Episode 55: Lithium from the Upper Rhine Rift
It sounds too good to be true: Germany could soon cover its entire demand for lithium for battery production itself! In the Upper Rhine Graben, huge quantities of light metal slumber at a depth of about two to four kilometres. There, a rock plain extends over 300 kilometers in length and approx. Our Podcastgast wants to tap into these thermal springs, which are 40 kilometres wide and have hot thermal springs and lithium-containing water.
But from the beginning: In addition to the common battery metals such as cobalt, nickel, copper (and some others), lithium has not yet been mined in Germany. Most lithium currently comes from South America, Australia and China, why? Because it was previously cheaper, available in larger quantities and simply faster on the world market. will change soon: "Vulcan Energy Ressources Ltd." Extracting lithium from the Upper Rhine Graben in the future, and with a CO2-negative result - environmentally friendly conveyor systems. The significantly more sustainable lithium from the Upper Rhine Graben is to be sufficient for up to 400 million electric vehicles (almost all of Europe). Our podcast guest Dr. Horst Kreuter with even more modest figures: "We want to extract 40,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year from 2025. "This is sufficient for the production of batteries for around 1 million electric cars per year," says Dr Kreuter.
Time also plays for Dr Kreuter and his team. The price of one tonne of lithium has risen from around 10,000 to around 60,000 euros in the last two years. The higher the price on the world market, the more profitable the business with sustainable lithium from the Upper Rhine Graben. Kreuter and Vulcan calculate up to their own production start with about 10,000 to 20,000 euros per ton. This even cheaper has three advantages over lithium from South America or Australia: It is cheaper, more sustainable and bypasses global supply chains.
Further link to Vulcan Energy Resources:
