The German-Australian start-up company Vulcan Energy has worked with the French automaker Renault concluded a lithium supply contract for five years. Vulcan will produce 6,000 to 17,000 tons of lithium annually for the French automobile manufacturer from 2026 geothermal salt deposits in Germany deliver, announced the company on Monday night.
The five-year contract can be extended if both parties agree. Vulcan’s geothermal lithium production process, which does not cause carbon dioxide emissions, was the main reason for the decision, Renault said.
With the switch to electric cars, the demand for the battery raw material is increasing massively. Renault, whose brands Alpine and Dacia include, plans to run 90 percent of its models entirely on electricity by 2030. Using the Vulcan process, hot thermal water is pumped to the surface from thousands of meters below the surface, generating heat and electricity. This can be sold so that the funding costs are covered. The lithium hydroxide can be extracted from the water, which then flows back into the depths, making the process more sustainable than the open pit mining of the silvery white-gray metal.
Vulcan Energy Resources is still in the development phase. By 2024, so it was said a few months ago, Vulcan wants to produce up to 15,000 tons of lithium hydroxide in two plants, from 2025 production is to be expanded to up to 40,000 tons per year.