The Australian start-up Vulcan Energy, at the head of Europe’s largest lithium extraction project, plans to expand its activities to France, in the Alsace region, to meet a “strong demand” from its customers, it announced Wednesday in a statement.
“Vulcan is beginning a strategic expansion and development of its Zero Carbon Lithium project in France,” the company said, noting that a first exploration application in the Alsatian region “Les Cigognes”, on 155 km2 east of the town of Haguenau, had been filed in late October.
It is a “natural extension” of its pilot project on the German side, to date the largest in Europe, which aims to use the lithium-rich geothermal waters of the Rhine Graben for “carbon neutral” production, according to Vulcan Energy.
In Alsace, where a third of the Rhine Valley’s lithium deposit is located, “the company will soon file other permit applications,” the press release said.
But it is still “too early for estimates” concerning the total area of exploitation and the quantity of lithium production expected, commented to AFP the French commercial director, Vincent Ledoux-Pedailles.
At the same time, Vulcan Energy intends to supply industry and local municipalities with renewable energy through geothermal energy.
Lithium, a white metal obtained by evaporation of brine – a mixture of water and salts – is an essential component of rechargeable batteries, used in many electric vehicles whose market is expected to benefit from the end of internal combustion engines in 2035.
Today, China is the main supplier of lithium to Europe.
The expansion of Vulcan Energy’s activities in France is mainly the result of “strong demand” from its customers, “eight times higher than what we can offer today”, says Vincent Ledoux-Pedailles.
Renault, Volkswagen, Stellantis (which took an 8% stake in the company in June)… According to him, carmakers, driven by the surge in electric cars, are more “attracted by this decarbonized production approach”.
Energy and water intensive, greenhouse gas emitting, lithium mining is the subject of much controversy around the world, from huge outdoor brine pools in South America to open pit mines in Australia.
Last week, the French company Imerys announced the opening of a lithium mine in the heart of the Massif Central in 2027, the second largest in Europe.
