Vulcan Energy achieves drilling and permitting milestones at geothermal lithium project in Germany
Groundbreaking ceremony of Trappelberg drilling site (source: Vulcan Energy)
Carlo Cariaga
17 Mar 2026
Vulcan Energy marks progress of the geothermal and lithium project in Germany with a second drilling site and the granting of a lithium production license.
Almost in immediate succession, Vulcan Energy (Vulcan) has announced two notable milestones for their Lionheart, their pioneering geothermal energy and lithium production project in Germany.
Groundbreaking of second drilling site
The company has officially broken ground on the Trappelberg drilling site in the Rohrbach district near Landau. This is the Vulcan’s second drilling site following Schleidberg, where they have already drilled and tested their first geothermal well.
Preparatory work has already begun in Trappelberg in anticipation of the start of drilling by the second half of 2026. So far, construction has been been done on a deep groundwater monitoring well to ensure the protection of near-surface aquifers during construction and drilling operations. Schleidberg and Trappelberg are two of five new drilling sites that Vulcan will develop in the region.
“The groundbreaking ceremony at Trappelberg is an important step in the further development of our Lionheart project. With the new drilling site, we are further developing the geothermal reservoir and creating the basis for a climate-neutral heat supply for the region and sustainable lithium production in Europe,” said Thorsten Weimann, Chief Development Officer & Managing Director of Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH.
Commercial lithium production license secured
Vulcan Energy has also announced that it has received the first official permit for the commercial production of lithium under the Lionheart project. The production license, named LiThermEx, will enable Vulcan to extract lithium on an industrial scale in the Insheim license area and complements the existing permit for the commercial extraction of geothermal energy and the exploration license for lithium.
The production license has initially been granted for six years, but Vulcan is planning for an extension to at least 30 years in line with the development plan of the Lionheart project. The lithium production license in Insheim is the first license of its kind ever granted in the Upper Rhine Graben and in Rhineland-Palatinate. Further lithium production licenses for the remaining area of ??the Lionheart project are also planned.
The Lionheart project has a planned production capacity of up to 24,000 tons of lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) per year, as well as 275 GWh of electricity and 560 GWh of heat. Construction of the integrated geothermal energy and lithium production facility has been underway since December 2025, when Vulcan secured full funding for the project.
“Securing the first lithium production license marks an important milestone on the path to the planned start of commercial production at the Lionheart project in 2028. We thank the Rhineland-Palatinate Mining Authority for their excellent and timely cooperation throughout this process,” said Cris Moreno, Vulcan’s CEO and Managing Director.
“The approval of this license brings us significantly closer to our goal of establishing Europe’s first fully domestic lithium value chain. This also represents a significant step forward for the resilience of critical raw materials in Germany and Europe.”
Source: Vulcan Energy (1 and 2)
