Vulcan Energy (ASX:VUL) has secured a permit to build and operate its Central Lithium Plant in Germany, a key component of the company’s Lionheart Project in Germany.
The facility, which will be located at Industrial Park Höchst, is designed to produce battery-quality lithium hydroxide monohydrate. This marks a significant step for the company’s first phase of the project.
The lithium plant will combine production of carbon-neutral lithium and renewable energy from deep geothermal brine, decarbonising lithium production and contributing to Europe’s critical raw materials independence.
Vulcan, which has a market capitalisation of $909.59 million, received the permit during an official handover by the Darmstadt Regional Council district President Jan Hillgardt at the Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimisation Plant in Frankfurt.
CEO Cris Moreno says securing the permit is a step towards development of a domestic lithium supply chain for Germany and the European Union.
“We are making substantial progress in our aim to establish a sustainable, domestic and cost-effective source of lithium for the European battery and automotive industries, supporting the European Union’s goal of reducing critical raw material dependencies,” Moreno says.
During phase one, the plant will have the capacity to provide up to 24,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) per year for European industries. This production capacity is expected to be enough to produce 500,000 electric vehicle (EV) batteries per year.
In phase two, the production and storage units of the plant can be expanded.
Separately, the grant pre-condition deadline to finalise the rest of the project financing has been extended until 31 December 2025. The grants are designed to enable strategic domestic lithium production and processing to service European EV battery production.
As part of finalising financing arrangements, amendments have been made to the offtake agreements with Vulcan’s offtake partners, including Umicore (EBR:UMI), LG Energy Solution (KRX:373220) and Stellantis (NYSE:STLA).
Vulcan Energy is focused on building the world’s first carbon neutral, integrated lithium and renewable energy business to decarbonise battery production.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Vulcan Energy
