Monday, February 13, 2023

"Vulcan Energy to mine 60% more German lithium than planned"

I thought the Greens in the government were trying to shut this down.

From Mining.com, February 13:

Vulcan Energy Resources (ASX: VUL), one of very few lithium miners in Europe, said on Monday it plans to extract enough lithium to supply up to 500,000 electric vehicles (EVs) a year to help the local industry transition from combustion engines to battery powered.

The Australian miner now aims to produce 24,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) per year by 2027, according to the definitive feasibility study for the first phase of its CO2-free lithium project in the Upper Rhine Graben.

The figure represents a 60% increase when compared to the preliminary feasibility study’s 15,000 tonne estimate.

The Perth-based company is also aiming to raise €1.5 billion ($1.6bn) for capital expenditure — double previous estimates — to expand the extraction of lithium hydroxide and build commercial plants for its yet to be validated technology. 

Vulcan noted its production costs per tonne of lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) will be around €4,359 ($4,663 p/t). This compares to a cost per tonne of over €5,000 ($5,345) in other regions “such as Latin America,” it said.

The company said the estimations were based on technical data from its operating geothermal plants and lithium pilot facility....

....MUCH MORE

Our outro from September 2022's "Which country produces the essential metals for clean energy?":

....There's lithium in Germany. it seeps into the Rhine but the Green's don't want to use it.

They may be trying to keep the Dutch downstream calm.

Or something.

And previously:
"Germany plans to mine boiling-hot lithium deep beneath the Rhine River"

Peugeot, Jeep, Dodge, Maserati-Maker Stellantis: New Models, New Sources of Lithium (STLA)
Stellantis, the world's fourth-largest automaker with brands that include Jeep and Peugeot, has signed memorandums of understanding for lithium supply with geothermal brine projects in California and Germany, according to two sources.....