayan Salt Mine Located?
The Himalayan salt mine is the Khewra Salt Mine, located in Khewra town, Jhelum District, Punjab Province, Pakistan. The mine sits in the foothills of the Salt Range, a hill system that runs across northern Pakistan.
Despite the name “Himalayan” the mine is not in the Himalayan mountains themselves. The Salt Range is a separate geological formation located south of the Himalayas. The salt deposits were created when a shallow sea covered this region hundreds of millions of years ago and slowly evaporated, leaving thick beds of salt that were later pushed upward by tectonic activity.
Location Detail | Information |
Mine Name | Khewra Salt Mine |
Town | Khewra |
District | Jhelum |
Province | Punjab, Pakistan |
Geological Formation | Salt Range (foothills, southern edge of the Pothohar Plateau) |
Distance from Islamabad | Approximately 160 km south |
Elevation | Around 288 meters above sea level |
How Old Is the Himalayan Salt Mine?
The pink salt at Khewra is estimated to be around 600 million years old. It formed during the Precambrian Ediacaran period, when an inland sea once covered the area that is now northern Pakistan. As that sea slowly evaporated under intense heat, it left behind thick layers of salt that were later compressed and pushed upward by tectonic movement when the Indian and Eurasian plates collided.
This is what makes the salt different from sea salt that is harvested today. The minerals trapped inside the crystals iron, magnesium, potassium, and calcium, came from an ancient ocean, not a modern one. The iron content is what gives the salt its distinctive pink color.
The mine itself has been worked for centuries. Records suggest mining began as far back as 320 BCE, when soldiers traveling with Alexander the Great’s army noticed their horses licking the rocks. Commercial-scale mining started during the Mughal era and was expanded by the British in the 19th century. Today the mine is operated by the Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation.
How Big Is the Khewra Salt Mine?
The Khewra Salt Mine is the second-largest salt mine in the world by output, behind only the Sifto mine in Goderich, Canada. The mine has 19 working levels and extends about 730 meters into the mountain. Tunnels inside the mine total around 40 kilometers in combined length.
Measurement | Value |
Annual Production | Around 385,000 metric tons of salt |
Total Salt Reserves | Estimated between 82 million and 600 million tons |
Salt Purity | Approximately 99% halite (sodium chloride) |
Working Levels | 19 |
Tunnel Length | Around 40 kilometers (combined) |
Depth into Mountain | About 730 meters |
World Ranking | Second-largest salt mine globally |
How Is Himalayan Salt Mined?
Pink Himalayan salt is extracted using the room and pillar method — the same approach used in many underground salt and coal mines worldwide. It is a controlled method that prioritizes mine safety over maximum extraction.
Step 1: Drilling and Blasting
Miners drill holes into the salt walls and place small explosive charges. The charges break the salt away from the wall in large chunks without damaging the surrounding rock structure. Pink Himalayan salt is too hard to be cut with simple tools and too brittle for heavy mechanical cutters.
Step 2: Loading the Salt
Workers hand-pick the broken salt pieces, separating high-quality pink salt from impure or dark-colored chunks. The selected salt is loaded onto small mine carts or conveyor systems that move it through the tunnel network toward the mine entrance.
Step 3: Transporting to the Surface
The carts travel along narrow rail tracks built into the tunnels. Some sections of the mine still use animal carts pulled by mules, while modern sections use small electric locomotives. The salt reaches the surface through the main entrance, there are no deep shafts or elevators because the mine extends sideways into the mountain rather than straight down.
Step 4: Crushing, Grading, and Cleaning
Once outside, the salt is crushed into smaller pieces, sorted by color and grain size, and washed to remove dust and surface impurities. From this point it is graded into categories fine, coarse, extra coarse, food grade, cosmetic grade, and industrial grade and packaged for export.
What Is the Room and Pillar Mining Method?
Room and pillar is a mining technique where miners extract only part of the salt and leave the rest in place as supporting columns. At Khewra, miners take out about 50% of the salt in any given section and leave the other 50% as solid pillars that hold up the roof of the mine.
This method has three main advantages: it keeps the mine structurally safe for workers, it prevents collapses that could damage the deposit, and it allows tourists to safely visit large open chambers inside. The trade-off is that half of the available salt is never extracted but in a deposit this large, that is not a commercial concern.
Why Is Khewra Salt Pink?
The pink color comes from trace amounts of iron oxide trapped inside the salt crystals as they formed millions of years ago. The exact shade varies between mining areas inside Khewra, some sections produce pale pink salt, others produce deep red. White, gray, and clear salt also come from the same mine and are sold for industrial or non-food uses.
The trace minerals in pink Himalayan salt iron, calcium, magnesium, and potassium are real but exist in very small amounts. They do not change the salt’s nutritional value compared to ordinary table salt, but they are what give pink Himalayan salt its distinctive color and the slight mineral note in its taste.
Can Tourists Visit the Khewra Salt Mine?
Yes, the Khewra Salt Mine is one of Pakistan’s most popular tourist attractions, drawing around 250,000 visitors a year. The mine has been developed for tourism with a small electric train that carries visitors into the tunnels, a salt-crystal mosque made from carved pink salt bricks, a salt-crystal replica of the Great Wall of China, and an asthma treatment center where some patients spend time in the salt-rich air for respiratory benefits.
The tourist sections are completely separate from the working mining areas and are open daily. The mine is around a 2.5-hour drive south from Islamabad.
Why Does All Pink Himalayan Salt Come from Pakistan?
No other country has a commercial deposit of the same pink halite formation. The geology of the Salt Range is unique, a 250-kilometer hill system that contains the only large-scale pink salt deposits on earth. Smaller deposits exist in Poland, Iran, and Germany, but none produces pink salt at the volume or color quality found at Khewra. This is why all authentic pink Himalayan salt, whether sold in supermarkets, used by food brands, or supplied to wellness products, traces back to this one Pakistani mine. Sobaan Salts is a certified Himalayan salt manufacturer that sources directly from the Khewra region.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Himalayan salt mine located?
The Himalayan salt mine, properly called the Khewra Salt Mine is located in Khewra town, Jhelum District, Punjab Province, Pakistan. It sits in the foothills of the Salt Range, about 160 kilometers south of Islamabad.
How old is the Himalayan salt mine?
The salt deposits at Khewra are estimated to be around 600 million years old. They formed during the Precambrian Ediacaran period when an ancient inland sea evaporated, leaving behind thick beds of salt that were later pushed upward by tectonic movement.
How is Himalayan salt mined?
Himalayan salt is mined using the room and pillar method. Miners drill and blast small sections of the salt wall, hand-pick the broken pieces, and transport them out of the mine on rail carts. Only 50% of the salt is extracted, the other 50% is left as pillars to support the mine roof.
Who owns the Khewra Salt Mine?
The Khewra Salt Mine is operated by the Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation (PMDC), a state-owned enterprise. Mining licenses for export-grade salt are granted to private companies that source from the Khewra area.
Can tourists visit the Khewra Salt Mine?
Yes. The Khewra Salt Mine is open to tourists daily and welcomes around 250,000 visitors each year. The mine includes a small electric train, a salt-brick mosque, a replica of the Great Wall of China built from salt blocks, and an asthma therapy chamber.
Sources:
- Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation (PMDC) — Khewra Mine Operations: https://www.pmdc.gov.pk/mines/
- Geological Survey of Pakistan — Salt Range geological formation data: https://gsp.gov.pk/
- Punjab Tourism Department — Khewra Salt Mine Visitor Information: https://tourism.punjab.gov.pk/salt-range
- U.S. Geological Survey — Salt Mineral Commodity Summary: https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center/salt-statistics-and-information
- Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) — Salt Sector Report: https://tdap.gov.pk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Report-on-Salt.pdf
- Pakistan Journal of Geology — “Salt Range Stratigraphy and Salt Deposits” (peer-reviewed academic source)
Share This Post
Article By
