SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: Vulcan Energy has agreed to sell 8% shares in the company to Stellantis N.V for A$76M (€50M).
This represents the world’s first upstream investment in a listed lithium company by a top tier automaker.
Stellantis will become the second largest shareholder in Vulcan, at 8% shareholding, following issue of the fully paid ordinary shares at the 30-day Volume Weighted Average Price (VWAP) of A$6.622 (€4.367) per share which represents ~11.450m shares.
Use of proceeds 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.
Vulcan and Stellantis have also extended their binding lithium hydroxide offtake agreement by five years, to 2035.
Stellantis is one of the world’s leading automakers and mobility providers. It has a portfolio of 14 vehicle brands and two mobility companies.
Stellantis was the market leader in the low emission vehicle category (LEV) for Passenger Cars and Light Commercial Vehicles in the main European countries region in Q1 20222.
Aligned with Vulcan’s mission to decarbonise and electrify transportation, Stellantis has one of the largest electrification and decarbonisation plans of any automaker globally, reaching 100% of passenger car battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales mix in Europe by 2030.
In addition, Stellantis also increased planned battery capacity by 140 GWh to approximately 400 GWh, to be supported by five battery manufacturing plants in Europe and North America, together with additional supply contracts.
Vulcan Managing Director Dr Francis Wedin commented: “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, decarbonised 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.”
“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,” said Carlos Tavares,
Stellantis CEO.
“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.”