French geothermal group, Arverne, has reported that the European Commission has designated Lithium de France as a Strategic Project under the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA).
It places the project among a select group of initiatives considered essential to Europe’s industrial and energy independence, it added.
The CRMA sets key targets for 2030, notably aiming for 10% of the EU’s annual consumption of strategic raw materials to be extracted within Europe and 40% to be processed in Europe.
By fully contributing to these objectives, Arverne is supporting the development of a competitive, resilient and sustainable European battery value chain, said Pierre Brossollet, Founder and Chairman and CEO of Arverne.
“This European recognition under the Critical Raw Materials Act, combined with our Notre Dame project status, confirms the essential role of lithium in strengthening Europe’s industrial sovereignty, at a time when demand driven by electrification and energy storage is set to grow at an unprecedented pace over the coming decades,” he said.
“Arverne provides a unique response to this challenge by combining the production of battery-grade lithium with renewable geothermal heat.”
Beyond the latest institutional recognition for its project, the designation represents a powerful catalyst for the development of Lithium de France, according to Brossollet.
He said it increases the project’s visibility among investors, reinforces its strategic importance at European level and opens the way to certain European funding opportunities and regulatory frameworks dedicated to strategic projects.
This European recognition further reinforces Lithium de France’s status as a ‘Grand Projet Stratégique’ (Major Strategic Project), awarded by the President of the French Republic, among 150 major industrial projects intended to become genuine ‘industrial cathedrals’.
“Our ambition is clear: to establish in France one of Europe’s leading low-carbon geothermal lithium projects,” said Brossollet.
“With a targeted production capacity of 27,000 tonnes of lithium per year over 30 years and 2 TWh of renewable heat, we are developing a strategic infrastructure designed to strengthen Europe’s energy and industrial sovereignty.”