Vulcan Energy has secured approximately €2.2 billion in financing for its Lionheart lithium and renewable-energy project in Germany, moving the development into its construction and execution phase.
The company reached financial close in 2026, following a positive investment decision in late 2025. The project will extract lithium from geothermal brines in Germany’s Upper Rhine Valley, while also producing renewable electricity and heat.
Integrated lithium and geothermal production
Lionheart’s first phase is planned to produce approximately 24,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide monohydrate annually, alongside around 275 GWh of renewable electricity and 560 GWh of renewable heat per year. Vulcan has also secured commercial lithium-production rights at Insheim, where lithium-bearing geothermal brines form part of the company’s resource base. Commercial production from the integrated project is targeted for 2028. Unlike conventional hard-rock lithium operations, Lionheart will pump geothermal brine, extract lithium from the fluid and reinject the brine into the reservoir. The geothermal system will also generate renewable energy for the project.
Construction and technical execution
The €2.2 billion financing package significantly reduces the project’s funding risk, although financing remains subject to conditions covering drawdowns, construction milestones, reserve accounts and expenditure controls.
The development requires wells, geothermal infrastructure, pipelines, lithium-extraction facilities and downstream chemical-processing capacity. Key technical factors include well productivity, reservoir performance, lithium-extraction efficiency, plant availability and processing consistency. Construction will also require coordination between drilling, geothermal systems, lithium extraction and chemical conversion. Cost control will remain important given the scale of the programme and potential changes in equipment, labour and specialist technology costs.
European lithium supply
Lionheart is being developed as Europe seeks to strengthen regional lithium and battery-material supply chains and reduce dependence on imported raw materials and chemicals.
At 24,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide per year, the first phase would establish domestic German production while providing a commercial test of geothermal lithium extraction at industrial scale. The next stage will focus on construction progress, drilling, facility completion, contractor performance, costs and commissioning, with Vulcan targeting the start of commercial production in 2028.
