Name of the Project
Lionheart lithium and renewable-energy project.

Location
Upper Rhine Valley, Germany, with the upstream geothermal and lithium extraction plant (G-LEP) in Landau and the central lithium plant (CLP) at the Höchst Industrial Park, Frankfurt-Höchst.

Project Owner/s
Lithium and renewable-energy producer Vulcan Energy Resources.

Project Description
Vulcan Energy Resources is developing Lionheart as an integrated carbon-neutral lithium and renewable-energy project to supply battery-quality lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) to the European battery and automotive sectors.

Phase 1 is targeting production of 24 000 t/y of LHM, enough for about 500 000 electric vehicle batteries a year, with coproduct renewable-energy capacity of 275 GWh/y of power and 560 GWh/y of heat for local consumers over an estimated 30-year project life.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The 2023 Phase 1 definitive feasibility study estimated a pretax net present value, at an 8% discount rate, of €3.9-billion and an internal rate of return of 34%, with a payback of 3.5 years.

Capital Expenditure
Vulcan announced in December 2025 that it had secured a €2.2-billion financing package to fully fund Phase 1 Lionheart. The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to provide €250-million in financing.

Planned Start/End Date
Phase 1 execution started in December 2025. Commercial construction is expected to take about 2.5 years from completion of financing, with first production targeted for 2028.

Latest Developments
Vulcan announced financial close as part of the Lionheart equity and debt financing arrangements in May 2026. The financing package is designed to fund the construction of Lionheart through a combination of arrangements at the project, subsidiary and company level.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Infraserv Höchst (CLP site lease, development, energy and electricity-supply agreements, and contracted supply of power, utilities and services); EIB (€250-million financing); ABN AMRO, UniCredit, Natixis, ING, BNP Paribas, KommunalKredit and OCBC (commercial bank financing participants); and Export Finance Australia, Export Development Canada, Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, Bpifrance and SACE (export credit agency/backing participants).

Contact Details for Project Information
Vulcan Energy Resources, tel +61 8 6331 6156 or email info@v-er.eu.