Vulcan Energy in 2nd deal with Renault to supply lithium from German project

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Australia-listed lithium developer Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd said on Monday it signed a second supply deal with Renault SA from its German project, sending its shares up 9%.

The announcement came after Vulcan also revealed that it has sought a pause on part of the work at the second phase of its German project, but said it did not anticipate any delays to its development timeline.

Under the latest Renault deal, the French automaker will purchase between 26,000 to 32,000 metric tonnes of battery-grade lithium chemicals from Vulcan for an initial six-year period. Financial terms were not disclosed.

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The second supply agreement between Vulcan and Renault is set to start commercial delivery in 2026 under the deal, Vulcan said in a statement https://vul.live.irmau.com/site/PDF/346fc118-1b04-4c8c-98e0-50cc3534ff14/BindingOfftakeAgreementSignedwithRenault.

Vulcan, which is one of a number of companies testing a direct lithium extraction (DLE) method that uses less land and groundwater, signed a deal in August https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/renault-locks-lithium-supply-vulcan-energy-five-year-deal-2021-08-02 to supply 6,000 to 17,000 tonnes of lithium annually to Renault from its geothermal brine deposits in Germany starting in 2026.

But it has run into opposition from some local municipalities, and has asked Germany’s regulators to pause development work for its second phase of growth while it reengages with stakeholders, it said in a filing on Friday.

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“Vulcan has requested this application review be paused whilst it engages further with local stakeholders to ensure alignment,” it said adding that it did not expect delays to its development timeline. Vulcan’s initial definitive feasibility study is due mid next year.

Research house JCapital flagged the potential for community opposition to derail Vulcan’s operations when it released a short-seller report last month, which Vulcan dismissed as inaccurate and misleading.

Vulcan already has lithium supply deals with Belgian recycling group Umicore and Netherlands-based automaker Stellantis NV, as well as with South Korea’s LG Chem Ltd. Shares traded last at $11.03, up 8.4%.

Lithium is a core component for making lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles. It has gained traction rapidly as the world moves towards cleaner forms of energy. (Reporting by Melanie Burton in Melbourne and Yamini C S in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Cooney and Muralikumar Anantharaman)