Stellantis, a global mobility player with 14 brands including Vauxhall, Peugeot, Fiat, Citroën, Jeep, and Toyota Motor Europe, and Controlled Thermal Resources Ltd. (CTR) have announced a €50 million (A$76 million) equity investment in Vulcan Energy Resources.
As a result, Stellantis will become the second largest shareholder in Vulcan, the Australia-based energy metals exploration company, and the initial agreement extended to 10 years.
The equity investment will go towards Vulcan’s planned production expansion drilling in its producing Upper Rhine Valley Brine Field (URVBF). Vulcan is already producing geothermal energy from its URVBF and plans to produce lithium hydroxide with zero fossil fuels and net zero carbon footprint as part of the Zero Carbon Lithium Project.
Carlos Tavares, Stellantis CEO, said: “Making this highly strategic investment in a leading lithium company will help us create a resilient and sustainable value chain for our European electric vehicle battery production.
“We continue our quest of forming strong relationships with partners who share our values as we collectively fight against global warming and provide clean, safe and affordable mobility to our customers.”
This latest investment from Stellantis will increase the low-carbon production of lithium hydroxide needed for Stellantis’ European production of electric vehicles (EVs).
Dr Francis Wedin, Vulcan managing director, said: “Stellantis’ significant investment in Vulcan and the Zero Carbon Lithium Project represents a strong statement by one of the world’s largest automakers regarding sustainable and strategic sourcing of battery materials.
“We are fully aligned with Stellantis’ decarbonisation and electrification goals, which represent some of the most ambitious in the industry. It is encouraging to see a leading automaker investing in local, low carbon lithium production for electric vehicles.
“As our largest offtaker, we look forward to deepening our relationship with Stellantis as a substantial shareholder in Vulcan and our Zero Carbon Lithium business.”
As part of the Dare Forward 2030strategic plan, Stellantis announced plans of reaching 100 percent of passenger car battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales mix in Europe by 2030. Plus, 50 percent of passenger car and light-duty truck BEV sales mix in the United States by 2030.
