Annual Report • Mar 26, 2025
Annual Report
Open in ViewerOpens in native device viewer

Empowering the European Energy and Mobility Transition
2024
This Annual Report (Report) forms part of the Company's Annual Reporting Suite for the period 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024. The Annual Reporting Suite includes the Annual Report, Sustainability Report, Group Management Report (Konzernlagebericht) and Corporate Governance Statement. The Annual Report covers Vulcan's operations, including those under exploration and development and those operated through subsidiaries, as well as our strategic approach to sustainability.
The Annual Reporting Suite includes our Sustainability Report for 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024, developed with reference to industry standards. The Double Materiality Assessment has been conducted with the assistance of global consultancy firm, ERM. The sustainability data provided in this Report has not been externally assured.
Vulcan is dual listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), and the regulated market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE), in the Prime Standard market segment. Consistent with the regulatory and reporting obligations of the FSE, Vulcan's Annual Reporting Suite also includes the Group Management Report (Konzernlagebericht). The Konzernlagebericht has been prepared in accordance with the Deutscher Rechnungslegungs Standard Nr. 20 (DRS 20).
All references to Vulcan Energy Resources, Vulcan, the Company, Vulcan Group, or the Group are in reference to Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ABN 38 624 223 132) and its subsidiaries.
All information and references in this Report are related to the full financial year, 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024, unless otherwise stated. For any questions about Vulcan's approach, please contact [email protected] or visit https://v-er.eu
Currency is expressed in Euros (€) unless otherwise stated. An average AUD/EUR exchange rate of 0.61 has been used in the Annual Reporting Suite for the financial year ended 31 December 2024.
This Report contains certain forward-looking statements. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "may", "will", "expect", "intend", "plan", "estimate", "target", "propose", "anticipate", "continue", "outlook" and "guidance", or other similar words.
By their nature, forward-looking statements inherently involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance and achievements to be materially greater or less than estimated, including those generally associated with the lithium industry and/or resources exploration companies. Any such forward-looking statements, opinions and estimates in this Report (including any statements about market and industry trends) are based on assumptions and contingencies, all of which are subject to change without notice, and may ultimately prove to be materially incorrect. Forward-looking statements are provided as a general guide only and should not be relied upon as, and are not, an indication or guarantee of future performance.
Neither Vulcan nor any of its directors, officers, agents, consultants, employees or advisors give any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the fairness, accuracy, completeness or correctness of the information, opinions, forward-looking statements and conclusions contained in this Report.
This Report has been approved for release by the Board of Directors.
| About Vulcan4 | Directors' report 23 |
|---|---|
| Our location | Remuneration report |
| 6 | 36 |
| Chair's message | Auditors independence declaration |
| 9 | 59 |
| CEO's message | 60 |
| 10 | Financial statements |
| 2024 key milestones | Independent auditors report |
| 12 | 134 |
| Operating review | ASX additional information |
| 14 | 138 |
| 18 | Corporate directory |
| Corporate overview | 143 |
| Our approach to sustainability | 144 |
| 20 | Appendix |
| 2024 sustainability snapshot 21 |
We acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which Vulcan's Australian office is situated, the Whadjuk-Noongar people. Vulcan recognises their continuing connection to this country and pays respect to elders, past and present. Vulcan operates principally in the Upper Rhine Valley of Germany and France, an area of rich cultural heritage and local peoples. Vulcan cherishes this cultural inheritance and takes all steps necessary to preserve and protect cultural heritage in its operations.

Vulcan's 100% owned Insheim Geothermal Power Plant and wells (operating)
1
Geox well site and Lithium Extraction Optimisation Plant
2

Schleidberg - Vulcan's next production well site
4
Aerial shot of part of Vulcan's upstream Phase One Project area in the Landau region, including the Natürlich Insheim geothermal renewable energy wells and plant, location of the Lithium Extraction Optimisation Plant (LEOP), commercial Geothermal and Lithium Extraction Plant (G-LEP) and the Schleidberg well site.
Vulcan is building the world's first carbon neutral, integrated lithium and renewable energy business to decarbonise battery production. Vulcan's Lionheart Project (Project)1 , located in the Upper Rhine Valley Brine Field bordering Germany and France, is the largest lithium resource in Europe2 and a tier-one lithium project globally.
Harnessing natural heat to produce lithium from sub-surface brines and to power conversion to battery-quality material and using its in-house industry-leading technology VULSORB®, Vulcan is building a local, low-cost source of sustainable lithium for European electric vehicle batteries.


Becoming Europe's leading sustainable lithium business and enabling energy security through geothermal energy.
| LITHIUM | HEAT | POWER |
|---|---|---|
| TECHNOLOGY | ||
| TEAM | INNOVATION | SUPPLY CHAIN |
| A world-leading scientific | Adapting existing | Strategically placed in the |
| and commercial team | technologies to efficiently | heart of the European EV |
| in the fields of lithium | produce lithium from | market to decarbonise the |
| and geothermal energy. | geothermal brine. | supply chain. |

We will pioneer a carbon neutral future. We stand up for what truly matters.

We are eager to succeed and determined to shape tomorrow. We tackle any challenge in front of us.

We are united in our passion for a better world. We rise and inspire ourselves and others.
The Upper Rhine Valley Brine Field (URVBF) is a brine producing geothermal field which contains Europe's largest lithium resource (according to public, JORC-compliant data) 3 . It includes an estimate of 27.7 million tonnes (Mt) of contained lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE)4.
The URVBF is a large, 300 km-long graben system with consistent geothermal lithium reservoirs in sedimentary rock. It is a well-known mature field with multiple chemical parks and more than 1,000 existing wells.
Vulcan's Phase One Lionheart Project is located within the centre of the URVBF, where Vulcan already has some existing operational geothermal wells, and is adding more to increase production as part of the Phase One development.
In addition to high lithium grades, the URVBF's geothermal brine reservoir is capable of generating renewable heat. The process of pumping brine to the surface at a geothermal plant generates renewable heat which can be used or sold directly or used to produce electricity. Because of its natural conditions, the URVBF is a particularly well-suited location for the operation of geothermal plants.
The location of the Company's dual-purpose geothermal lithium project, in the heart of Europe's automotive and emerging battery industry, gives the Project the potential advantage of a very short product transport distance, as well as the ability to electrify product transportation.
Vulcan holds 17 granted licences in the URVBF, for a total secured licence area of 2,234km². This allows Vulcan to grow production in a phased manner.
For more information, please go to https://v-er.eu


5 Refer to the Competent Person Statement within the Appendix of this Report. Please also refer to the risk factors contained in the Prospectus dated 18 December 2024, including those risks associated with resource exploration and development projects.

The Company is aiming to build an integrated renewable energy and lithium production business using sustainably heated lithium brine and converting it into sustainable lithium chemicals – the end product of which is V-LiON™, Vulcan's sustainable lithium product, and a core component in electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
Lithium production is currently CO2 intensive. V-LiONTM has been designed as a solution to this problem. Vulcan's proprietary, high-performance lithium adsorbent technology, VULSORB®, combined with a renewable heat source, allows for highly efficient, low cost and carbon neutral lithium production.
The V-LiONTM product is targeted to have the lowest carbon footprint of any lithium production globally, producing high purity lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) that is suitable for use in EV batteries.
Phase One of the Lionheart Project aims to supply approximately 24,000 tonnes per annum of V-LiONTM -branded LHM from its first phase of production for Europe's EV supply chain, enough for production of 500,000 EVs per annum, and supply approximately up to 560 GWh of renewable heat and up to 275 GWh of electricity annually (refer to the Competent Person Statement in this Report).


Our value chain
5 Refer to the Competent Person Statement within the Appendix of this Report. Please also refer to the risk factors contained in the Prospectus dated 18 December 2024, including those risks associated with resource exploration and development projects.

Throughout the 2024 reporting period, the Company made substantial progress on both project execution and the financing of our Phase One Lionheart Project. Led by Managing Director and CEO, Cris Moreno, and Vulcan's highly experienced leadership team, the Company has been a standout performer during a challenging year in global lithium markets.
As 2025 unfolds, Vulcan is well positioned for the future with its inherent low-cost advantages, fuelled by renewable energy co-production and technological edge in the ability to produce lithium from brines.
As the Company continues its planned transition towards the construction and production phase of the Project, I would like to thank outgoing Directors, Mr Gavin Rezos, Ms Ranya Alkadamani, Ms Annie Liu and Mr Mark Skelton, for their invaluable contributions to the Vulcan Board over several years, and extend a warm welcome to incoming Directors, Mr Angus Barker and Ms Felicity Gooding. The Vulcan Board will always continue to evolve to meet the needs of our rapidly growing business and is well positioned for the next phase ahead of us.
Vulcan's overarching strategy is to produce sustainable, premium lithium chemicals for the lithium-ion battery industry, with co-production of geothermal renewable heat and power, from naturally heated sub-surface brines containing lithium. Vulcan leverages renewable heat in the brine, both to drive down its cost of lithium production, but also to provide to local businesses and communities as a coproduct, and as an additional source of revenue. We see our lithium product, branded V-LiONTM, as a premium product for the European electric automotive industry.
Vulcan's strategy has also been to develop in-house the Adsorption-type Direct Lithium Extraction (A-DLE) technology it requires for its Project. A-DLE sorbents can be bought off-the-shelf and have been used in the industry for 28 years. However, as A-DLE technology is increasingly being favoured by larger companies seeking to build low-cost production, we have recently seen geopolitical moves to restrict access for Western companies to use this technology.
This validates Vulcan's early investment in creating an in-house A-DLE technology division, VULSORB®, with its Western sorbent supply chain providing an important derisking effect. VULSORB® is also a strategic asset beyond our project area, as one of the few Western companies to have this capability.
Under the leadership and expertise of Cris Moreno and Felicity Gooding, Vulcan made significant strides during 2024 towards the goal of completing financing for the Phase One Project and starting construction. The Company raised €40m in equity from strategic investors including Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd (HPPL) and CIMIC Group (CIMIC), and I thank both of these investors for their ongoing support. In December, we received conditional Board approval from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and substantial conditional commitments from Export Finance Australia (EFA) and a number of commercial banks. This was in addition to significant public funding support awarded by the German Federal Government of €100m, which was very welcome. Further, we announced the successful completion of a fully underwritten institutional placement which raised €100m from the issue of ~28 million new, fully paid ordinary shares, while also announcing a Share Purchase Plan to eligible retail shareholders. Maintaining forward momentum has always been a key differentiator for Vulcan.
On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank all our shareholders once again for their steadfast support on this exciting and rewarding journey. I look forward to the OneVulcan team continuing to deliver shareholder value, while growing a world-leading lithium chemicals and renewable energy business.
Executive Chair


I look back on 2024 with great pride, recognising both the challenges we have faced and the outstanding milestones we have achieved. These achievements are testament to the dedication, effort and commitment of our OneVulcan team, shareholders, partners and government stakeholders, whose commitment has been instrumental in progressing the Lionheart Project.
The safety and well-being of our team, contractors and visitors to site is of utmost importance. During the reporting period, the Company recorded one lost time incident (LTI) a significant reduction from the previous year which reflects the ongoing improvement to our safety policies and procedures.
Our OneVulcan team fundamentally drives the developments and milestones achieved and we are united in our mission to become Europe's leading sustainable lithium business and enabling energy security through geothermal energy. Throughout the reporting period, we have attracted a number of skilled professionals from operational and commercial backgrounds to ensure the appropriate mix of expertise as we move forward with the Project. Pleasingly, Vulcan achieved strong levels of diversity in terms of nationality in 2024, with the Company's workforce spanning 38 nationalities.
2024 was the year we proved the technical feasibility of Europe's first fully domestic lithium supply chain from brine to battery-quality material. In April 2024 we produced our first lithium chloride at our upstream Lithium Extraction Optimisation Plant (LEOP) in Landau. Then in November 2024, we celebrated the production of the first fully sustainable lithium hydroxide at the Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimisation Plant (CLEOP) in Frankfurt-Höchst, which co-incided with the plant's official opening.
We also continued to progress our Phase One financing. In June we secured €40m from strategic investors including Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd and CIMIC Group and in December 2024, we announced the successful completion of a fully underwritten institutional placement which raised €100m from existing and new institutional investors.
Vulcan also secured an €879m conditional debt commitment with Export Finance Australia and seven commercial banks to finance Phase One of the Project and the Board of the European Investment Bank conditionally approved up to €500m in financing. Vulcan's green credentials were recognised with our Green Financing Framework receiving a Dark Green rating — the highest ever for a metals and mining company globally, following an independent assessment by S&P Global Ratings.


Also, the strategic importance of our Project was recognised through the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection approving up to €100m for the HEAT4LANDAU Project6 . These developments highlight Vulcan's leadership in sustainable financing and are a major endorsement of our vision and impact.
Strategically, we formed several key partnerships this year, including completion of Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management (EPCM) validation with Sedgman and HOCHTIEF and signing memoranda of understanding with both ABB and JordProxa, for Phase One. In November, we also announced an exciting collaboration with BASF to explore geothermal energy as a solution for base load power at their Ludwigshafen site, while also looking to grow a future phase of lithium production.
While 2024 was a transformative period in the history of the Company, we remain steadfast in our focus and determination to deliver on the following objectives in 2025:


I would like to thank the entire Vulcan community – my fellow Directors, OneVulcan team, partners and you, our shareholders - for your support throughout 2024. As we enter a new phase of growth and development, I look forward to sharing many more milestones with you over the course of the year.
Managing Director and CEO

6 Funded by the European Union - NextGenerationEU. The expressed Views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.

Start of production (SOP) of lithium chloride (LiCl) at Vulcan's Lithium Extraction Optimisation Plant (LEOP) on 11 April 2024. The SOP followed three years and more than 10,000 hours of successful in-house A-DLE piloting.

The first lithium hydroxide produced from the processing of high purity lithium chloride concentrate extracted from brines at Vulcan's upstream optimisation plant, representing the first sustainable lithium hydroxide fully domestically produced in Europe, in one integrated supply chain.

The Company opened the plant on 8 November 2024 in a ceremony attended by several local, national and international guests from politics and industry, including Deputy Prime Minister of Hessen, Mr Kaweh Mansoori, and Australian Ambassador to Germany, Ms Natasha Smith.

The Board of the EIB approved its participation in the Phase One debt financing process, with the financing potentially amounting to up to €500m (~A\$819m), pending completion of final due diligence, signing of legal documentation and final internal approval.

Export Finance Australia (EFA) and seven commercial banks executed a conditional commitment letter, together with a credit pre-approved term sheet setting out the key terms and conditions of the proposed debt financing.

The Company successfully completed a Placement which raised €100m. Proceeds from the Placement, along with the €4.8m raised from existing shareholders via the Share Purchase Plan, provides sufficient working capital for the Company to finalise its full strategic equity and debt project financing package.
Investments totaling €40m received from strategic investors including Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd (HPPL) and CIMIC Group (CIMIC), demonstrating strong support for the lithium value chain globally and for the execution of Phase One of the Project.

The validation work for the EPCM contract for Phase One was completed by CIMIC company Sedgman and HOCHTIEF during the reporting period, including a review of scope, cost and schedule.

The Company was awarded €100m from the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK) and the European Recovery and Resilience Facility via the German Recovery and Resilience Plan (the BEW Funding) for its HEAT4LANDAU Project7 .


Geox is the owner and operator of geothermal wells and renewable energy generation assets in Landau, Germany, with the acquisition by Vulcan to consolidate and simplify ownership of the Phase One Lionheart Project's upstream renewable energy and lithium assets.

The Company signed a partnership agreement in November 2024 with BASF - one of the world's largest chemical producers - to collaborate on the development of a renewable heat project to supply BASF with baseload heat from a future phase of production.
The signing of the MoU with ABB focuses on the electrical and automation delivery requirements of Vulcan's Phase One Project, while the MoU with JordProxa is for the technology and process components for the lithium extraction plant and central lithium plant of the Project.

The Council voted with a substantial majority in favour of the land development plan for the industrial estate containing Vulcan's planned Phase One Geothermal and Lithium Extraction Plant (G-LEP) location. Furthermore, the Company signed an option agreement with the Council in November 2024 to secure the property for the upstream geothermal and lithium plant for Phase One.
In conjunction with the Company's environmental, social and governance co-ordinator, Natixis CIB, the Green Financing Framework was completed and assessed by leading international ratings agency, S&P Global. The Framework was awarded Dark Green status, the highest ever received by a metals and mining company globally.

The Company made several appointments at the executive and Board level during the reporting period. Ms Felicity Gooding was appointed to the role of Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in January 2024 and Executive Director on 1 January 2025, and Mr Angus Barker was appointed Non-Executive Director in September 2024. Both Ms Gooding and Mr Barker bring substantial commercial experience, including large-scale project financing, and mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, and strategic advisory, respectively.
7 Funded by the European Union - NextGenerationEU. The expressed Views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.
During the reporting period, the Company recorded one lost time incident (LTI) and maintained a zero-fatality record. Committed to a zero-harm culture, Vulcan continues to prioritise the safety and well-being of its employees, contractors, stakeholders and communities.
Vulcan's German subsidiary, Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH, also maintained the ISO 45001 (occupational health and safety), ISO 14001 (environmental management) and ISO 9001 (quality management) certifications.
Throughout 2024, Vulcan focused on core initiatives to drive Vulcan's safety culture, including:

The total licence area increased following the granting of lithium and geothermal energy licences in the Alsace region of France. This licence area of 463 km2 expands Vulcan's licence area from 1,771 km2 to 2,234 km2 in the URVBF between Germany and France8 .
The Company reports on its estimates of Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves in compliance with the JORC Code, the ASX Listing Rules, German Securities Trading Act, European Regulation No. 596/2014, and other applicable regulations.
The Company's Resource and Reserve estimates are estimated, reviewed and signed off by external consultants and Competent Persons GLJ Ltd9 .
During the reporting period, Vulcan's operating Natürlich Insheim geothermal plant and wells generated approximately 18,500 MWh of renewable electrical energy, avoiding 7,284 tonnes of C02 equivalent emissions (location based) or 5,990 tonnes of C02 equivalent emissions (market based) on the grid. These avoided emissions are not included in Vulcan's current carbon neutral certificates.
The Natürlich Insheim plant has the capacity to produce up to 4.8 MW of renewable power. There are two operating wells located at this plant, one for production of the 165°C hot brine and one for reinjection of cooled brine. The wells were drilled between 2008 and 2010. The plant has been in operation since 2012.
To underline Vulcan's commitment to play a leading role in the German heat transition, Natürlich Insheim is currently being redesigned to be able to produce district heating in the future as well. This will allow the supply of carbon neutral district heating to nearby municipalities.
The GEOSMART Project also concluded during the reporting period. Co-funded by the European Union, Vulcan Energy, and 18 other partners from across Europe, the GEOSMART Project was established to develop and demonstrate solutions for the geothermal energy sector. As part of the initiative, the Company installed a thermal energy storage system in September 2024 at the Natürlich Insheim geothermal renewable energy plant, designed to deliver reliable, baseload geothermal renewable heating to local communities.
Vulcan signed an agreement to finalise the consolidation of the Company's ownership of upstream Phase One lithium and renewable energy assets with the conditional 100% acquisition of Geox Gmbh. Geox is the owner and operator of geothermal wells, renewable energy generation assets and a geothermal and lithium licence around the City of Landau, co-located with Vulcan's lithium optimisation plant. Once completed, the conditional acquisition will replace an existing JV agreement and will allow for more efficient operation of Phase One, alongside Vulcan's other upstream operations.
Increasing brine production from deep wells to augment Vulcan's existing brine production is a key part of Phase One, with the Company's first new well site located at Schleidberg, near Landau, Germany.
During the reporting period, the Schleidberg well site preparation continued with the well pad and crew camp construction preparation completed, and access roads constructed.
In December 2024, the Special Operation Plan for drilling and monitoring the first new wells at the Schleidberg well site was approved, together with approval for the mobilisation of Vulcan's electric V20 drilling rig to the well site.

A key element of Vulcan's integrated sustainable lithium and renewable energy project strategy is the design and construction of its lithium optimisation plants.
Vulcan's optimisation plants consist of two operations: the Lithium Extraction Optimisation Plant (LEOP), near Landau, Germany, and the Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimisation Plant (CLEOP), located just 130 kms north in Industrial Park Höchst, Frankfurt, Germany.
On 10 April 2024, Vulcan started production of the first lithium chloride product at LEOP, heralding the first lithium chemicals domestically produced from a local source in Europe, for Europe. The plant is showing strong results with consistently over 90% (up to 95%) lithium extraction efficiency from its Adsorption-type Direct Lithium Extraction (A-DLE) unit, replicating what Vulcan has seen in its lab and pilot plant operations, and in line with its commercial plant expectations and financing model.
On 7 November 2024, Vulcan commenced lithium hydroxide production towards product qualification at the Company's downstream CLEOP, representing the first sustainable lithium hydroxide fully domestically produced in Europe, including upstream raw material, in one integrated supply chain.
The plant was officially opened on 8 November 2024 in a ceremony attended by several local, national and international guests from politics and industry, including Deputy Prime Minister of Hesse, Kaweh Mansoori, and Australian Ambassador to Germany, Natasha Smith, highlighting the significance of the occasion to Germany, greater Europe and Australia.
Throughout the reporting period, progress continued on Phase One execution, including engineering works for remaining Phase One areas, as well as the establishing of new partnerships.
The Company successfully completed its validation work for the Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management (EPCM) contract for Phase One. The EPCM validation was carried out by CIMIC company and German headquartered, Sedgman and HOCHTIEF, which has a leading position in Europe and a rapidly expanding presence in energy transition and sustainable infrastructure markets.
The validation included a review of scope, cost, and schedule, validating the Bridging Engineering Study, with no material increase in capital requirement and schedule duration and allowing finalisation of preparations for EPCM award. Importantly, there were only minor adjustments to specific estimates, confirming accuracy of the initial projections and timeline.
The Company and the City of Landau signed an option agreement on 26 November 2024 to secure the property in the D12 development plan in the City of Landau. The reservation of the area in the Am Messegelände Südost Industrial Park represents a step towards the implementation of the planned integrated geothermal and lithium plant. This plant will provide carbon neutral heat and sustainable lithium for the region, while also making an important contribution to the energy transition.
The Company also entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with JordProxa for the technology and process components for the Lithium Extraction and Central Lithium Plants for Phase One.
The LEOP and CLEOP serve as training facilities for Vulcan's production team, ensuring operational readiness for the start of commercial production. The CLEOP will also serve as a product testing and qualification facility for its offtake partners.

JordProxa, an Australian headquartered international company, is a leader in custom water processing, crystallisation and evaporation plant and systems, playing a key role in meeting the challenges of high purity, sustainability, and value to meet the increasing demand for lithium-ion and other battery metals.
The partnership has the dual objective of delivering the Phase One Lionheart Project on time with improved cost performance, and optimisation for the lithium process portion of the project development.
Vulcan also signed an MoU with multinational electrical engineering company, ABB, on the electrical and automation delivery requirements of the Project. ABB is to identify, develop and propose the best solutions to the electrical and automation portion of the Phase One Project development, in optimising processes, shortening delivery times, and reducing and improving cost performance.
During the reporting period, the Company also announced a partnership with NORAM Electrolysis Systems (NESI), a global leader in the environmentally favourable process of producing battery grade LHM through electrolysis. Under the agreement, NESI applies its proprietary NORSCAND® Electrolysis Technology to Vulcan's downstream CLEOP facility, using electricity to force the necessary chemical reactions to produce battery-quality lithium.
The Company also entered into an MoU with industrial software provider, AVEVA, to establish a digital framework for Phase One. Under the terms of the MoU, Vulcan will leverage AVEVA's expertise to future-proof its information systems architecture, facilitating project execution and engineering integration.
Vulcan continues to develop its licence areas in a phased approach. After Phase One Lionheart, further phases are planned to fully leverage the large, exclusive licence area that Vulcan has secured in the URVBF.
Key to this strategy is the staged agreement with BASF to collaborate on the development of a renewable heat project to supply BASF with baseload heat (refer to Phase One Lionheart Project development). Vulcan will seek to replicate this model across the URVBF across all its licence areas, building affordable renewable heating production for local stakeholders to decarbonise European industry and the public heating sector, and aiming to add additional sustainable lithium production to the resulting renewable heat infrastructure.
The Company is also planning to further expand its activities on the French side of the URVBF, which accounts for roughly one third of the URVBF, containing both geothermal energy and lithium-rich brine. Historical data and sampling coming from existing geothermal operations in the region indicate brine composition in Alsace, France, is materially the same as the brine composition across the border at Vulcan's operations in Germany.
During the reporting period, the Company was granted its first lithium and geothermal energy licences in the Alsace region of France. The five-year licences encompass several large industrial areas with factories and chemical parks in Mulhouse requiring renewable energy and sustainable heating solutions. This includes a factory owned by Stellantis, Vulcan's largest customer and a major shareholder. Vulcan is already in discussions with potential investment partners about participation in Vulcan's French licences.
The Company also has a heat offtake agreement for 240 to 350 GWh per annum of renewable heat with MVV, the energy provider of the City of Mannheim. Discussions continue with the City of Mannheim in relation to the terms of its heat offtake agreement, including the start date, following indications it wishes to increase the heat supplied under the terms of this agreement. Additionally, the licence was extended for a further three years.
Discussions regarding further heat offtake agreements were also conducted within the Ried and Taro licence areas, including with Neustadt an der Weinstraße as part of the latter. Sourcing a suitable land plot for a production well site to provide geothermal brine production is intended to form part of this agreement, pending permitting approvals.
An agreement with the mining authority of Rheinland-Pfalz and the regional mining authority, Regierungspräsidium Freiburg, and most of the local mayors has been reached within the Ortenau licence area. This will allow the commencement of a 3D seismic survey, with work also progressing on a jointly organised subsequent public information campaign, financing proposal and permitting work.

Throughout 2024 the Company advanced its project financing process. In June €40m was raised from strategic investors including Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd and CIMIC Group and in December 2024, Vulcan announced the successful completion of a fully underwritten institutional placement raising €100m from existing and new institutional investors.
In December Vulcan also secured an €879m conditional debt commitment with Export Finance Australia and seven commercial banks to finance Phase One of the Project and the Board of the European Investment Bank approved up to €500m in financing.
The Company has applied for several grant schemes which it believes it is well positioned to receive based on its sector-leading economic and sustainability credentials. During 2024 the Company was awarded €100 million from the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK) and the European Recovery

and Resilience Facility via the German Recovery and Resilience Plan (BEW Funding) for its HEAT4LANDAU Project10.
The Company also secured a €10 million short-term credit facility with BNP Paribas during the reporting period to provide interim flexibility before financing completion.
The consolidated entity is organised into three operating segments based on geographical location: Germany, other European countries, and Australia.
These operating segments are based on the internal reports that are reviewed and used by the Key Management Personnel (who are identified as the Chief Operating Decision Makers, or CODM) in assessing performance and in determining the allocation of resources.
There is no aggregation of operating segments. The CODM reviews EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation).
The accounting policies adopted for internal reporting to the CODM are consistent with those adopted in the financial statements. The information reported to the CODM is provided on a monthly basis.

10 Funded by the European Union - NextGenerationEU. The expressed Views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.

The Company is committed to complying with the highest standards of corporate governance to ensure all of its business activities are conducted fairly, honestly and with integrity in accordance with all applicable laws. To achieve this, the Company's Board of Directors (Board) has adopted a number of charters and policies which aim to ensure that value is created while accountability and controls are commensurate with the risks involved.
As a company admitted to the official list of the ASX, the Company is subject to the Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations published by the ASX Corporate Governance Council Fourth Edition (Recommendations).
Each year the Company is required to give the ASX a Corporate Governance Statement, which sets out the extent to which the Company has followed the Recommendations.
The Board believes that the Company's policies and practices materially comply with the Recommendations and, as Vulcan continues to grow, the Company will regularly review its corporate governance policies, practices and controls, so this compliance is not only maintained but enhanced.
Vulcan continues to build its corporate documentation pyramid which includes the following policies:
On the Company's website can be found a full copy of the Company's corporate governance policies and charters: https://v-er.eu/corporate-directory-governance/, and its most recent Corporate Governance Statement: https://v-er.eu/information-for-investors/
The Board of Directors considers the Company has established corporate governance policies and procedures that are appropriate in light of the Company's size, nature and activities.
Sustainability is the cornerstone on which Vulcan was founded and we are committed to being a leader in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives and reporting. Vulcan's diverse team comes from all over the globe, and is united by a common mission to become Europe's leading sustainable lithium business and enabling energy security through geothermal energy.
Vulcan is deeply committed to achieving its objectives and continuously enhancing its approach to sustainability over the long term. In the 2024 year, the Company continued to make significant strides in advancing Vulcan's sustainability agenda. Priority focus areas included fulfilling key financing requirements, enhancing understanding of climate-related risks, improving GHG accounting, and establishing a strong foundation for developing the Company's long-term sustainability strategy through detailed materiality and risk assessments.
Activities to progress Vulcan's 2024 sustainability agenda included:
Vulcan was once again recognised by sustainability ratings agency Morningstar Sustainalytics as an ESG Industry Top Rated company in early 2025, validating the Company's strong ESG practices and providing important endorsement for attracting investment.
The results of the Double Materiality Assessment will be integrated into Vulcan's business strategy to ensure sustainability considerations are embedded into decision making processes, business planning and reporting.
In 2025, Vulcan will complete its qualitative physical and transition climate-related risk assessment, financially quantify material risks, and identify applicable mitigation and adaptation measures. Identified material risks will be incorporated into Vulcan's enterprise risk management register.
To support its ongoing commitment to climate change action and a low carbon future, the development of a decarbonisation roadmap for the Phase One Lionheart Project is under consideration to address residual GHG emissions within Vulcan's operational control. To accompany this roadmap, Vulcan will work towards setting science-based emissions targets in 2025.


company
feedback received from updated publicly disclosed ESIA indicating broad community support
for the HEAT4LANDAU** Project towards renewable heating supply for communities

* Under the GHG Protocol Methodology, there are two methods available for calculating Scope 2 emissions – emissions from purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling. The location-based method reflects the average emissions intensity of grids on which energy consumption occurs.
**Funded by the European Union - NextGenerationEU. The expressed Views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.

| 2024 Targets | Target achieved | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Complete EU CSRD-aligned materiality assessment |
Double Materiality Assessment completed giving clearer oversight of priority sustainability topics |
|
| Carry out pre-assurance assessment for EU CSRD readiness |
No longer applicable due to the EU Omnibus | |
| Conduct Board member training on climate risks |
Board training conducted on CSRD, CSDDD, and the Supply Chain Act including climate risks |
|
| 20 health, safety and environment (HSE) leadership rounds per month |
39 HSE leadership rounds11 completed. Management has acknowledged this is an unsatisfactory result however, there has been no observable negative impact to health and safety performance To increase the rounds in 2025, Vulcan has assigned targets to individual employees, ensuring leadership rounds are tracked per person and not per site |
|
| Score all new suppliers according to ESG criteria |
All new suppliers have been scored against ESG criteria |
ESG targets will support the Company's sustainability performance and Company purpose with progress routinely monitored and regularly reported. We are committed to the continuous development of our sustainability strategy, ensuring its seamless integration into our core business operations. Vulcan is actively setting future medium-term and longer-term sustainability targets, aligned with the Company's strategic objectives, and will be implementing robust measures to track our progress. Our goal is to drive transformative, sustainable growth and operational excellence across all facets of our organisation. Below are our short-term targets for 2025.
| Sustainability targets | Timeframe | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Environment | Zero significant environmental incidents | Annual | ||
| Achieve 100% debt financing and close out environmental action plan | 2025 | |||
| Commence commercial delivery of renewable heat to local communities | 2025 | |||
| LCA updated at each study phase and commencement of operations | As scheduled | |||
| Phase One Lionheart Project physical climate change risk assessment | 2025 | |||
| Social and safety | Zero work-related fatalities | Annual | ||
| Year-on-year improvement of lost time injury frequency rates | Annual | |||
| Zero significant community incidents | Annual | |||
| 20 HSE leadership rounds | Monthly | |||
| Deliver 100% debt financing social action items to plan | 2025 | |||
| Governance | Sustainable supply chain assessments and process for all major suppliers | 2025 | ||
| Minimum 40% female board representation | Annual | |||
| Appointment of Lead Independent Non-Executive Director | 2025 | |||
| Ecovadis sustainability ratings assessment | Annually from 2025 |
11 HSE leadership rounds are visits by the executive leaders to Vulcan's work sites with briefings by the HSE Team. These rounds are important to maintain engagement with executives on health and safety issues.
The Directors of Vulcan Energy (Vulcan or 'the Company') present their report, together with the financial statements of the consolidated entity consisting of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited and its controlled entities for the year ended 31 December 2024.
12 Ms Felicity Gooding was appointed as an Executive Director on 1 January 2025. 13 Mr Angus Barker was appointed Non-Executive Director effective 13 September 2024; appointed Lead Independent Director, Deputy Chair, People and Performance Committee Chair and Nominations Committee Chair, effective 1 January 2025. Finance and mining Investment banking and government Ms Felicity Gooding12 Executive Director and Group Chief Financial Officer Mr Angus Barker13 Non-Executive Director Renewable energy Ms Josephine Bush Non-Executive Director, Audit, Risk and ESG Committee Chair Battery materials and renewable energy Dr Francis Wedin Executive Chair Energy and chemicals Mr Cris Moreno Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Chemical engineering Dr Heidi Grön Non-Executive Director Chemicals and renewable energy Dr Günter Hilken Non-Executive Director, Projects Oversight Committee Chair Investment banking Mr Gavin Rezos (retired December 2024) Non-Executive Deputy Chair Mining and energy Mr Mark Skelton (retired February 2024) Non-Executive Director Energy and battery materials Ms Annie Liu (retired September 2024) Non-Executive Director Media and communications Ms Ranya Alkadamani (retired December 2024) Non-Executive Director, People & Performance Committee Chair, Nominations Committee Chair
The names of the Company's Directors in office during the financial period and at the date of this Report are as follows12. The Board considers Ranya Alkadamani, Dr Heidi Grön, Angus Barker13, Annie Liu, Josephine Bush, Mark Skelton and Dr Günter Hilken as independent directors during FY24.
The following table sets out each current Director's relevant interest in shares and performance rights of the Company as at the date of this Report and based on publicly available information.
| Director14 | Ordinary shares |
Performance rights |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Francis Wedin | 16,458,561 | 125,724 |
| Mr Cris Moreno | - | 521,308 |
| Ms Felicity Gooding | - | 272,945 |
| Mr Angus Barker | 25,128 | - |
| Ms Josephine Bush | 40,367 | 4,298 |
| Dr Günter Hilken | 4,745 | 9,492 |
| Dr Heidi Grön | 10,398 | 4,298 |
| Total | 16,539,199 | 938,065 |
The principal activities of the Company during the year were geothermal energy and lithium development in Europe.
14 Former Directors Mr Gavin Rezos, Ms Ranya Alkadamani, Ms Annie Liu and Mr Mark Skelton retired during the financial year.


The names and particulars of the Company's Directors in office during the financial year and at the date of this Report are as follows. Directors held office for the entire period unless otherwise stated.

Executive Chair PhD & BSc (Hons) Geology & Mineral Exploration, MBA in renewable energy
Dr Wedin is a battery raw materials industry executive, with an international career spanning four continents and multiple commodities. Dr Wedin founded the Project in Germany and, as CEO from 2019 to 2023, was instrumental in driving Vulcan Group's growth. Dr Wedin was previously Executive Director of successful ASX-listed Exore Resources Ltd (ASX: ERX), where he defined and developed the Lynas Find Lithium Project, subsequently bought by Pilbara Minerals to become part of its Pilgangoora Lithium Project, now in production (ASX: PLS). Dr Wedin has a PhD and BSc (Hons) in geology and mineral exploration, and an MBA in renewable energy. He is a Fellow of the Geological Society, London, and a member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.

Cris Moreno
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer BASc (Hons) BChE (Hons)
Mr Moreno has over 20 years' global experience in successfully delivering major projects, including in the lithium chemicals, cathode, upstream E&P and LNG sectors. In the LNG sector, he held senior leadership roles with Santos, Woodside, and Shell, including working on the Browse, Gorgon and Prelude LNG projects. Prior to joining Vulcan Group, Mr Moreno worked in the lithium chemicals and battery cathode sector in Europe, as Senior Director for Northvolt's Cathode Active Material (CAM) business unit, and as Founding Executive & Vice President of Engineering and Development for Aurora Lithium. Mr Moreno has successfully been part of, and led, green start-up companies, taking them from pilot scale into commercial production.

Executive Director and Group Chief Financial Officer BCom (Accounting and Finance), Chartered Accountant
Ms Gooding is a Senior Finance executive and leader with over 20 years' experience in strategic and financial analysis, debt funding, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, management and financial accounting and governance in Australia, Singapore, London, and Washington D.C. Her experience has been gained across multiple industries relevant to Vulcan including energy, mining and infrastructure. Most recently Ms Gooding was CFO and Global Head of Commercial at Fortescue Future Industries, where she led the finance team, including the specialist project financing team responsible for securing finance to enable financial investment decisions for green energy projects.

Non-Executive Director BCom (Hons) Economics, Finance
Mr Barker is Deputy Chairman and Lead Independent Director of Vulcan Energy Resources, Chairman of rare earths and uranium company Australian Rare Earths and a Director of listed investment company WAM Capital. Prior to this, he served as Chief of Staff or Senior Adviser to Australian Government ministers in the key economic portfolios of trade and investment, and superannuation and financial services. Previously, he held senior executive roles at top-tier global investment banks across Australia, the United Kingdom and Asia, including 12 years based in Hong Kong. He holds a Master of Philosophy from the University of Cambridge and a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) from the University of Melbourne.

Non-Executive Director CTA, MA (Hons) Law, CFA ESG investing, Sustainable Finance Certification
Ms Bush is a qualified solicitor, and chartered tax adviser, as well as earning the CFA ESG investing qualification and a sustainable finance certification. She has an MA in Law from Cambridge University. Ms Bush was a senior partner at EY for 14 years specialising in the renewable energy sector. She built and led the UK and Ireland Renewables Tax Practice, led on market-leading transactions such as structuring for the initial public offerings of several environmental yieldcos, and developed the EY global renewables business plan. She was a member of the Ernst & Young Power and Utilities Board and UK&I Governance Board. Ms Bush is also a NED on the Next Energy Solar Fund (FTSE250) Board and within the Investment Committee and Valuations Committee of Gresham House's British Sustainable Infrastructure Fund.

PhD in Organic Chemistry, master's degree in chemistry
Dr Hilken has over 35 years' experience in the German chemicals, renewables and infrastructure investment sectors and in leading industry advocacy associations, and in the German Government at the state and federal level. Dr Hilken's experience and connections help Vulcan Group ensure that geothermal energy becomes a foundation of Germany's supply of sustainable and secure renewable energy as Germany diversifies away from local carbon-based energy sources and Russian energy. Dr Hilken is also a member of the Board of the German Federation of Industrial Energy Consumers (VIK) as well as a former Director of Currenta and member of the Supervisory Board of Currenta. He was previously CEO of Currenta for nine years, held senior executive roles with Bayer in Germany, the US, Canada and Asia, and was a member of the supervisory board of RWE Power AG.

PhD Chemical Process Engineering, Dip. Chemical Engineering
Dr Grön is a chemical engineer and accomplished business leader with 24 years' experience in the chemicals industry. Since 2007, Dr Grön has been a senior executive with Evonik in various commercial, technical and general management roles. At Evonik, she has been responsible for production, technology, asset digitalisation, OT security, and global product stewardship, and is currently transitioning to her new role as Senior Vice President & General Manager of the Business Line Oil Additives at Evonik.

Non-Executive Deputy Chair B.Juris, LLB, BA, Law, Economics, International Politics)
Mr Rezos has many years of Australian and international corporate, project finance and investment banking experience and is both a former Head of Legal and Compliance across multiple countries for the HSBC Group and an investment banking Director of HSBC Group with regional roles during his career based in London, Sydney and Dubai. Mr Rezos has held chair, board and CEO positions of companies in the materials, technology and resources sector in Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States and Singapore and was formerly a non-executive director of Iluka Resources and of Rowing Australia, the peak Olympics sports body for rowing in Australia. He is principal of Viaticus Capital.

BA Media, Communication, Media Studies, MA International Relations & Affairs, MA International Communicationst
Ms Alkadamani holds a Master of International Relations and International Communications and a Bachelor of Media from Macquarie University. Ms Alkadamani is currently Founder and CEO of Impact Group International, a strategic communications consultancy focused on advice to impact investors, philanthropists and innovative social impact programs. Ms Alkadamani works extensively in the impact investment space in Australia and internationally and has a strong network of clients and investors in the clean energy and renewables sector. She is also a non-executive director of Australian Associated Press, Australia's only independent newswire. Ms Alkadamani was formerly Strategic Communications and External Affairs Director of Andrew Forrest's Minderoo Foundation and Minderoo Group, Press Secretary to former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd during his time as Australian Foreign Minister and a spokesperson for the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Non-Executive Director BEng Industrial Engineering & Operations Research
Ms Liu is the Chief Strategy Officer at Mangrove Lithium, the first independent lithium refining plant in North America using Clear-LiTM electrochemical technology aiming to produce battery-quality lithium in 2025. Ms Liu founded Alto Group Inc, a trusted advisor to many of the world's influential businesses in the EV value chain. Ms Liu is also currently a Non-Executive Director with ASX Listed Alpha HPA Limited. Ms Liu was the Executive Director at Ford (Model E) from 2022 to 2023. Prior to her role at Ford, Ms Liu forged and managed Tesla's multi-billion-dollar strategic partnerships and sourcing portfolios that support Tesla's Energy and Battery business units including Battery, Battery Raw Material, Energy Storage, Solar and Solar Glass, including raw materials sourcing efforts such as lithium for battery cells. Earlier in her career, she held various leading manufacturing and procurement roles at Microsoft and Sun Microsystems launching advanced technology products. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

Non-Executive Director BSc (Hons), Mechanical Engineering
Mr Skelton has more than 35 years' experience including a 29-year tenure at BP and then at Fortescue Metals Group in multiple project director and senior management roles. As a senior leader and advisor with a proven record in delivering major projects, business transformation and developing organisational capability within the mining, energy and oil and gas industries, Mr. Skelton has extensive project experience in Australia and internationally. He holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours), Mechanical Engineering from the University of Greenwich and is a Chartered Engineer registered by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (UK).

The number of Board and Committee meetings held during the year and the number of meetings attended by each Director is contained in the table below.
| Full Board | Audit, Risk and ESG Committee |
People and Performance Committee |
Project Oversight Committee |
Nomination Committee |
|||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attended Eligible | to attend |
Held | Attended Eligible | to attend |
Held | Attended Eligible | to attend |
Held | Attended Eligible | to attend |
Held | Attended Eligible | to attend |
Held | |
| Dr Francis Wedin | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Cris Moreno | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Angus Barker19 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | - | - | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Josephine Bush | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | - | - | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Dr Günter Hilken | 6 | 7 | 7 | - | - | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 320 | 3 |
| Dr Heidi Grön | 6 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 320 | 3 |
| Gavin Rezos15 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | - | - | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Ranya Alkadamani18 | 7 | 7 | 7 | - | - | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | - | - | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Annie Liu17 | 5 | 5 | 7 | - | - | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | 5 | - | - | 3 |
| Mark Skelton16 | - | - | 7 | - | - | 5 | - | - | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | - | - | 3 |
Josephine Bush I Chair Gavin Rezos15 Dr Heidi Grön
Ranya Alkadamani18 I Chair Annie Liu17, Angus Barker (following Ms Liu's resignation) and Gavin Rezos15
Dr Günter Hilken I Chair (following Mr Skelton's resignation), Dr Heidi Grön and Mark Skelton16 (Chair until his resignation on 1 February 2024)
Ranya Alkadamani18 I Chair Gavin Rezos15 and Josephine Bush, as well as a representative from the Projects Oversight Committee
In addition to the scheduled Board and Committee meetings, Directors regularly communicate by telephone, email or other electronic means, and where necessary, circular resolutions are executed to affect decisions.
15 Gavin Rezos retired effective 31 December 2024.
16 Mark Skelton retired effective 1 February 2024.
17 Annie Liu retired effective 13 September 2024.
18 Ranya Alkadamani retired effective 31 December 2024.
19 Angus Barker appointed Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair; People and Performance Committee Chair and Nominations Committee Chair from 1 January 2025.
20 Dr Hilken and Dr Grön were to represent the Project Oversight Committee on the Nomination Committee subject to requirements.

The composition of the Board is to be reviewed regularly against the Company's Board skills matrix, which is prepared and maintained by the Nominations Committee, or, in its absence, the Board, to ensure the appropriate mix of skills and expertise is present to facilitate successful strategic direction and to manage and leverage new and emerging business and governance issues.
| Experience | Knowledge and skills |
|---|---|
| Corporate leadership Successful experience in CEO and/or other senior corporate leadership roles. |
Strategic expertise Setting and reviewing strategy and/or business development. |
| International experience Senior experience in multiple international locations. |
Marketing and communications Media, stakeholder communication, investor relations, public relations. |
| Resources or technology industry experience Relevant industry (resources, energy, power, mining, exploration, processing) experience. |
Risk and compliance Risk management and mitigation experience. |
| Other Board level experience Membership of other listed entities (last three years). |
Capital markets Capital raising, mergers and acquisitions. |
| Capital projects Major resources capital project development and management. |
Corporate sustainability ESG strategy development and associated corporate decision making frameworks, ESG goal/target setting and oversight. |
| Environmental Proven experience with climate change policy, sustainability, and carbon reduction. |
|
| Social Positive human resource management. |
|
| Governance Relevant exposure to controlling and operating organisational procedures and processes. |

Chief Representative Germany and Board advisor PhD in Geology
Dr Kreuter is a highly experienced businessman and engineering geologist, with an extensive and distinguished record of project development and consulting in the geothermal sector. Dr Kreuter is co-founder of the Phase One Lionheart Project, alongside Dr Francis Wedin. Prior to Vulcan, Dr Kreuter spent over 15 years as leader of GeoThermal Engineering GmbH, a consulting firm based in Karlsruhe, with work extending both domestically and internationally. Notably, Dr Kreuter was actively involved in countries such as Tanzania, Turkey, Italy and Indonesia.

Company Secretary and General Counsel Bachelor of Laws, Bachelor of Commerce
Mr Tydde is an experienced corporate lawyer with circa 20 years' experience across a wide range of corporate, commercial and finance areas including corporate regulatory compliance; corporate governance; equity and debt capital raisings; asset and share sales and purchases; initial public offerings; corporate restructuring and reorganisations; and litigation. Prior to joining Vulcan, he held a senior position at Steinepreis Paganin and, prior to that, worked at Clayton Utz and Phillips Fox (now DLA Piper). Mr Tydde holds a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Notre Dame Australia.
Lithium prices are subject to unpredictable fluctuations, driven in part by changes in the balance of global supply and demand as well as international, economic and geopolitical trends and developments. Any material decrease or significant volatility in the price of, or demand, for lithium could have a detrimental effect on the Company's business, its ability to raise equity and debt finance and share price.
As the Company does not currently generate significant revenue, significant external funding will be required to continue current operations and support further implementation of the Project. Should Vulcan be unable to enter into the envisaged financing agreements or to comply with the terms of the existing financing arrangements or those financing agreements it intends to enter into with various lenders at the project level or to obtain additional financing as needed on acceptable terms or at all, it may need to abandon its development plans or reduce and/or change their scope which may, in turn, adversely affect operations. Moreover, the amount of capital required in future phases will be determined and refined as the Company advances the Project. In particular, as the Company has not completed a DFS in relation to any subsequent phases, there remains significant uncertainty regarding the funding requirements beyond Phase One.
Vulcan operates along a value chain to extract and produce lithium and, as a result, faces risks along the entire value chain. Current and expected future operations of Vulcan include a broad range of activities including exploration, appraisal, development and possible lithium production.
These activities may be affected by a range of factors, including the acquisition and/or delineation of economically recoverable mineralisation and heat, geological conditions, receiving the necessary approvals from all relevant authorities and parties, seasonal weather patterns and workforce availability, as well as risks arising from unanticipated technical and operational difficulties encountered in extraction and production activities, mechanical failure of operating plant and equipment, shortages or increases in the price of consumables, spare parts and plant and equipment, cost overruns, access to the required level of funding and contracting risk from third parties providing essential services, the COVID-19 pandemic and any other possible future outbreaks of diseases or pandemics as well as the Russia-Ukraine Conflict and its repercussions.
Geopolitical developments, changes and updates of trade and public health policy and developments of defence and security policy of the US, Russia, China and other countries have adversely affected, and may continue to adversely affect, the availability and price of equipment, components and energy, supply chains, international trade, financing conditions and the global economy at large, which may have a detrimental effect on the Company. In its current phase, Vulcan is sensitive to geopolitical developments, changes and updates of trade policy and developments of defence and security policy of the US, Russia, China and other countries. The Company is reliant on the availability, steady supply and the stability and/or predictability of the prices of equipment and components, some of which need to be shipped longway or from overseas. As a result, it is dependent on stable supply chains, open seaways and favourable trade policies for deliveries of equipment and components.

The Resource and Reserve estimates relating to the Company's current and future projects are subject to certain assumptions and interpretations which may prove to be inaccurate. Any material deviations may result in alterations to development plans which may, in turn, adversely affect the Company's operations. Technical studies (such as prefeasibility studies and definitive feasibility studies) are often used to demonstrate the technical and economic viability of a mineral deposit. Technical studies are subject to material uncertainties, in particular for projects in the exploration and correspondingly early phases, such as the case for Vulcan.
There is no guarantee the Company will be able to obtain all required approvals, licences, permits and land for lithium and geothermal renewable energy production in time or at all. The Company currently holds all exploration licences required to undertake its exploration programs, and a geothermal production licence at the Insheim Plant. Permitting for Phase One of the Project area is a carefully planned and iterative process through to project execution. However, many of the lithium and geothermal energy rights and interests held by the Company are subject to the need for ongoing or new governmental approvals, licences and permits as the Project advances and the scope of operations change. No guarantee can be given that approvals, licences, or permits will be maintained or granted (at all or in a timely fashion), or, if they are maintained or granted, that the Company will be in a position to comply with all conditions that are imposed or that they will not be challenged by third parties.
The Company's geothermal projects are subject to climate change risks. While one of the primary purposes of the Project is to avoid carbon emissions in the lithium supply chain, there are a number of climate-related factors that may affect the operations and proposed activities of Vulcan. Climate change may cause certain physical and environmental risks that cannot always be reasonably predicted by the Company, including events such as increased severity of weather patterns and incidence of extreme weather events, as well as longer-term physical risks such as shifting climate patterns. In particular, higher temperatures prevailing over increasing periods of time, as a result of anticipated global warming, may negatively impact the efficiency of the processes in geothermal plants used in the energy production business of the Company.
The Company may lose its directors or other key personnel or may be unable to recruit or retain qualified personnel for key positions. Without such directors or key personnel Vulcan may not be able to successfully manage, develop and operate its business. While Vulcan's strong environmental ethics have proven to be an effective recruitment tool to date, there can be no assurance the Company's efforts to retain and motivate its directors and key employees or attract and retain other highly qualified technical personnel will continue to be successful. In order to achieve its strategic goals, the Company is targeting a significant increase in the number of staff over the next three to five years as it is planned to transition to an execution and production company.
The Company's operations involve the use of heavy machinery, gas and chemical substances. Any technical or human error could harm physical integrity, life or property and, as a result, could have a material adverse effect on the business, results of operations, prospects and reputation. While the Company has implemented a variety of health and safety measures to help prevent damage to individuals or property arising from its construction, drilling and transport activities and use of heavy machinery or handling of chemicals, such activities are distinctly complex and inherently risky.
The Company may fail to maintain the integrity of its IT systems and successfully protect them against potential cyber-attacks, security breaches or other instances of intentional or unintentional disruption. Vulcan uses, collects and stores multiple types of data including personal data. The integrity, availability and reliability of such data may be subject to intentional or unintentional disruption. Given the increasing sophistication and scope of potential cyberattacks, these attacks could result in significant security breaches that could compromise sensitive information and financial transactions or cause systems to be unavailable for a period of time. The Company's IT department has implemented several risk mitigation processes to protect the Company and its stakeholders from the possibility of a cyber security breach.
There were no significant changes to the state of affairs other than those noted elsewhere in this Report.
Group CFO Felicity Gooding was appointed Executive Director, and Non-Executive Director Angus Barker was appointed as Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair, both effective 1 January 2025. Mr Barker also assumed the role of Chair of the People and Performance Committee (PPC) on 1 January 2025, along with non-executive directors Josephine Bush and Dr Günter Hilken who will also be appointed as new PPC members. Mr Barker has also replaced Ranya Alkadamani as Chair of the Nominations Committee, and joined the Audit, Risk and Environmental, Social and Governance (ARESG) Committee, which is chaired by Josephine Bush, on 1 January 2025.
On 13 January 2025, the Company announced the production of the first battery-quality lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) at the downstream optimisation plant, by processing high purity lithium chloride concentrate extracted from brine at the upstream A-DLE optimisation plant in Landau, Germany. This represents the first fully integrated, battery-quality LHM produced in Europe, from resource to final product.

The Company's Share Purchase Plan (SPP), announced in December 2024, closed on 20 January 2025. Under the SPP, shareholders validly subscribed for ~€4.9m (~A\$8m) new fully paid ordinary shares in the Company at an offer price of A\$5.85 per SPP share.
The Company announced the start of execution works on its integrated Phase One renewable energy and lithium project on 4 February 2025, with mobilisation of its V20 drilling rig to the Phase One Schleidberg well site near Landau, Germany.
The Ludwigshafen City Council and Frankenthal City Council unanimously approved the start of the seismic campaign for a future phase of development, in the joint development area (designated Ludwigsland) with BASF. These decisions were made on 13 January 2025 and 21 January 2025 respectively, marking the first major milestone in Vulcan and BASF's joint project.

The Directors have considered compliance with the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007 which requires entities to report annual greenhouse gas emissions and energy use if over certain facility or corporate group thresholds. The Vulcan Group did not meet these thresholds for 2024 but does voluntarily report annual greenhouse gas emissions. The Australian operations of the Company have been certified as carbon neutral under the Australian Climate Active initiative since 2020, the German operations, including VEE and VES have been certified carbon neutral since 2021. The German operations were certified under South Pole for 2021 and certified under Climate Impact Partners for 2022. During the Period, Vulcan together with ERM completed its Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) for Phase One, noting multiple positive impacts of the Project, including renewable heating provision for local communities, and carbon neutral lithium production to decarbonise the lithium supply chain, in a world leading first for the industry. ESIA is in line with lenders' requirements to ensure a level of environmental performance prior to the furnishing of debt finance and is, together with ESMP, integrated into the project level debt and equity financing process.
No person has applied to the Court under section 237 of the Corporations Act 2001 for leave to bring proceedings on behalf of the Company, or to intervene in any proceedings to which the Company is a party, for the purposes of taking responsibility on behalf of the Company for all or part of these proceedings.
The Company has indemnified the Directors and Executives of the Company for costs incurred, in their capacity as a director or Executive, for which they may be held personally liable, except where there is a lack of good faith.
During the financial year, the Company paid a premium in respect of a contract to insure the Directors and Executives of the Company against a liability to the extent permitted by the Corporations Act 2001. The contract of insurance prohibits disclosure of the nature of the liability and the amount of the premium. The Company has not, during or since the end of the financial year, indemnified or agreed to indemnify the auditor of the Company or any related entity against a liability incurred by the auditor.
During the financial year, the Company has not paid a premium in respect of a contract to insure the auditor of the Company or any related entity.
There are no officers of the Company who are former partners of RSM Australia Partners.


The Remuneration Report outlines the remuneration arrangements for the Vulcan Energy Resources Limited (Vulcan, or the Company) Key Management Personnel (KMP) for the year ended 31 December 2024 (FY24) in accordance with the requirements of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (the Act) and its regulations. This information has been prepared in accordance with section 300A and audited as required by section 308(3C) of the Act.
The Remuneration Report is presented under the following sections:

On behalf of the Board and the People and Performance Committee (PPC), I am pleased to present the 2024 Remuneration Report.
People are at the heart of Vulcan. For our current and prospective employees, a career at Vulcan offers an opportunity to put the just transition into action – to be part of a multidisciplinary team with strong career paths, to be part of the movement from the brown to the green sector, and to make a contribution to the buildout of robust local supply chains in a critical mineral essential to the European mobility transition.
FY24 was a year of significant progress as Vulcan advanced toward becoming a key supplier of sustainable lithium and renewable energy for Europe. With major project milestones achieved, a substantial quantum of financing locked in, and the necessary regulatory approvals in place, we are now well positioned for the next phase - delivering on execution and production.
In that light, the PPC assessed FY24 remuneration outcomes, with a focus on ensuring executive pay reflects performance, business progress, and market competitiveness.

Key developments included:
This year, to improve our market competitiveness, particularly in the German market where annual awards are most often made wholly in cash, awards under the annual incentive program for 2024 no longer have an additional year of service condition. Accordingly, and to better describe the nature of these annual awards, given there is no longer a deferral feature, we have changed their name from Annual Deferred Incentive (ADI) Awards to Short Term Incentive (STI) awards.
The STI program delivered an average award outcome of 97% for the Vulcan Team. This high level of payout, relative to just 41% the year before, directly reflects the outstanding execution of critical milestones that underpin Vulcan's transition into an operational company, including:
Achieving at or very close to the goal for each one of the targets set for project and people, environment and social measures was a significant achievement by the executive team. To do so in all of the measures denoted a year of remarkable progress for the company. The PPC determined at year end that these milestones represent substantial derisking of the Company, as was reflected in an 84% increase in the share price over the course of the year, from around \$2.90 to \$5.35 (which is even more noteworthy against a backdrop of a very challenging market for most listed lithium companies), justifying the strong STI award outcomes while maintaining alignment with shareholder value creation.
In line with industry benchmarks and the Company's growth trajectory, LTI grants issued in FY24 were adjusted to a three-year testing period (previously four years) to enhance alignment with medium term company milestones and leadership retention.
While no LTI awards vested in FY24, new LTI grants were structured to drive sustainable performance, with clear business execution, ESG, and shareholder return metrics.
Fixed remuneration remained largely unchanged, with increases only applied to reflect government-mandated superannuation changes and Group Chief Financial Officer (Group CFO), Ms Gooding, taking on additional responsibilities as part of her Group CFO role.
The PPC transitioned to a fully independent structure from 1 January 2025, reinforcing best-practice governance, with the Committee now comprising of myself as Chair, and Ms Josephine Bush and Dr Günter Hilken as Committee members. I thank the former Chair of the PPC, Ms Ranya Alkadamani, along with Mr Gavin Rezos and Ms Annie Liu, for their service.
As Vulcan moves toward full-scale project execution and operations, the PPC will continue to refine our remuneration strategy to support the Company's next phase of growth.
Key areas of focus for FY25 include:
We appreciate your support and look forward to sharing our continued progress with our shareholders over the course of the year.
Sincerely,
Chair, People and Performance Committee
This Remuneration Report details the remuneration arrangements for KMP who are defined as those persons having authority and responsibility for planning, directing and controlling the major activities of the Company, directly or indirectly, including any director (whether executive or otherwise) of the Company.
Each KMP was appointed for the entire year 1 January to 31 December 2024, unless otherwise stated. For the purposes of this Remuneration Report, the term "Executive" includes Executive KMP of the Group as detailed in the table below.
| Mr Gavin Rezos21 | Non-Executive Deputy Chair |
|---|---|
| Ms Ranya Alkadamani21 | Non-Executive Director |
| Dr Heidi Grön | Non-Executive Director |
| Ms Josephine Bush | Non-Executive Director |
| Dr Günter Hilken | Non-Executive Director |
| Mr Angus Barker22 | Non-Executive Director |
| Mr Mark Skelton23 | Non-Executive Director |
| Ms Annie Liu24 | Non-Executive Director |
| Dr Francis Wedin | Executive Chair |
|---|---|
| Mr Cris Moreno | Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer ("MD–CEO") |
| Ms Felicity Gooding25 | Group Chief Financial Officer ("Group CFO") |
| Mr Robert Ierace26 | Chief Financial Officer ("CFO") |
Mr Gavin Rezos and Ms Ranya Alkadamani retired on 31 December 2024.
Mr Angus Barker joined the Board as Non-Executive Director on 13 September 2024 and was appointed Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair on 1 January 2025.
Mr Mark Skelton retired on 1 February 2024. 24. Ms Annie Liu retired on 13 September 2024. 25. Ms Felicity Gooding was appointed as Group CFO on 15 January 2024, and as Executive Director on 1 January 2025. 26. Mr Robert Ierace ceased to be an Executive KMP from 15 January 2024 following the appointment of Ms Felicity Gooding as Group CFO. Mr Ierace stepped down from the role of CFO on 31 March 2024.
There were no other changes to the KMP after the reporting date and before the date the financial report was authorised for issue.
Financial values referenced throughout this Remuneration Report are translated from Australian dollars to Euro using an exchange rate of 0.61.
Executive KMP are rewarded through fixed remuneration, a Short-Term Incentive (STI27) and a Long-Term Incentive (LTI). NEDs receive a fixed fee for their service over the year including Company securities. The following table provides the key remuneration highlights for both Executives and NEDs for FY24.
| Executive KMP Fixed |
Fixed Remuneration adjustments |
Executive fixed remuneration (inclusive of superannuation guarantee contributions) is detailed in section 5. |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Remuneration | On 1 July 2024, Ms Gooding's fixed remuneration increased from \$500,000 (€305,050) to \$557,500 (€340,131), to reflect an increase in responsibilities in her role as Group CFO. No additional adjustment to fixed remuneration was made when Ms Gooding commenced the role of Executive Director, from 1 January 2025.28 |
||
| On 1 July 2024, Dr Wedin and Mr Moreno's fixed remuneration increased from \$666,000 (€406,327) to \$669,000 (€408,157), to reflect an increase in mandatory superannuation contributions from 11.0% to 11.5%, in accordance with Government regulations. |
|||
| No further changes were made to Executive KMP remuneration during the period. | |||
| Executive KMP Short-Term Incentive (STI) |
97% average STI award delivered for the period to 31 December 2024 |
Under the Company's Incentive Award plan, the Company issued STIs, designed to reward the creation of exceptional short-term shareholder value aligned to the performance hurdles detailed below. Due to a change in financial years, the assessed outcomes were based on a period of 1 July 2023 to 31 December 2024 for Mr Moreno. |
|
| The STIs can be converted to Ordinary Shares in the Company once vested on election, under the Company's Performance Rights Plan. STIs issued during FY24 no longer have an additional year of service condition to enhance market competitiveness. |
|||
| Given the exceptional performance for the Company in a tough global environment, the Board awarded an average of 97% of STI rights to Executive KMPs Mr Moreno and Ms Gooding, which vested at 31 December 2024. This was compared with a 41% award in the previous year FY23. |
|||
| In FY24 there was a different MD-CEO, Mr Moreno, relative to the previous year, when Dr. Wedin was the MD-CEO. Dr Wedin as founder of the Company is already a substantial shareholder and therefore had a smaller STI package relative to fixed remuneration. |
|||
| In addition, Dr Wedin declined to take up any new STIs in 2024, and with the approval of the Board those rights were instead allocated to other executives including Mr Moreno, to increase incentivisation and shareholder alignment. |
|||
| Finally as disclosed in the FY23 Remuneration Report, there was a remuneration adjustment for the new MD-CEO given the increased size, complexity and number of operations, reflecting the change from a development to an execution and construction-stage company. There was therefore an increase in percentage of STI rights to fixed remuneration from 26% to 70% for the MD-CEO relative to the previous year. |
|||
| Refer to sections 4 and 5 for further detail. | |||
| Executive KMP | No LTI rights | No LTI performance rights vested between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2024. | |
| Long-Term Incentive (LTI) |
vested New LTI performance |
Under the Company's Incentive Award plan, the Company issued LTIs, designed to reward creation of exceptional long-term shareholder value aligned to the performance hurdles detailed below. In order to align more closely with medium term company milestones, staff retention and motivation, and to take into account the change in the Company's year-end to 31 December, the |
|
| rights issued for the period to 31 December 2024 |
LTIs issued during FY24 are tested after three years, rather than four years previously. | ||
| The percentage of fixed remuneration constituted by LTI rights increased from 114% previously to 200% in FY24 for the MD-CEO. The increase is due to a change in MD-CEO relative to the previous year, where the previous MD-CEO, Dr Wedin, already had a substantial shareholding in the Company. |
|||
| The new incoming MD-CEO, Mr Moreno, has increased responsibility, including increased size, complexity and number of operations, and is tasked with the completion of financing, and construction of the Company's main project. The change in package for the MD-CEO reflects the planned shift from a development company to an execution and construction company, and the need to incentivise the new incoming MD-CEO. |
|||
| In addition, Dr Wedin in his new role as Executive Chair declined to receive any incentive securities in FY 2024, and with the approval of the Board those rights were instead distributed around Vulcan's Executive Team including Mr. Moreno, allowing the Executive Team to be better incentivised without dilution of other existing shareholders. |
|||
| Refer to sections 4 and 5 for further detail. |
27 Previously referred to as Annual Deferred Incentive, or ADI
28 However under Ms Gooding's new Employment Agreement her LTIs increased from 70% of her salary to 110% of fixed remuneration.
| NED | NED and | The NED fee pool was unchanged for the year ended 31 December 2024. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| remuneration | committee fees unchanged from the prior year, decrease in |
NED and committee fees were unchanged from the prior period, except for a 25% decrease of the Deputy Chair fee to \$152,000 (€92,735) from 1 January 2024, to reflect the conclusion of the handover period between the previous and current Chair. |
|
| Deputy Chair fee. | NEDs will continue to be issued securities in the Company to a value of A\$35,000 each year for three years (i.e. a total value of A\$105,000) commencing from the date of shareholder approval to the award of the shares. Each annual tranche vests 12 months from the date of issue, and the vesting criteria for each tranche is that NEDs are still a Director on the vesting date. No securities were issued to NEDs during FY24 as all NEDs held unvested performance rights, however it is intended to do so during FY25. |
The following diagram represents the Company's remuneration decision making framework:
Reviews and approves Executive remuneration and incentives. Sets aggregate NED fees, subject to shareholder approval.
Develops remuneration strategy, framework and policy and provides Executive & NED remuneration recommendations to the Board.
Executive remuneration input and implementation.
External, independent remuneration advice and information as required.
Input to financial, risk and ESG measures and outcomes as required.
The People and Performance Committee (PPC) comprises of three NEDs, during FY24 a majority of which were independent, and met regularly throughout the year. From 1 January 2025 the PPC is entirely comprised of independent directors. The Executive Chair and MD-CEO attend certain Committee meetings by invitation, where management input is required. The Executive Chair and MD-CEO were not involved in the final decisions related to their own remuneration arrangements. Further information on the PPC's role, responsibilities and membership can be found on the Company's website at https://v-er.eu
To ensure the PPC is fully informed when making remuneration decisions, it seeks external remuneration advice where required. Independent remuneration consultants are engaged by, and report directly to, the PPC. In selecting remuneration consultants, the PPC considers potential conflicts of interest and requires independence from the Company's KMP and other executives as part of their terms of engagement.
During the financial year ended 31 December 2024, the PPC undertook a review of Executive KMP Remuneration. No remuneration recommendations, as defined in Section 9B of the Corporations Act 2001, were provided by any external consultant. A further independent review is planned for 2025 as the Company continues to increase in size and complexity.
The Remuneration Report for the period ended 31 December 2023 received positive shareholder support at the 2024 AGM with a vote of 92.32% in favour.
Vulcan's executive remuneration strategy is designed to attract, retain and motivate the best people to create a positive culture that delivers the Company's business strategy and contributes to sustainable long-term returns.
The following diagram illustrates how the Company's remuneration strategy aligns with its strategic direction and links remuneration outcomes to performance.

The Executive remuneration framework consists of fixed remuneration, short and long-term incentives with different reward focus.
| Remuneration Component |
Vehicle | Purpose | Link to performance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed remuneration (FR) |
Base salary plus statutory superannuation or equivalent |
Attract and retain Executives with the capability and experience to deliver Vulcan's strategy, based upon the competitive landscape among relevant peers. |
Regularly reviewed to ensure the remuneration levels appropriately compensate Executives for their capability in driving a positive culture and delivering on the business strategy. |
| Short-Term Incentives (STI) |
Performance rights | Reward for performance against KPIs aligned to annual business objectives, including Group, Environmental Social Governance (ESG) and individual linked objectives. |
Strategic annual objectives are embedded in each executive's personal scorecard of performance measures. See section 8 (footnote 46) in relation to the multiplier on the STIs issued to Mr Moreno and Ms Gooding. |
| Long-Term Incentives (LTI) |
Performance rights | Align long-term performance focus to drive shareholder returns. Encourage sustainable, long-term value creation through equity ownership. |
Vesting is subject to the achievement of defined business and sustainability milestones and Total Shareholder Return (TSR) over a three year period, changed from 4 years in FY23. See section 8 in relation to the multiplier on the LTIs issued to Mr Moreno and Ms Gooding. |
The following diagrams set out the current Executive remuneration structure.
| Fixed remuneration | STI | LTI | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unvested rights subject to forfeitures | ||||
| Year 1 | Base Salary, Superannuation and Other benefits. |
Annual award of rights under the STI plan subject to achievement of annual objectives. Vesting at end of the relevant year. |
Performance rights which vest after three years subject to the achievement of long-term performance hurdles. |
|
| Year 3 |
Each component of the KMP remuneration structure is further outlined below.
How is overall remuneration and mix determined?
The overall remuneration mix reflects an appropriate balance of fixed and variable remuneration considering the Company's size and business operations.
The chart below summarises the MD-CEO, Group CFO and Executive Chair's remuneration mix based on maximum STI and LTI awards issued during FY24, including any multipliers.

How is fixed remuneration reviewed and approved? Fixed remuneration is reviewed annually. Fixed remuneration changes for Executives are subject to approval from the Board after considering recommendations from the PPC.
| What is the STI plan? | The Company operates a Short-Term Incentive (STI) programme which is an award of rights which vest annually on achievement of defined performance measures. |
|
|---|---|---|
| What is the opportunity? |
MD-CEO: 70%of fixed remuneration Group CFO: 50%of fixed remuneration The issue of rights to the MD-CEO was approved at the Company's EGM on 5 August 2024. To further incentivise the MD-CEO and Group CFO and provide value to shareholders, Mr Moreno and Ms Gooding have certain multipliers on their STI rights, as set out in section 8. |
|
| What are the performance criteria and how do they align with business performance? |
STI vesting is subject to performance criteria measured over a one-year performance period and relate to project milestones (50%), ESG milestones (20%) and individual milestones (30%), which are directly linked to the performance of the business and described in more detail in section 5. |
|
| How is vesting determined? |
After consideration of actual performance against KPIs, the Board assess and test the portion of rights (if any) to vest for each Executive KMP on an annual basis, seeking recommendations from the PPC as required. |
|
| What happens if an Executive leaves? |
Where a participant ceases employment prior to their rights vesting due to resignation or termination for cause, rights will be forfeited subject to Board discretion. |
|
| Are Executives eligible for dividends? |
Executives are not eligible to receive dividends on unvested rights. | |
| Long-Term Incentive (LTI) | ||
| What is the LTI plan? | Under the LTI plan, an annual grant of rights is made to Executive KMP to align remuneration with creation of shareholder value over the long-term. |
| What is the | Executive KMP were granted LTI performance rights valued at: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| opportunity? | MD-CEO: approximately 200% of fixed remuneration | ||
| Group CFO: approximately 140% of fixed remuneration | |||
| The issue of rights to the MD–CEO was approved at the Company's EGM on 5 August 2024. | |||
| To further incentivise the MD-CEO and Group CFO and provide value to shareholders, Mr Moreno and Ms Gooding have certain multipliers on their LTI performance securities, as set out in section 8. |
|||
| How is performance measured? |
Vesting of LTI rights issued during the period is subject to performance criteria measured over a three-year period relating to business returns (40%), sustainability returns (20%) and total Shareholder returns (40%). Total Shareholder returns are measured against compound annual growth rate (CAGR) and the Company's performance relative to its peer group. Refer to section 5 for further details of LTI rights issued in the current and prior financial years. |
||
| For rTSR, which companies do Vulcan measure their performance against? |
Relative TSR assesses our TSR against a custom peer group with constituents being determined by the Board and reviewed on a regular basis to ensure appropriateness for the purpose of assessment. For LTI grants made for the period ending 31 December 2024, the customised peer group comprises companies in lithium and the wider resource sector, as follows: Syrah Resources Limited, Chalice Mining Limited, Lynas Rare Earth Limited, 29 Metals Limited, Novonix Limited, Liontown Resources Limited, Sayona Limited, Lake Resources Limited, Core Lithium Limited, Pilbara Minerals Limited, Ioneer Limited, Piedmont Lithium Limited and Galan Lithium Limited. |
||
| When is performance measured? |
The performance measures are tested at the end of the three-year performance period to determine the number of Rights that vest. There is no opportunity for re-testing. Rights will lapse if the performance measures are not met at the end of the performance period. |
||
| What happens if an Executive leaves? |
Where a participant ceases employment prior to their Rights vesting due to resignation or termination for cause, rights will be forfeited subject to Board discretion. |
||
| Are executives eligible for dividends? |
Executives are not eligible to receive dividends on unvested Rights. |
A summary of Company performance as measured by its earnings per share and share price for the prior five reporting periods, including disclosure required by the Corporations Act 2001, is outlined in the table below.
| Measure | 31 Dec 2024 | 31 Dec 2023 | 6 months ended 31 Dec 2022 |
30 June 2022 | 30 June 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (€'000) | 8,119 | 6,783 | 3,622 | 3,799 | - |
| Net Loss After Tax (NPAT) (€'000) |
42,358 | 26,963 | 13,450 | 18,851 | 6,726 |
| Loss per share (Euro cents) |
23.27 | 16.92 | 9.52 | 15.12 | 7.71 |
| Closing Vulcan security price (\$) |
5.35 | 2.85 | 6.33 | 5.42 | 7.70 |
To align performance measures with business objectives, the Board approved the issue of 119,500 STI rights to the MD-CEO and 72,500 STI rights to the Group CFO during the period ended 31 December 2024. The issue of rights to the MD-CEO was approved at the Company's EGM on 5 August 2024.
Based on the assessed outcomes for the period ended 31 December 2024, because of an exceptional performance in a tough global environment, the Board awarded 96.9% of STI rights to the MD-CEO, and 97.3% of STI rights to the Group CFO assessed against the following milestones, in contrast to only 41% vesting during the previous FY23 year. These STI rights vested at 31 December 2024. A summary of STI performance is provided below.
The table below illustrates Group milestones which apply to the MD-CEO and Group CFO during FY24. Group Milestones include project (50% weighting) and ESG (20% weighting) milestones, comprising a total 70% weighting of STI performance.
The remaining 30% of STI performance is determined by individual milestones.
| Measure | Weighting | Outcome | Outcome summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project Milestones - 50% | |||
| The Company has produced battery quality lithium hydroxide at Vulcan's Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimization Plant (CLEOP) |
8.3% | 7.9% | The milestone was achieved on 13 January 2025, with 95% progress at 31 December 2024. Achievement subsequent to 31 December 2024 was due to brine supply delays from a third party supplier. |
| The Company has all permits necessary for the planned execution of phase 1 as per the Bridging Study |
8.3% | 8.3% | The Company has permits to start execution and commence drilling at the first new planned production site, and therefore the milestone was fully met. |
| The Company has secured all land necessary for the interconnecting pipeline and power between Insheim and Schleidberg; D12 to 40 Morgen and Trappelberg |
8.3% | 7.9% | Key preparations made however final acquisition not yet completed due to project financing. Due to substantial progress with local stakeholders, the milestone was tested at 95% complete at 31 December 2024. |
| The Company has commenced 'shovel in the ground' construction of the Geothermal and Lithium Extraction Plant |
8.3% | 7.9% | Groundworks ready to commence with preparation was 95% complete at 31 December 2024. The delay in commencement is a result of a change in the financing timeline. |
| The Company has commenced drilling its first new well as part of project execution of Phase 1 |
8.4% | 8.0% | Drilling is expected to commence in H1 2025, however the milestone is judged at 95% complete as drilling approval was granted and drilling operations were readied to progress to the execution phase, including the Schleidberg well pad and V20 rig readiness for transport to Schleidberg. |
| The Company has entered into binding agreements to fully finance Phase 1 of its operations (Finance Milestone) |
8.4% | 8.0% | During the period, conditional debt commitment letters for almost €1 billion were secured, as well as Board approval for a €500m lending envelope with the European Investment Bank (EIB). In addition, €140m equity was raised, including from strategic investors, and €100m grant funding was secured. Whilst the total financing package is not yet finalised, the commitments received to date cover the CAPEX of the project, and therefore 95% of the milestone is judged as achieved. |
| Total Project Milestones | 50.0% | 48.0% |
| Measure | Weighting | Outcome | Outcome summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| ESG Milestones – 20% | |||
| Environment | |||
| Meet 2024 HSE targets of Lost Time Incident frequency rate (LTIF) of 3 |
5.0% | 5.0% | One Lost Time Incident recorded in FY24 however a LTIF of less than 3 was recorded in total, therefore this metric is 100% achieved. |
| Signing a binding agreement with a local utility to supply the local community with renewable heat in Phase One area |
5.0% | 4.8% | Agreement is not officially signed at 31 December 2024, however signing forthcoming and the local city council has voted overwhelmingly in favour of the Project, resulting in a 95% outcome. |
| Governance | |||
| No breaches with local authorities or regulatory authorities |
5.0% | 5.0% | No breaches at 31 December 2024. |
| No cyber security breaches during the period | 5.0% | 4.7% | One cyber security breach occurred in late December 2024, resulting in no financial loss to the Company, resulting in a 95% outcome. |
| Total ESG Milestones | 20.0% | 19.5% |
The following table outlines the proportion of maximum STI that was achieved and forfeited in relation to the 2024 financial year. The maximum STI rights are established at the start of the financial year and outcomes are determined by the People and Performance Committee at the end of the financial year. Achieved STIs vested at 31 December 2024.
| Executive | Role | Achieved STI (%) | Forfeited STI (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mr Cris Moreno | MD-CEO | 96.9% | 3.1% |
| Ms Felicity Gooding | Group CFO | 97.3% | 2.7% |
In relation to the 2023 financial year, Mr Cris Moreno's achieved STI was 37.4% (62.6% forefeited).
To align performance measures with business objectives, the Board approved the issue of 348,000 LTI rights to the MD-CEO and 202,500 LTI rights to the Group CFO during the period ended 31 December 2024. The issue of rights to the MD-CEO was approved at the Company's EGM on 5 August 2024.
LTI's that were granted in FY24 to Executive KMP's will be tested at the end of the performance period which is 31 December 2026. LTI vesting is subject to the following performance criteria measured over a three-year performance period:
1) Business returns (40%) based on the satisfaction of the following strategic milestones:
a. Absolute TSR (aTSR) (20%):
| aTSR compound annual growth rate (CAGR) | % to Vest |
|---|---|
| Less than 7.5% | 0% |
| Between 7.5% and 10% | 50%to 75% on a pro-rata basis |
| Between 10% and 12.5% | 75%to 100% on a pro-rata basis |
| Greater than 12.5% | 100% |
| b. Relative TSR (rTSR) (20%): | |
| rTSR performance | % to Vest |
| 50th percentile | 50% |
| Between 50th percentile and 75th percentile | Pro-rata |
| 75th percentile | 100% |
The following table sets out total remuneration for Executive KMP for the year ended 31 December 2024 (Dec-24) and for the year ended 31 December 2023 (Dec-23), calculated in accordance with statutory accounting requirements and presented in Euro (€).
| Short-term benefits |
Post employment benefits |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year/Period | Cash Salary | Non monetary |
Superannuation | Share based payments |
Total (€) | Performance related % |
|
| Executive KMP | |||||||
| Dr. Francis Wedin29 |
Dec-24 | 366,119 | - | 41,182 | 54,150 | 461,451 | 12%29 |
| Dec-23 | 361,690 | - | 38,899 | 88,710 | 489,299 | 18% | |
| Mr Cristobal Moreno |
Dec-24 | 371,021 | - | 41,182 | 371,688 | 783,891 | 47% |
| Dec-23 | 307,200 | - | 33,178 | 43,980 | 384,358 | 11% | |
| Ms. Felicity Gooding30 |
Dec-24 | 299,310 | - | 25,809 | 247,651 | 572,770 | 43% |
| Dec-23 | - | - | - | - | - | 0% | |
| Mr. Robert Ierace 31 |
Dec-24 | 3,687 | - | 741 | - | 4,428 | 0% |
| Dec-23 | 165,908 | - | 17,841 | (186) | 183,563 | 0% | |
| Mr. Vincent Ledoux Pedailles 32 |
Dec-24 | - | - | - | - | - | 0% |
| Dec-23 | 135,000 | - | - | (17,923) | 117,077 | (15%) | |
| Totals | Dec-24 | 1,040,137 | - | 108,914 | 673,489 | 1,822,540 | 37% |
| Dec-23 | 969,798 | - | 89,918 | 114,581 | 1,174,297 | 10% |
29 The Company's Executive Chair, Dr Francis Wedin, has declined to receive STI or LTI rights in the future, as he is of the belief that he is already sufficiently incentivised through his existing shareholding as founder of the business.
30 Ms Felicity Gooding was appointed as Group CFO on 15 January 2024, and as Executive Director on 1 January 2025. 31 Mr Robert Ierace ceased to be an Executive KMP on 15 January 2024.
32 Mr Vincent Ledoux Pedailles ceased to be an Executive KMP on 30 June 2023.
Remuneration arrangements for Executive KMP are formalised in employment agreements. All Executive KMP are employed under an ongoing contract. Key terms of the agreements for Executive KMP in the current and prior financial year are as follows:
| Executive KMP | Position | Fixed remuneration (inclusive of superannuation) |
Termination notice period by the Company36 |
Termination notice period by the Executive37 |
Termination benefits (in lieu of notice) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dr Francis Wedin |
Executive Chair | \$669,000 (€408,157) |
6 months | 6 months | 1 or 6 months |
| Mr Cris Moreno |
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer |
\$669,000 (€408,157) |
6 months | 6 months | 1 or 6 months |
| Ms Felicity Gooding33 |
Group Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director |
\$557,500 (€340,131) |
6 months | 6 months | 1 or 6 months |
| Mr Rob Ierace34 |
Chief Financial Officer | \$304,140 (€185,556) |
1 month | 1 month | 1 month |
| Mr Vincent Pedailles35 |
Chief Commercial Officer |
€270,000 | 3 months | 3 months | 3 months |
33 Ms Felicity Gooding was appointed as Group CFO on 15 January 2024, and as Executive Director on 1 January 2025.
34 Mr Rob Ierace ceased to be an Executive KMP on 15 January 2024 and stepped down from the role of Chief Financial Officer on 31 March 2024. 35 Mr Vincent Ledoux-Pedailles ceased to be an Executive KMP on 30 June 2023.
36 Unless the Company terminates the KMP Contract for circumstances relating to a serious breach of their appointment agreement (1 month)
or summarily without notice in extreme circumstances. 37 Unless the KMP terminates the KMP Contract for circumstances relating to the Company committing a serious breach of their appointment agreement, whereby 28 days' notice is required.
All Executive KMP are eligible to participate in Vulcan's STI and LTI structure on terms as determined by the Board, subject to receiving any required shareholder approval.
The Board seeks to set aggregate remuneration at a level that provides the Company with the ability to attract and retain directors of the highest calibre, at an acceptable cost to shareholders.
The fee structure is typically reviewed annually against fees paid to NEDs of comparable ASX listed companies with a similar market capitalisation to Vulcan, as well as similar sized industry comparators. The Board considers advice from other independent external consultants when undertaking the review process. No review was conducted in 2024, but a review is expected to be conducted in 2025.
The Company's constitution and the ASX Listing Rules specify that the NED fee pool shall be determined from time to time by a general meeting. The latest determination was at the annual general meeting (AGM) held in November 2022 when shareholders approved an aggregate fee pool of \$950,000 (€628,470) per year.
The fee for NEDs consists of directors' fees and committee fees. The payment of additional fees for serving on a committee recognises the additional time commitment required by NEDs to fulfil this role.
The Board fees paid to Deputy Chair Gavin Rezos included a consulting fee.
There were no increases to NED and committee fees for the year to 31 December 2024. The Deputy Chair fee reduced from \$204,000 (€125,338) as at 31 December 2023 to \$152,000 (€92,735) from 1 January 2024, representing a 25% decrease. The table below summarises the current NED fee policy.
| Board fees | |
|---|---|
| Deputy Chair | \$152,000 (€92,735) |
| Directors | \$81,000 (€49,418) |
| Committee fees | |
| Committee Chair | \$15,000 (€9,151) |
| Committee Members | \$10,000 (€6,101) |
Australian-based NEDs have superannuation included as part of their fees.
In addition to directors' fees and committee fees, NEDs are issued securities in the Company to a value of A\$35,000 each year, with the intention being to issue the equivalent of three years' worth of securities every three years (ie a total value of A\$105,000); it is intended that this arrangement continues whilst the NED is a Director. Each annual tranche (ie one third of the total award) vests 12 months from the date of issue, and the vesting criteria for each tranche is that NEDs are still a Director on the vesting date.
In his role as Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair commencing on 1 January 2025, Mr Angus Barker will be granted additional securities in the Company to a value of A\$36,000, resulting in a total annual value of A\$71,000 in Company securities granted to Mr Angus Barker.
For FY24, no NED was granted equity awards linked to company performance. However, Ms Annie Liu and Ms Ranya Alkadamani were paid a cash-settled pro-rata annual service fee in lieu of A\$35,000 worth of ordinary shares, in consideration for continuing on the board until their retirement dates of 13 September 2024 and 31 December 2024 respectively.
The remuneration of NEDs for the year 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024 (Dec24) and for the year 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023 (Dec23) is detailed below, denominated in Euro (€).
| Short-term Post-employment benefits (€) (€) |
Share | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year/Period | Fees | Superannuation (€) | based payments (€) |
Total (€) | Share based payment % |
|
| Non - Executive Directors | ||||||
| Mr. Gavin Rezos38 |
Dec-24 | 104,940 | - | - | 104,940 | 0% |
| Dec-23 | 129,639 | - | 82,239 | 211,878 | 39% | |
| Ms. Ranya Alkadamani38 |
Dec-24 | 65,28439 | 5,923 | (1,751) | 69,456 | (3)% |
| Dec-23 | 49,643 | 5,345 | 21,867 | 76,855 | 28% | |
| Dr. Heidi Grön |
Dec-24 | 61,620 | - | 3,285 | 64,905 | 5% |
| Dec-23 | 62,8233 | - | 11,799 | 74,622 | 16% | |
| Ms. Annie Liu41 |
Dec-24 | 43,95442 | - | 3,286 | 47,240 | 7% |
| Dec-23 | 51,917 | - | 11,799 | 63,716 | 19% | |
| Ms. Josephine Bush |
Dec-24 | 58,570 | - | 3,285 | 61,855 | 5% |
| Dec-23 | 54,989 | - | 11,799 | 66,788 | 18% | |
| Dr. Günter Hilken |
Dec-24 | 58,061 | - | 16,887 | 74,948 | 23% |
| Dec-23 | 57,44740 | - | 37,518 | 94,965 | 40% | |
| Mr. Angus Barker43 |
Dec-24 | 13,126 | 1,510 | - | 14,636 | 0% |
| Dec-23 | - | - | - | - | - | |
| Mr. Mark Skelton44 |
Dec-24 | 4,600 | 506 | - | 5,106 | 0% |
| Dec-23 | 58,245 | 5,345 | 18,050 | 81,640 | 22% | |
| Totals | Dec-24 | 410,155 | 7,938 | 24,992 | 443,086 | 6% |
| Dec-23 | 464,703 | 10,690 | 195,071 | 670,464 | 29% |
38 Mr Gavin Rezos and Ms Ranya Alkadamani retired on 31 December 2024.
39 This amount includes the pro-rata annual service fee for \$20,712 (€12,636) in lieu of ordinary shares for continuing on the board until retirement date of 31 December 2024.
40 Fees for FY23 included \$9,000 (€5,530) for participating in an additional three meetings as members of the Projects Oversight Committee (POC).
41 Ms Annie Liu retired on 13 September 2024. 42 This amount includes the pro-rata annual service fee for \$7,767 (€4,739) in lieu of ordinary shares for continuing on the board until retirement date of 13 September 2024.
43 Mr Angus Barker joined the Board as Non-Executive Director on 13 September 2024, and was appointed Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair on 1 January 2025.
44 Mr Mark Skelton retired on 1 February 2024.
The table below discloses the number of rights that vested, were exercised or cancelled during the year.
Rights do not carry any voting or dividend rights and can be exercised once the vesting conditions have been met and until their expiry date.
| Executive KMP |
Balance at start of year |
Granted as remuneration |
Performance rights exercised during the year |
Performance rights cancelled/ lapsed |
Balance45 at end of year |
Performance rights vested during the year |
Number of performance rights vested and exercisable at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Jan-24 | 31-Dec-24 | 31-Dec-24 | |||||
| Dr. Francis Wedin |
125,724 | - | - | - | 125,724 | - | 9,724 |
| Mr. Cristobal Moreno46 |
57,614 | 467,500 | - | (3,806) | 521,308 | 115,694 | 119,808 |
| Ms Felicity Gooding45, 46 |
- | 275,000 | (2,055) | 272,945 | 70,445 | 70,445 | |
| Mr. Robert Ierace47 |
34,716 | - | - | (34,716) | - | - | - |
| 218,054 | 742,500 | - | (40,577) | 919,977 | 186,139 | 199,977 |
45 Ms Gooding was appointed as Group CFO on 15 January 2024, and as Executive Director on 1 January 2025. 46 Mr Moreno has the following multipliers on his Rights: (1) LTI (a) 1.5x if Project Construction (defined as project construction and execution of the Central Lithium Plant) is as per the Controlled Schedule (P50) as at the Measurement Period; and (b) 1.25x if Project Construction is within six months of the Controlled Schedule (P50); and (1) STI performance rights (a) 1.5x if the Company has entered into binding agreements to fully finance Phase 1 of its operations by 31 December 2024 (Financing Milestone). It is noted that the Company amended multipliers 1(a) and 1(b) for Mr Moreno from that originally disclosed in the 2023 Annual Report (but never issued) as the Board believed that the new multipliers were more appropriate. It is noted that ~94% of shareholder votes were received to approve the new multipliers in August 2024. As set out in section [5], the Board resolved that given significant financing achievements during 2024, the Financing Milestone (and accordingly the Financing Milestone multiplier) was 95% met. Ms Gooding also has the same 1.5x multiplier in relation to both the Financing Milestone for her STIs and Project Construction for her LTIs .
47 Mr Ierace ceased to be a KMP on 15 January 2024. Mr Ierace stepped down from the role of CFO on 31 March 2024, resulting in his rights lapsing on that date.
There were no rights issued to Non-Executive Directors as remuneration during the year ended 31 December 2024, however rights held by Josephine Bush, Annie Liu and Dr Heidi Grön (4,297 each), Dr Günter Hilken (4,746) and Ranya Alkadamani (8,412) vested during the course of the year.
The table below discloses the number of rights that vested or were exercised during the year.
Rights do not carry any voting or dividend rights and can be exercised once the vesting conditions have been met until their expiry date.
| NED | Balance at start of year |
Granted as remuneration |
Performance rights exercised during the year |
Performance rights lapsed/ forfeited |
Other movement52 |
Balance48 at end of year |
Performance rights vested during the year |
Number of performance rights vested and exercisable at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Jan-24 | 31-Dec-24 | 31-Dec-24 | 31-Dec-24 | |||||
| Mr. Gavin Rezos49 |
- | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Ms. Ranya Alkadamani49 |
25,234 | - | - | (16,823) | (8,411) | - | 8,411 | - |
| Dr. Heidi Grön |
4,298 | - | - | - | - | 4,298 | 4,298 | 4,298 |
| Ms. Annie Liu50 |
4,298 | - | - | - | (4,298) | - | 4,298 | - |
| Ms. Josephine Bush |
4,298 | - | - | - | - | 4,298 | 4,298 | 4,298 |
| Dr. Günter Hilken |
14,237 | - | (4,746) | - | - | 9,491 | 4,746 | 4,746 |
| Mr. Angus Barker51 |
- | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Mr. Mark Skelton53 |
14,237 | - | - | (9,491) | (4,746) | - | - | - |
| 66,602 | - | (4,746) | (26,314) | (17,455) | 18,087 | 26,051 | 13,342 |
48 Includes performance rights held directly, indirectly and beneficially by NEDs
49 Mr Gavin Rezos and Ms Ranya Alkadamani retired on 31 December 2024.
50 Ms Annie Liu retired on 13 September 2024. 51 Mr Angus Barker joined the Board as Non-Executive Director on 13 September 2024, and was appointed Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair on 1 January 2025.
52 The other movement represents the holding of the NED at the date they ceased to be a NED.
53 Mr Mark Skelton retired on 1 February 2024.
The terms and conditions of each grant of rights affecting remuneration of directors and other Key Management Personnel in this financial year or future reporting years are as follows:
| Number of per formance rights granted |
Grant date |
Vesting date |
Fair value per perfor mance right at grant date (€) |
Total value of performance rights at grant date (€) |
Value of performance rights forfeit ed during the year (€) |
Value of performance rights exer cised during the year (€) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NED | ||||||||
| Ms. Ranya Alkadamani54 |
Class AD | 8,411 | 28/05/2023 | 28/05/2024 | 2.60 | 21,869 | - | - |
| Class AD | 8,411 | 28/05/2023 | 28/05/2025 | 2.60 | 21,869 | (21,869) | - | |
| Class AD | 8,412 | 28/05/2023 | 28/05/2026 | 2.60 | 21,871 | (21,871) | - | |
| Dr Heidi Grön |
Class S | 4,298 | 24/06/2021 | 24/06/2024 | 4.95 | 21,275 | - | - |
| Ms. Annie Liu55 |
Class S | 4,298 | 24/06/2021 | 24/06/2024 | 4.95 | 21,275 | - | - |
| Ms. Josephine Bush |
Class S | 4,298 | 24/06/2021 | 24/06/2024 | 4.95 | 21,275 | - | - |
| Dr. Günter Hilken |
Class AC | 4,746 | 29/11/2022 | 29/11/2023 | 4.76 | 22,591 | - | (22,591) |
| Class AC | 4,746 | 29/11/2022 | 29/11/2024 | 4.76 | 22,591 | - | - | |
| Class AC | 4,746 | 29/11/2022 | 29/11/2025 | 4.76 | 22,591 | - | - | |
| Mr Mark Skelton56 |
Class AC | 4,746 | 29/11/2022 | 29/11/2024 | 4.76 | 22,591 | (22,591) | - |
| Class AC | 4,746 | 29/11/2022 | 29/11/2025 | 4.76 | 22,591 | (22,591) | - |
54 Ms Ranya Alkadamani retired on 31 December 2024.
55 Ms Annie Liu retired on 13 September 2024. 56 Mr Mark Skelton retired on 1 February 2024.
| Number of per formance rights granted |
Grant date |
Vesting date |
Fair value per perfor mance right at grant date (€) |
Total value of performance rights at grant date (€) |
Value of performance rights forfeit ed during the year (€) |
Value of performance rights exer cised during the year (€) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Executive KMP | ||||||||
| Dr. Francis Wedin |
Class AA | 26,000 | 29/11/2022 | 30/06/2024 | 4.52 | 117,520 | - | - |
| Class AB | 81,200 | 29/11/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 4.52 | 367,024 | - | - | |
| Class AB | 11,600 | 29/11/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 3.46 | 40,136 | - | - | |
| Class AB | 23,200 | 29/11/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 3.69 | 85,608 | - | - | |
| Mr. Cristobal Moreno |
Class AA | 11,000 | 13/12/2022 | 30/06/2024 | 4.30 | 47,300 | - | - |
| Class AB | 37,450 | 13/12/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 4.30 | 161,035 | - | - | |
| Class AB | 5,350 | 13/12/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 3.24 | 17,334 | - | - | |
| Class AB | 10,700 | 13/12/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 3.50 | 37,450 | - | - | |
| Class IP | 119,500 | 5/08/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 2.28 | 272,896 | (8,692) | - | |
| Class IP | 208,800 | 5/08/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 2.28 | 476,826 | - | - | |
| Class IP | 69,600 | 5/08/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 1.33 | 92,840 | - | - | |
| Class IP | 69,600 | 5/08/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 1.72 | 119,372 | - | - | |
| Ms. Felicity Gooding57 |
Class IP | 72,500 | 17/06/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 2.63 | 190,977 | (5,412) | - |
| Class IP | 121,500 | 17/06/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 2.63 | 320,051 | - | - | |
| Class IP | 40,500 | 17/06/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 1.88 | 76,203 | - | - | |
| Class IP | 40,500 | 17/06/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 2.14 | 86,696 | - | - | |
| Mr. Robert Ierace58 |
Class AA | 9,000 | 19/09/2022 | 30/06/2024 | 5.24 | 47,160 | (47,160) | - |
| Class AB | 21,000 | 19/09/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 5.24 | 110,040 | (110,040) | - | |
| Class AB | 3,000 | 19/09/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 4.18 | 12,540 | (12,540) | - | |
| Class AB | 6,000 | 19/09/2022 | 30/06/2026 | 4.57 | 27,420 | (27,420) | - |
57 Ms Felicity Gooding was appointed as Group CFO on 15 January 2024, and as Executive Director on 1 January 2025.
58 Mr Robert Ierace ceased to be a KMP on 15 January 2024. Mr Ierace stepped down from the role of CFO on 31 March 2024, resulting in his rights lapsing on that date.
Performance rights granted carry no dividend or voting rights.
All performance rights were granted over unissued fully paid ordinary shares in the Company. The number of performance rights that vest was determined having regard to the satisfaction of performance measures and weightings as described in section 5. Performance rights vest based on the provision of service over the vesting period or satisfaction of performance measures, whereby the executive and non-executive becomes beneficially entitled to the performance rights on vesting date. There are no amounts paid or payable by the recipient in relation to the granting of such performance rights other than on their potential exercise.
The table below details the number of Vulcan shares held by NEDs and Executive KMP and the movement during the year ended 31 December 2024.
Other movements in the table reflect shareholdings of the NED or Executive KMP on the date they ceased to be a NED or Executive KMP, and does not indicate a sale of shares by the NED or Executive KMP.
| Class of shares | Balance at start of year |
Exercise of performance rights |
On market purchase /(sale) |
Other movement66 |
Balance at end of year59 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Jan-24 | 31-Dec-24 | |||||
| Non-Executive Directors | ||||||
| Mr. Gavin Rezos60 |
Ordinary | 8,635,500 | - | - | (8,635,500) | - |
| Ms. Ranya Alkadamani60 |
Ordinary | 276,000 | - | - | (276,000) | - |
| Dr. Heidi Grön |
Ordinary | 10,398 | - | - | - | 10,398 |
| Ms. Annie Liu61 |
Ordinary | 81,678 | - | - | (81,678) | - |
| Ms. Josephine Bush |
Ordinary | 26,167 | - | 14,200 | - | 40,367 |
| Dr. Günter Hilken |
Ordinary | - | 4,746 | - | - | 4,746 |
| Mr. Angus Barker62 |
Ordinary | - | - | - | 20,000 | 20,000 |
| Mr. Mark Skelton63 |
Ordinary | 2,000 | - | - | (2,000) | - |
| Executive KMP | ||||||
| Dr. Francis Wedin |
Ordinary | 16,458,561 | - | - | - | 16,458,561 |
| Mr. Cristobal Moreno |
Ordinary | - | - | - | - | - |
| Ms. Felicity Gooding64 |
Ordinary | - | - | - | - | - |
| Mr. Robert Ierace65 |
Ordinary | 125,454 | - | - | (125,454) | - |
| Totals | 25,615,758 | 4,746 | 14,200 | (9,100,632) | 16,534,072 |
59 Includes shares held directly, indirectly and beneficially by KMP
60 Mr Gavin Rezos and Ms Ranya Alkadamani retired on 31 December 2024.
61 Ms Annie Liu retired on 13 September 2024. 62 Mr Angus Barker joined the Board as Non-Executive Director on 13 September 2024, and was appointed Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair on 1 January 2025.
63 Mr Mark Skelton retired on 1 February 2024. 64 Ms Felicity Gooding was appointed as Group CFO on 15 January 2024, and as Executive Director on 1 January 2025.
65 Mr Robert Ierace ceased to be a KMP on 15 January 2024 .
66 Other movement represents the shareholding of NEDs/ Executive KMP on the date they ceased to be a NED/ Executive KMP, or in the case of Mr Angus Barker, on the date he commenced as NED. It does not indicate a sale of shares by the NED or Executive KMP.
There were no loans to KMP and their related parties during the financial year.
There was an outstanding balance payable to JRB Consulting Ltd, a related party of Ms Josephine Bush, of €4,780 in relation to directors' fees for the period ended 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil). During the previous year, payments for consultancy fees of €12,056 were made to JRB Consulting Ltd in respect of expert advice on ESG reporting.
There were outstanding balances payable to Mr Gavin Rezos of €8,563 (December 2023: €11,666), Dr Günter Hilken of €5,583 (December 2023: nil) and Dr Heidi Grön of €5,028 (December 2023: nil) in relation to directors' fees for the period ended 31 December 2024.
Other than the above, there were no other transactions with related parties during the year ended 31 December 2024.
All transactions were made on normal commercial terms and conditions and at market rates.
Signed in accordance with a resolution of the Directors made pursuant to S.298(2) of the Corporations Act 2001.
On behalf of the Directors
Dr Francis Wedin
Executive Chair PERTH, Western Australia, 26 March 2025

Level 32 Exchange Tower, 2 The Esplanade Perth WA 6000 GPO Box R1253 Perth WA 6844
T +61 (0) 8 9261 9100
www.rsm.com.au
As lead auditor for the audit of the financial report of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited for the year ended 31 December 2024, I declare that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, there have been no contraventions of:
(i) the auditor independence requirements of the Corporations Act 2001 in relation to the audit; and
(ii) any applicable code of professional conduct in relation to the audit.
RSM AUSTRALIA
Perth, WA Matthew Beevers Dated: 25 March 2025 Partner
RSM Australia Partners is a member of the RSM network and trades as RSM. RSM is the trading name used by the members of the RSM network. Each member of the RSM network is an independent accounting and consulting firm which practices in its own right. The RSM network is not itself a separate legal entity in any jurisdiction. RSM Australia Partners ABN 36 965 185 036 Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation

Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Note | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | ||
| Revenue from continuing operations | 4 | 8,119 | 6,783 |
| Other income | 5 | 1,433 | 1,191 |
| Gain on discontinuation of use of the equity method of | 29 | 3,874 | |
| accounting for investments | - | ||
| Loss from equity accounted investments | 29 | (92) | (456) |
| Other own work capitalised | 5 | 12,560 | 18,877 |
| Raw materials and purchased services | (750) | (2,593) | |
| Employee benefit expenses | (37,459) | (30,170) | |
| Depreciation and amortisation expenses | 6 | (9,597) | (5,869) |
| Impairment expenses | 18 | - | (1,144) |
| Share-based payments expense | 35 | (851) | (1,688) |
| Other expenses | (19,085) | (21,294) | |
| Net foreign exchange gain | 33 | 1,456 | 299 |
| Finance income | 7 | 1,889 | 3,558 |
| Interest expense | 7 | (173) | (172) |
| Loss before income tax expense | (42,550) | (28,804) | |
| Income tax benefit | 8 | 192 | 1,841 |
| Loss after income tax for the year | (42,358) | (26,963) | |
| Other comprehensive income | |||
| Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss | |||
| Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations | (4,055) | (2,444) | |
| Items that will not be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss Revaluation of investments at fair value through other |
|||
| comprehensive income | (1,090) | (1,870) | |
| Total comprehensive loss for the year (net of tax) | (47,503) | (31,277) | |
| Total comprehensive loss for the year attributable to the owners of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited |
(47,503) | (31,277) | |
| Loss per share for the year attributable to the members Vulcan Energy Resources Limited: |
€ | € | |
| Basic loss per share (Euro) | 9 | (0.23) | (0.17) |
| Diluted loss per share (Euro) | 9 | (0.23) | (0.17) |
The Consolidated Statement of Profit or Loss and Other Comprehensive Income should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
| Note | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assets | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Current assets | |||
| Cash and cash equivalents | 10 | 97,054 | 78,728 |
| Trade and other receivables | 11 | 12,519 | 6,899 |
| Contract assets | 12 | - | 117 |
| Inventories | 13 | 137 | 327 |
| Total current assets | 109,710 | 86,071 | |
| Non-current assets | |||
| Investments accounted for using equity method | 29 | - | 124 |
| Financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive | 30 | 1,396 | 2,550 |
| income | |||
| Exploration and evaluation expenditure | 15 | 13,124 | 48,475 |
| Other assets | 14 | 8,244 | 11,775 |
| Property, plant and equipment | 16 | 237,329 | 138,605 |
| Right-of-use assets | 17 | 3,836 | 4,416 |
| Intangible assets | 18 | 3,821 | 1,655 |
| Deferred tax assets | 19 | 3,568 | 3,212 |
| Total non-current assets | 271,318 | 210,812 | |
| Total Assets | 381,028 | 296,883 | |
| Liabilities | |||
| Current liabilities | |||
| Trade and other payables | 20 | 18,412 | 17,194 |
| Derivative financial instrument | 21 | - | 133 |
| Employee benefits | 22 | 1,523 | 1,509 |
| Lease liabilities | 17 | 771 | 1,086 |
| Provisions | 24 | - | 750 |
| Deferred income | 23 | 2,110 | - |
| Income tax liabilities | 8(d) | 57 | 113 |
| Total Current liabilities | 22,873 | 20,785 | |
| Non-current liabilities | |||
| Lease liabilities | 17 | 3,081 | 3,325 |
| Provisions | 24 | 1,987 | 264 |
| Deferred income | 23 | - | 2,818 |
| Deferred tax liabilities | 25 | 1,535 | 1,410 |
| Total non-current liabilities | 6,603 | 7,817 | |
| Total Liabilities | 29,476 | 28,602 | |
| Net Assets | 351,552 | 268,281 | |
| Equity | |||
| Share capital | 27 | 453,643 | 323,739 |
| Reserves | 28 | 9,083 | 13,377 |
| Accumulated losses | 40 | (111,193) | (68,835) |
| Equity attributable to the owners of Vulcan Energy Resources | |||
| Limited | 351,533 | 268,281 | |
| Non-controlling interest | 19 | - | |
| Total Equity | 351,552 | 268,281 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January 2024 - 31 December 2024
The Consolidated Statement of Financial Position should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
| CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY |
|---|
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited –
Annual Report 1 January
2024 -
31 December 2024
| Issued | Revaluation | Reserves | Foreign | Accumulated | Non | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consolidated | Capital | Reserve | Currency Reserve |
Losses | controlling interests |
||
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| 23 At 1 Jan |
259,158 | - | 9,706 | 6,169 | (41,872) | - | 233,161 |
| Loss for the year | - | - | - | - | (26,963) | - | (26,963) |
| Other comprehensive loss | - | - | - | (2,444) | - | - | (2,444) |
| Revaluation of investments at fair value through other comprehensive income | - | (1,870) | - | - | - | - | (1,870) |
| Total comprehensive loss for the year after tax | - | (1,870) | - | (2,444) | (26,963) | - | (31,277) |
| Transactions with owners in their capacity as owners: | |||||||
| Issue of share capital | 67,350 | - | - | - | - | - | 67,350 |
| Share issue costs | (2,769) | - | - | - | - | - | (2,769) |
| Share-based payments (note 35) | - | - | 1,816 | - | - | - | 1,816 |
| 23 At 31 Dec |
323,739 | (1,870) | 11,522 | 3,725 | (68,835) | - | 268,281 |
| 24 At 1 Jan |
323,739 | (1,870) | 11,522 | 3,725 | (68,835) | - | 268,281 |
| - | |||||||
| Loss for the year | - | - | - | - | (42,358) | (42,358) | |
| Other comprehensive loss | - | - | - | (4,055) | - | - | (4,055) |
| Revaluation of investments at fair value through other comprehensive income | - | (1,090) | - | - | - | - | (1,090) |
| Total comprehensive loss for the year after tax | - | (1,090) | - | (4,055) | (42,358) | - | (47,503) |
| Transactions with owners in their capacity as owners: | |||||||
| Issue of share capital | 134,032 | - | - | - | - | - | 134,032 |
| Share issue costs | (4,128) | - | - | - | - | - | (4,128) |
| Non-controlling interests acquired | - | - | - | - | - | 19 | 19 |
| Share-based payments (note 35) | - | - | 851 | - | - | - | 851 |
| Balance at 31 December 2024 | 453,643 | (2,960) | 12,373 | (330) | (111,193) | 19 | 351,552 |
The Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Note | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Cash flows from operating activities | |||
| Receipts from customers | 8,578 | 8,315 | |
| Payments to suppliers and employees | (41,278) | (37,711) | |
| Interest received | 2,234 | 3,359 | |
| Other income | 60 | 2,424 | |
| Interest paid | (173) | (172) | |
| Income taxes paid | (100) | (546) | |
| Net cash used in operating activities | 10 | (30,679) | (24,331) |
| Cash flows from investing activities | |||
| Payments for exploration and evaluation expenditure | (12,024) | (19,003) | |
| Payment for plant and equipment | (58,290) | (73,629) | |
| Payment to acquire subsidiary | (371) | (150) | |
| Loans provided to external parties | (2,549) | - | |
| Cash acquired upon acquisition of subsidiary | - | 35 | |
| (Payments to acquire)/receipts from sale of financial assets |
(2,749) | 287 | |
| Net cash used in investing activities | (75,983) | (92,460) | |
| Cash flows from financing activities | |||
| Proceeds from issue of shares | 134,032 | 67,350 | |
| Share issue costs | (2,436) | (2,770) | |
| Repayment of loan acquired in business combinations | - | (81) | |
| Lease repayments | (1,197) | (1,744) | |
| Financing costs | (5,252) | - | |
| Net cash from financing activities | 125,147 | 62,755 | |
| Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents | 18,485 | (54,036) | |
| Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the year | 78,728 | 134,107 | |
| Effect of exchange rate fluctuations | (159) | (1,343) | |
| Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year | 97,054 | 78,728 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January 2024 – 31 December 2024
The Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
The principal accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the financial statements are set out below. These policies have been consistently applied to all the years presented, unless otherwise stated.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January 2024 – 31 December 2024
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited (referred to as "Vulcan" or the "Company") is a company domiciled in Australia The address of the Company's registered office and principal place of business is Level 11, 1 Spring Street, Perth WA 6000. The consolidated financial statements of the Company as at and for the year ended 31 December 2024 comprise the Company and its subsidiaries (together referred to as the "consolidated entity" or the "Group"). The principal activity of the Group is geothermal energy and lithium exploration and production.
The consolidated financial statements are general purpose financial statements which have been prepared in accordance with Australian Accounting Standards and Interpretations issued by the Australian Accounting Standards Board ("AASB") and the Corporations Act 2001. The consolidated financial statements comply with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board ("IASB"). Vulcan Energy Resources Limited is a for-profit entity for the purpose of preparing the financial statements.
The annual report was authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 25 March 2025.
Items included in the financial statements of each of the consolidated entities are measured using the currency of the primary economic environment in which the entity operates ("functional currency"). The consolidated financial statements are presented in Euro, which is Vulcan Energy Resources Limited's presentation currency.
The consolidated financial statements have been prepared under historical cost convention, except for, where applicable, the revaluation of financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income, certain classes of property, plant and equipment and derivative financial instruments.
In accordance with the Corporations Act 2001, these financial statements present the results of the consolidated entity only. Supplementary information about the parent entity is disclosed in Note 41.
The company is of a kind referred to in Corporations Instrument 2016/191, issued by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, relating to 'rounding-off'. Amounts in this report have been rounded off in accordance with that Corporations Instrument to the nearest thousand Euro, unless otherwise stated.
The consolidated entity has adopted all of the new or amended Accounting Standards and Interpretations issued by the Australian Accounting Standards Board ('AASB') that are mandatory for the current reporting period.
Any new or amended Accounting Standards or Interpretations that are not yet mandatory have not been early adopted.
Australian Accounting Standards and Interpretations relevant to the Group that have recently been issued or amended but are not yet mandatory, have not been adopted by the Group for the annual reporting year ended 31 December 2024. The Group has not yet assessed the impact of these new or amended Accounting Standards and Interpretations but does not expect it to have a significant impact on the Group's results.
The consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the going concern basis, which contemplates continuity of normal business activities and the realisation of assets and discharge of liabilities in the normal course of business.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
As disclosed in the consolidated financial statements, the Group incurred a loss after tax of €42.358m and had net cash outflows from operating and investing activities of €30.679m and €75.983m respectively for the year ended 31 December 2024. As at that date, the Group had a net current assets surplus of €86.837m and cash and cash equivalents of €97.054m.
The Directors believe that it is reasonably foreseeable that the consolidated entity will continue as a going concern and that it is appropriate to adopt the going concern basis in the preparation of the financial report after consideration of the following factors:
Assets and liabilities are presented in the statement of financial position based on current and non-current classification.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
An asset is classified as current when: it is either expected to be realised or intended to be sold or consumed in the consolidated entity's normal operating cycle; it is held primarily for the purpose of trading; it is expected to be realised within 12 months after the reporting period; or the asset is cash or cash equivalent unless restricted from being exchanged or used to settle a liability for at least 12 months after the reporting period. All other assets are classified as non-current.
A liability is classified as current when: it is either expected to be settled in the consolidated entity's normal operating cycle; it is held primarily for the purpose of trading; it is due to be settled within 12 months after the reporting period; or there is no unconditional right to defer the settlement of the liability for at least 12 months after the reporting period. All other liabilities are classified as non-current.
Deferred tax assets and liabilities are always classified as non-current.
The preparation of financial statements requires the use of certain critical accounting estimates. It also requires management to exercise its judgement in the process of applying the consolidated entity's accounting policies. The areas involving a higher degree of judgement or complexity, or areas where assumptions and estimates are significant to the financial statements are disclosed in note 2.
The consolidated financial statements incorporate the assets and liabilities of all subsidiaries of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited ('Company' or 'parent entity') as at 31 December 2024 and the results of all subsidiaries for the year then ended. Interests in subsidiaries are detailed in note 31.
Subsidiaries are all entities (including special purpose entities) over which the consolidated entity has the power to govern the financial and operating policies, generally accompanying a shareholding of more than one-half of the voting rights. The existence and effect of potential voting rights that are currently exercisable or convertible are considered when assessing whether the consolidated entity controls another entity.
Subsidiaries are fully consolidated from the date on which control is transferred to the consolidated entity. They are de-consolidated from the date that control ceases.
Intercompany transactions, balances, and unrealised gains or losses on transactions between consolidated entity companies are eliminated. Accounting policies of subsidiaries have been changed where necessary to ensure consistency with the policies adopted by the consolidated entity.
The acquisition method of accounting is used to account for business combinations by the consolidated entity. A change in ownership interest, without the loss of control, is accounted for as an equity transaction, where the difference between the consideration transferred and the book value of the share of the non-controlling interest acquired is recognised directly in equity attributable to the parent.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Non-controlling interests in the results and equity of subsidiaries are shown separately in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income, statement of changes in equity and statement of financial position respectively.
Where the consolidated entity loses control over the subsidiary, it derecognises the assets including goodwill, liabilities and non-controlling interest in the subsidiary together with any cumulative transaction differences recognised in equity. The consolidated entity recognises the fair value of the consideration received and the fair value of any investment retained together with any gain or loss on profit or loss.
Foreign currency transactions are translated into the functional currency using the exchange rates prevailing at the dates of the transactions. Foreign exchange gains and losses resulting from the settlement of such transactions and from the translation at period end exchange rates of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are recognised in profit or loss.
The assets and liabilities of entities with functional currency different from group presentational currency are translated into Euro using the exchange rates at the reporting date. The revenues and expenses of entities with functional currency different from group presentational currency are translated into Euro using the average exchange rates, which approximate the rates at the dates of the transactions, for the period. All resulting foreign exchange differences are recognised in other comprehensive income through the foreign currency reserve in equity.
The preparation of the financial statements requires management to make judgements, estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts in the financial statements. Management continually evaluates its judgements and estimates in relation to assets, liabilities, contingent liabilities, revenue and expenses.
Management bases its judgements, estimates and assumptions on historical experience and on other various factors, including expectations of future events, management believes to be reasonable under the circumstances. The resulting accounting judgements and estimates will seldom equal the related actual results. The judgements, estimates and assumptions in these financial statements that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial period are disclosed below.
Exploration and evaluation costs have been capitalised on the basis that the consolidated entity will commence commercial production in the future, from which time the costs will be amortised in proportion to the depletion of the mineral resources. Key judgements are applied in considering costs to be capitalised which includes determining expenditures directly related to these activities and allocating overheads between those that are expensed and capitalised. In addition, costs are only capitalised that are expected to be recovered either through successful development or sale of the relevant mining interest. Factors that could impact future commercial production include the level of reserves and resources, future technology changes, which could impact the cost of mining, future legal changes and changes in commodity prices. To the extent that capitalised costs are determined not to be recoverable in the future, they will be written off in the period in which this determination is made.
The Group measures the cost of equity settled transactions with Directors, employees and consultants, where applicable, by reference to the fair value of equity instruments at the date at which they are granted. The fair value is determined using an appropriate valuation model taking into account the terms and conditions upon which the instruments were granted. The accounting estimates and assumptions relating to equity-settled shared-based payments would have no impact on the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next annual reporting period but may impact profit or loss and equity.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The consolidated entity determines the estimated useful lives and related depreciation and amortisation charges for its plant and equipment. The useful lives could change significantly as a result of technical innovations or some other event. The depreciation and amortisation charge will increase where the useful lives are less than previously estimated lives, or technically obsolete or non-strategic assets that have been abandoned or sold will be written off or written down.
The consolidated entity assesses impairment of non-financial assets other than goodwill and other indefinite life intangible assets at each reporting date by evaluating conditions specific to the consolidated entity and to the particular asset that may lead to impairment. If an impairment trigger exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is determined. This involves fair value less costs of disposal or value-in-use calculations, which incorporate a number of key estimates and assumptions.
The consolidated entity is subject to income taxes in the jurisdictions in which it operates. Significant judgement is required in determining the provision for income tax. There are many transactions and calculations undertaken during the ordinary course of business for which the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. The consolidated entity recognises liabilities for anticipated tax audit issues based on the consolidated entity's current understanding of the tax law. Where the final tax outcome of these matters is different from the carrying amounts, such differences will impact the current and deferred tax provisions in the period in which such determination is made.
Deferred tax assets are recognised for deductible temporary differences only if the consolidated entity considers it is probable that future taxable amounts will be available to utilise those temporary differences and losses.
The lease term is a significant component in the measurement of both the right-of-use asset and lease liability. Judgement is exercised in determining whether there is reasonable certainty that an option to extend the lease or purchase the underlying asset will be exercised, or an option to terminate the lease will not be exercised, when ascertaining the periods to be included in the lease term. In determining the lease term, all facts and circumstances that create an economical incentive to exercise an extension option, or not to exercise a termination option, are considered at the lease commencement date. Factors considered may include the importance of the asset to the consolidated entity's operations; comparison of terms and conditions to prevailing market rates; incurrence of significant penalties; existence of significant leasehold improvements; and the costs and disruption to replace the asset. The consolidated entity reassesses whether it is reasonably certain to exercise an extension option, or not exercise a termination option, if there is a significant event or significant change in circumstances.
Significant judgement is required in determining the provision for mine restoration and rehabilitation as there are many factors that will affect the ultimate liability payable to rehabilitate and restore the mine sites. The estimate of future costs therefore requires management to make assessment of the closure date, changes in relevant local legal and regulatory framework, future inflation rates, changes in discount rates, the extent of restoration activities and future removal and rehabilitation technologies. When these factors change or become known in the future, such differences will impact the restoration and rehabilitation provision in the period in which they change or become known. The provision recognised is periodically reviewed and updated based on the facts and circumstances available at the time.
During the year ended 31 December 2024, judgement was exercised determining the Group had proven the technical feasibility and commercial viability of extracting a mineral resource from its Phase One Project, and therefore exploration and evaluation expenditure should be reclassified to mine properties in development. At this time, the Group is required to test exploration and evaluation expenditure immediately prior to reclassification, which requires judgement in the determination of its cash generating units (CGU), and assumptions regarding the calculation of recoverability of capitalised exploration and evaluation expenditure, such as the level of reserves and resources and future commodity prices. Further information is included in note 16.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Where the interest rate implicit in a lease cannot be readily determined, an incremental borrowing rate is estimated to discount future lease payments to measure the present value of the lease liability at the lease commencement date. Such a rate is based on what the consolidated entity estimates it would have to pay a third party to borrow the funds necessary to obtain an asset of a similar value to the right-of-use asset, with similar terms, security and economic environment.
Operating segments are reported in a manner consistent with the internal reporting provided to the chief operating decision maker. The chief operating decision maker, who is responsible for allocating resources and assessing performance of the operating segments, has been identified as the Board. Management has determined that based on the report reviewed by the Board and used to make strategic decisions, that the consolidated entity has three reportable segments.
The consolidated entity is organised into three operating segments based on geographical location: Germany, Other European (comprised of France and Italy) and Australia. These operating segments are based on the internal reports that are reviewed and used by the Executive Key Management Personnels (who are identified as the Chief Operating Decision Makers (CODM)) in assessing performance and in determining the allocation of resources. There is no aggregation of operating segments.
The CODM reviews EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation). The accounting policies adopted for internal reporting to the CODM are consistent with those adopted in the financial statements.
The information reported to the CODM is on a monthly basis.
Germany – the supply of geothermal energy, exploration and development related to the Company's Phase One Lionheart Project and engineering services.
Other European (France and Italy) – exploration and development relating to battery materials and geothermal lithium.
Australia – administration and corporate support services.
Intersegment transactions were made at market rates. Engineering services have been provided within the German segment. All intersegment receivables and payables, including the profit margin, are eliminated on consolidation.
During the financial year ended 31December 2024, approximately €4.6m (31Dec 2023: €4.0m) of the consolidated entity's external revenue was derived from sales to Pfalzwerke.
| Segment performance | Germany | Other European | Australia | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan 24 to 31 Dec 24 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 |
| Revenue | ||||
| Sales to external customers | 8,119 | - | - | 8,119 |
| Intersegment sales - Other own work capitalised |
12,377 | - | 183 | 12,560 |
| Total sales revenue | 20,496 | - | 183 | 20,679 |
| Other income | 1,433 | - | - | 1,433 |
| Total segment revenue | 21,929 | - | 183 | 22,112 |
| EBITDA | (29,474) | (189) | (5,006) | (34,669) |
| Depreciation and amortisation | (9,542) | - | (55) | (9,597) |
| Finance expense | (168) | - | (5) | (173) |
| Interest income | 261 | - | 1,628 | 1,889 |
| Loss before income tax expense | (38,923) | (189) | (3,438) | (42,550) |
| Income tax expense | 192 | - | - | 192 |
| Loss after income tax expense | (38,731) | (189) | (3,438) | (42,358) |
| Material items include: | ||||
| Employee benefit expense | (34,638) | (144) | (2,677) | (37,459) |
| Germany | Other European |
Australia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Assets | ||||
| Segment assets | 281,360 | 358 | 421,862 | 703,580 |
| Intersegment eliminations | - | - | - | (322,552) |
| Total assets | 381,028 | |||
| Total assets include: | ||||
| Additions to exploration and evaluation expenditure |
9,036 | - | - | 9,036 |
| Additions to property, plant and equipment | 64,991 | - | - | 64,991 |
| Liabilities | ||||
| Segment liabilities | 51,607 | 113 | 4,383 | 56,103 |
| Intersegment eliminations | - | - | - | (26,627) |
| Total Liabilities | 29,476 |
| Segment performance | Germany | Other European | Australia | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan 23 to 31 Dec 23 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 |
| Revenue | ||||
| Sales to external customers | 6,783 | - | - | 6,783 |
| Intersegment sales – Other own work capitalised |
18,486 | - | 391 | 18,877 |
| Total sales revenue | 25,269 | - | 391 | 25,660 |
| Other income | 1,191 | - | - | 1,191 |
| Total segment revenue | 26,460 | - | 391 | 26,851 |
| EBITDA | (20,377) | (130) | (5,814) | (26,321) |
| Depreciation and amortisation | (5,814) | (2) | (53) | (5,869) |
| Finance expense | (164) | - | (8) | (172) |
| Interest income | 1,181 | - | 2,377 | 3,558 |
| Loss before income tax expense | (25,174) | (132) | (3,498) | (28,804) |
| Income tax benefit | 1,841 | - | - | 1,841 |
| Loss after income tax expense | (23,333) | (132) | (3,498) | (26,963) |
| Material items include: | ||||
| Employee benefit expense | (28,069) | (95) | (2,006) | (30,170) |
| Impairment | (1,144) | - | - | (1,144) |
| Loss from equity accounted investment | - | - | (456) | (456) |
| Gain on discontinuing of use of equity method for accounting for investments |
- | - | 3,874 | 3,874 |
| Germany | Other European |
Australia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Assets | ||||
| Segment assets | 223,333 | 433 | 305,364 | 529,130 |
| Intersegment eliminations | - | - | - | (232,247) |
| Total assets | 296,883 | |||
| Total assets include: | ||||
| Investments accounted for using equity method | - | - | 124 | 124 |
| Exploration and evaluation expenditure additions | 16,591 | 98 | 2,087 | 18,776 |
| Additions to property, plant and equipment | 71,657 | - | - | 71,657 |
| Liabilities | ||||
| Segment liabilities | 33,776 | 466 | 1,183 | 35,425 |
| Intersegment eliminations | - | - | - | (6,823) |
| Total Liabilities | 28,602 |
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Revenue from contracts with customers | ||
| Sale of goods | 4,619 | 4,036 |
| Rendering of services | 1,322 | 134 |
| Drilling Personnel outsourcing | 2,178 | 2,613 |
| Revenue from continuing operations | 8,119 | 6,783 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Electricity sales | Engineering Services | Drilling Services | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | ||
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | ||
| Timing of revenue recognition | |||||||||
| Goods transferred at a point in time |
4,619 | 4,036 | - | - | - | - | 4,619 | 4,036 | |
| Services transferred over time |
- | - | 1,322 | 134 | 2,178 | 2,613 | 3,500 | 2,747 | |
| 4,619 | 4,036 | 1,322 | 134 | 2,178 | 2,613 | 8,119 | 6,783 |
All revenues are derived in Germany.
The consolidated entity recognises revenue as follows:
Revenue is recognised at an amount that reflects the consideration to which the consolidated entity is expected to be entitled in exchange for transferring goods or services to a customer. For each contract with a customer, the consolidated entity: identifies the contract with a customer; identifies the performance obligations in the contract; determines the transaction price which takes into account estimates of variable consideration and the time value of money; allocates the transaction price to the separate performance obligation on the basis of the relative stand-alone selling price of each distinct good or service to be delivered ; and recognises revenue when or as each performance obligation is satisfied in a manner that depicts the transfer to the customer of the goods and services promised.
Variable consideration within the transaction price, if any, reflects concessions provided to the customer such as discounts, rebates and refunds, any potential bonuses receivable from the customer and any other contingent events. Such estimates are determined using either the 'expected value' or 'most likely amount' method. The measurement of variable consideration is subject to a constraining principle whereby revenue will only be recognised to the extent that it is highly probable that a significant reversal in the amount of cumulative revenue recognised will not occur. The measurement constraint continues until the uncertainty associated with the variable consideration is subsequently resolved. Amounts received that are subject to the constraining principle are recognised as a refund liability.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
12,560 18,877
Revenue from the sale of goods is recognised at the point in time when the customer obtains control of the goods, which is generally at the time of delivery.
Revenue from a contract to provide services is recognised over time as the services are rendered based on either a fixed price or an hourly rate.
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Government grants | 502 | 532 |
| Other income | 931 | 659 |
| 1,433 | 1,191 | |
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Other own work capitalised | 12,560 | 18,877 |
Other income is recognised when it is received or when the right to receive payment is established.
Other own work capitalised relates to engineering labour costs of Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited, which are capitalised to exploration and evaluation expenditure and property, plant and equipment. The costs are disclosed in the statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income as other own work capitalised. Labour costs which are not related to exploration and evaluation expenditure or property, plant and equipment are disclosed in the statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income as employee benefit expenses. Other own work capitalised also includes the capitalisation of Vercana GmbH staff costs relating to the refurbishment of electric drill rigs and partial capitalisation of the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer employed by Vulcan Energy Resources Limited.
Other own work capitalised does not relate to any external revenue or any profit margin charge to intercompany transactions.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | ||
| Depreciation of Right-of-use assets | 1,219 | 1,826 | |
| Depreciation of Property, Plant and Equipment | 8,236 | 3,387 | |
| Amortisation of intangible assets | 142 | 656 | |
| 9,597 | 5,869 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Interest income | 1,889 | 3,558 |
| 1,889 | 3,558 |
Interest revenue is recognised as interest accrues.
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 20 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Interest expense - lease liabilities | 173 | 172 |
| 173 | 172 |
Finance costs attributable to qualifying assets are capitalised as part of the asset. All other finance costs are expensed in the period in which they are incurred.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| (a) The components of tax benefit comprise: |
||
| Current tax | 57 | 106 |
| Deferred tax | (249) | (1,947) |
| Income tax benefit reported in the of profit or loss and other comprehensive income |
(192) | (1,841) |
| (b) The prima facie tax on loss from ordinary activities before income tax is reconciled to the income tax |
||
| as follows: | ||
| Loss before income tax expense | (42,550) | (28,804) |
| Prima facie tax benefit on loss before income tax at 30% (31 December 2023: 30%) |
(12,765) | (8,641) |
| Tax effect of amounts that are not deductible/taxable in calculating taxable income | ||
| Non-deductible expense | 326 | 615 |
| Tax losses and temporary differences not brought to account |
6,705 | 3,468 |
| Foreign corporate rate differential | 5,542 | 2,717 |
| Income tax benefit | (192) | (1,841) |
| (c) Deferred tax assets/(liabilities) not brought to accounts are: |
||
| Accruals | 39 | 173 |
| Prepayments | - | 86 |
| Other | 216 | 1,010 |
| Tax losses | 3,848 | 4,838 |
| Total deferred tax balances not brought to account | 4,103 | 6,107 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
(d) As at 31 December 2024, the consolidated entity has income tax payable of €57,000 (31 Dec 2023: €113,000).
Except for the deferred tax assets (note 19) and deferred tax liabilities (note 25) recognised in the subsidiary, Natürlich Insheim GmbH, potential deferred tax assets attributable to tax losses and other temporary differences have not been brought to account at 31 December 2024 because the directors do not believe it is appropriate to regard realisation of the deferred tax assets as probable at this point in time. These benefits will only be obtained if:
The income tax expense (revenue) for the year comprises current income tax expense (income) and deferred tax expense (income).
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Current income tax expense charged to the profit or loss is the tax payable on taxable income calculated using applicable income tax rates enacted, or substantially enacted, as at the end of the reporting period. Current tax liabilities (assets) are therefore measured at the amounts expected to be paid to (recovered from) the relevant taxation authority.
Deferred tax expense reflects movements in deferred tax asset and deferred tax liability balances during the year as well as unused tax losses.
Current and deferred income tax expense (income) is charged or credited directly to equity instead of the profit or loss when the tax relates to items that are credited or charged directly to equity.
Deferred tax assets and liabilities are ascertained based on temporary differences arising between the tax bases of assets and liabilities and their carrying amounts in the financial statements. Deferred tax assets also result where amounts have been fully expensed but future tax deductions are available. No deferred income tax will be recognised from the initial recognition of an asset or liability, excluding a business combination, where there is no effect on accounting or taxable profit or loss.
Deferred tax assets and liabilities are calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply to the period when the asset is realised or the liability is settled, based on tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at the end of the reporting period. Their measurement also reflects the manner in which management expects to recover or settle the carrying amount of the related asset or liability.
Deferred tax assets relating to temporary differences and unused tax losses are recognised only to the extent that it is probable that future taxable profit will be available against which the benefits of the deferred tax asset can be utilised.
Where temporary differences exist in relation to investments in subsidiaries, branches, associates, and joint ventures, deferred tax assets and liabilities are not recognised where the timing of the reversal of the temporary difference can be controlled and it is not probable that the reversal will occur in the foreseeable future.
Current tax assets and liabilities are offset where a legally enforceable right of set-off exists and it is intended that net settlement or simultaneous realisation and settlement of the respective asset and liability will occur. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are offset where a legally enforceable right of set-off exists, the deferred tax assets and liabilities relate to income taxes levied by the same taxation authority on either the same taxable entity or different taxable entities where it is intended that net settlement or simultaneous realisation and settlement of the respective asset and liability will occur in future periods in which significant amounts of deferred tax assets or liabilities are expected to be recovered or settled.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| Net loss for the year in €'000 | (42,358) | (26,963) |
| Weighted average number of ordinary shares for basic and diluted loss per share. |
182,017,379 | 159,325,357 |
| Basic and diluted loss per share € | (0.23) | (0.17) |
Basic loss per share is determined by dividing net profit or loss after income tax attributable to members of the Company, excluding any costs of servicing equity other than ordinary shares, by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the financial year, adjusted for bonus elements in ordinary shares issued during the year.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Diluted loss per share adjusts the figures used in the determination of basic earnings per share to take into account the after-income tax effect of interest and other financing costs associated with dilutive potential ordinary shares and the weighted average number of shares assumed to have been issued for no consideration in relation to dilutive potential ordinary shares.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Cash at bank and in hand | 96,988 | 23,915 |
| Short-term deposits | 66 | 54,813 |
| 97,054 | 78,728 |
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Loss for the financial year | (42,358) | (26,963) |
| Share-based payment expense | 851 | 1,688 |
| Impairment expenses | - | 1,144 |
| Depreciation and amortisation expense | 9,597 | 5,869 |
| Gain on discontinuation of use of the equity method of accounting for investments |
- | (3,874) |
| Loss from equity accounted investments | 92 | 456 |
| Allowance for expected credit losses | 67 | - |
| Net foreign exchange (profit)/loss | (1,456) | - |
| Other non-cash expenses | 19 | - |
| Changes in assets/liabilities | ||
| Increase in trade and other receivables | (1,422) | (787) |
| Decrease in contract assets and inventory | 307 | - |
| Increase /(decrease) in trade and other payables | 5,358 | (1,702) |
| (Decrease)/increase in provisions | (739) | 1,661 |
| Decrease in deferred income | (708) | - |
| Increase in deferred tax assets | (356) | (1,531) |
| Increase/(decrease) in deferred tax liabilities | 69 | (292) |
| Net cash used in operating activities | (30,679) | (24,331) |
Cash at bank earns interest at floating rates based on daily deposit rates. Short-term deposits are made in varying periods between one day and three months, depending on the immediate cash requirements of the Group and earn interest at the respective short-term deposit rates.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Trade receivables | 1,100 | 608 |
| Allowance for expected credit losses | (67) | - |
| Prepayments | 615 | 712 |
| Other receivables1 | 3,766 | 2,061 |
| Other - bank guarantees | 3,707 | 958 |
| VAT receivable | 3,398 | 2,560 |
| 12,519 | 6,899 |
1 On 27 September 2024, an agreement was signed to acquire 100% of the shares in Geox GmbH for a deferred consideration. The transaction was not complete as at 31 December 2024, however the Group has provided a workover loan of €2,549,000 as at 31 December 2024 to Geox GmbH, repayable when the transaction completes. The workover loan amount is included in other receivables as at 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil), and is in addition to the partial cash payment of €371,000 for the acquisition of Geox GmbH, recorded in other investments in note 14 (31 December 2023: nil).
| Expected credit loss rate | Carrying amount | Allowance for Expected Credit Loss |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
| Consolidated | % | % | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 |
| not overdue | 0% | 0% | 833 | 608 | - | - |
| overdue | 25% | 50% | 267 | - | 67 | - |
| 1,100 | 608 | 67 | - |
Trade receivables are non-interest bearing and are generally on terms of 30 days. An allowance of €67,000 has been recognised for the year ended 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil) to cover expected credit losses.
Trade and other receivables include amounts due from customers for goods sold and services performed in the ordinary course of business. Trade and other receivables are initially recognised at fair value and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method less any allowance for expected credit loss. Receivables expected to be collected within 12 months of the end of the reporting period are classified as current assets.
Revenues, expenses and assets are recognised net of the amount of GST, except where the amount of GST incurred is not recoverable from the Australian Taxation Office. In these circumstances, the GST is recognised as part of the cost of acquisition of the asset of the assets or part of the expense.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Receivables and payables are stated inclusive of the amount of GST receivable or payable. The net amount of GST recoverable from, or payable to, the taxation authority is included as a current asset or liability in the Consolidated statement of financial position.
Commitments and contingencies are disclosed net of the amount of GST recoverable from, or payable to, the tax authority. Cash flows are presented in the statement of cash flows on a gross basis, except for the GST on investing and financial activities, which are disclosed as operating cash flows.
Revenues, expenses and assets are recognised net of VAT, except where the amount of VAT incurred is not recoverable from the German tax authority. In these circumstances the VAT is recognised as part of the cost of acquisition or expense. Receivables and payables are stated inclusive of the amount of VAT receivable or payable. The net amount of VAT recoverable from, or payable to, the taxation authority is included as a current asset or liability in the Consolidated statement of financial position. Cash flows are presented in the statement of cash flows on a gross basis, except for the VAT on investing and financial activities, which are disclosed as operating cash flows.
The consolidated entity recognises a loss allowance for expected credit losses on financial assets which are either measured at amortised cost or fair value through other comprehensive income. The measurement of the loss allowance depends upon the consolidated entity's assessment at the end of each reporting period as to whether the financial instrument's credit risk has increased significantly since initial recognition, based on reasonable and supportable information that is available, without undue cost or effort to obtain.
Where there has not been a significant increase in exposure to credit risk since initial recognition, a 12-month expected credit loss allowance is estimated. This represents a portion of the asset's lifetime expected credit losses that are attributable to a default event that is possible within the next 12 months. Where a financial asset has become credit impaired or where it is determined that credit risk has increased significantly, the loss allowance is based on the asset's lifetime expected credit losses. The amount of expected credit loss recognised is measured on the basis of the probability weighted present value of anticipated cash shortfalls over the life of the instrument discounted at the original effective interest rate.
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Contract assets | - | 117 |
| - | 117 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Reconciliation of the written down values at the beginning and end of the current and previous financial year are set out below:
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Opening balance | 117 | 42 |
| Transfer (to)/from inventory | (117) | 75 |
| Closing balance | - | 117 |
Contract assets are recognised when the consolidated entity has transferred goods and services to the customer but where the consolidated entity is yet to establish an unconditional right to consideration. Contract assets are treated as financial assets for impairment purposes.
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Spare parts and consumables |
137 | 327 |
| 137 | 327 |
Raw materials, work in progress and finished goods are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value on a "first in first out'' basis. Cost comprises of direct materials and delivery costs, direct labour, import duties and other taxes, an appropriate proportion of variable and fixed overhead expenditure based on normal operating capacity. Costs of purchased inventory is determined after deducting rebates and discounts received or receivable.
The group has recognised the following other assets.
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Prepayments relating to capital items | 1,392 | 11,775 |
| Capitalised borrowing costs | 6,451 | - |
| Other investments1 | 401 | - |
| 8,244 | 11,775 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
1 Other investments relate to a partial cash payment of €371,000 made for the acquisition of Geox GmbH (refer to note 11 for further information) and an other investment of €30,000 previously accounted for as an immaterial associate (refer to note 29 for further information).
Prepayments relating to capital items comprise of payments made in advance to suppliers for goods received and services rendered relating to the Group's Phase One Lionheart Project. As goods and services are received, prepayments relating to capital items are recognised in assets under construction within property, plant and equipment. Once complete and ready for use, the assets are depreciated in accordance with the Group's depreciation policy.
The Group capitalises transaction costs directly attributable to debt financing of its Phase One Lionheart Project, in accordance with IFRS 9. When debt funding is received, the borrowings will be partially offset by the capitalised transaction costs, which are subsequently amortised through profit or loss over the life of the debt term, using the effective interest method.
Other investments are recognised at cost and tested for impairment when impairment indicators suggest the carrying value may not be recoverable. Other investments at 31 December 2024 relate to a partial cash payment made for the acquisition of Geox GmbH. An agreement was signed on 27 September 2024 to acquire 100% of the shares in Geox GmbH for a deferred consideration. Refer to note 43 for further information.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Carrying amount of exploration and evaluation expenditure |
13,124 | 48,475 |
| At the beginning of the year | 48,475 | 30,135 |
| Exploration expenditure incurred | 9,037 | 18,776 |
| Reclassification to Property, plant and equipment1 | (40,348) | - |
| Reclassification to Intangible Assets2 | (2,308) | - |
| Other reclassifications3 | (1,136) | - |
| Foreign exchange Loss | (596) | (436) |
| At the end of the year | 13,124 | 48,475 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
1 In the year ended 31 December 2024, the Group completed evaluation procedures and determined the technical feasibility and commercial viability of its Phase One Lionheart Project are demonstrable. As such, exploration and evaluation expenditure was reclassified to mine properties in development in accordance with IFRS 6. Refer to note 16 for further information.
2 Costs relating to the Group's internally generated technology were reclassified to intangible assets to more clearly reflect the nature of costs. Refer to note 18 for further information.
3 Other reclassifications are adjustments relating to prior years and reclassified in the current year to more clearly reflect the nature of costs.
Acquisition, exploration, and evaluation costs associated with licence areas are accumulated in respect of each identifiable area of interest. These costs are only carried forward to the extent that the rights of tenure to that area of interest are current and that the costs are expected to be recouped through the successful commercial development or sale of the area or where activities in the area have not yet reached a stage that permits reasonable assessment of the existence of economically recoverable reserves.
Costs in relation to an abandoned area are written off in full against profit in the period in which the decision to abandon the area is made.
Each area of interest is also reviewed annually, and acquisition costs written off to the extent that they will not be recoverable in the future.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Software | 395 | 655 |
| Plant & Equipment | 84,758 | 26,188 |
| Land & Buildings | 4,657 | 4,659 |
| Assets under Construction | 67,104 | 107,103 |
| Mine Properties in Development | 80,415 | - |
| 237,329 | 138,605 |
Movement in carrying amounts of property, plant and equipment for the financial year ended 31 December 2024 are as follows:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Software | Plant and equipment |
Asset under construction |
Land and Building |
Mine Properties in Development |
Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Cost | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 24 | 781 | 32,607 | 107,103 | 4,834 | - | 145,325 |
| Additions | 87 | 8,606 | 56,270 | 28 | - | 64,991 |
| Disposals | (65) | (1,765) | - | (86) | - | (1,916) |
| Assets under construction completed1 Costs reclassified from |
- | 56,695 | (96,386) | 102 | 39,589 | - |
| exploration and evaluation expenditure2 |
- | 293 | 379 | - | 39,676 | 40,348 |
| Recognition of restoration provision3 |
- | 576 | - | - | 1,150 | 1,726 |
| At 31 Dec 24 | 803 | 97,012 | 67,366 | 4,878 | 80,415 | 250,474 |
| Accumulated Depreciation |
||||||
| At 1 Jan 24 | (126) | (6,419) | - | (175) | - | (6,720) |
| Depreciation for the year |
(339) | (7,503) | (262) | (132) | - | (8,236) |
| Depreciation eliminated on disposal |
57 | 1,668 | - | 86 | - | 1,811 |
| At 31 Dec 24 | (408) | (12,254) | (262) | (221) | - | (13,145) |
| Carrying amount | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 24 | 655 | 26,188 | 107,103 | 4,659 | - | 138,605 |
| At 31 Dec 24 | 395 | 84,758 | 67,104 | 4,657 | 80,415 | 237,329 |
1 Assets completed during the year and ready for use were transferred from assets under construction to plant & equipment at cost value, including €15,372,000 for the Group's Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimisation Plant ("CLEOP") and €40,752,000 for the Lithium Extraction and Optimisation Plant ("LEOP"). Other assets under construction of €39,589,000 relating to wellsites and mine development were reclassified to mine properties in development.
2 In the year ended 31 December 2024, the Group completed evaluation procedures and determined the technical feasibility and commercial viability of its Phase One Lionheart Project are demonstrable. As such, exploration and evaluation expenditure was reclassified to mine properties in development in accordance with IFRS 6.
3 During the year ended 31 December 2024, a restoration and rehabilitation provision of€1,726,000 was recognised relating to the Group's operations. Refer to note 24 for further information.
Movement in carrying amounts of property, plant and equipment for the financial year ended 31 December 2023 are as follows:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Software | Plant and equipment |
Asset under construction |
Land and Building |
Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Cost | |||||
| At 1 Jan 23 | 417 | 30,623 | 40,950 | 1,623 | 73,613 |
| Additions | 328 | 1,955 | 66,163 | 3,211 | 71,657 |
| Disposals | - | (10) | (10) | - | (20) |
| Acquired in Business Combinations |
36 | 39 | - | - | 75 |
| At 31 Dec 23 | 781 | 32,607 | 107,103 | 4,834 | 145,325 |
| Accumulated Depreciation | |||||
| At 1 Jan 23 | (34) | (3,212) | - | (87) | (3,333) |
| Depreciation for the year |
(56) | (3,201) | - | (88) | (3,345) |
| Depreciation eliminated on disposal |
- | 10 | - | - | 10 |
| Acquired in Business Combinations |
(36) | (16) | - | - | (52) |
| At 31 Dec 23 | (126) | (6,419) | - | (175) | (6,720) |
| Carrying amount | |||||
| At 1 Jan 23 | 383 | 27,411 | 40,950 | 1,536 | 70,280 |
| At 31 Dec 23 | 655 | 26,188 | 107,103 | 4,659 | 138,605 |
Property, plant and equipment is stated at historical cost less accumulated depreciation and impairment. Historical cost includes expenditure that is directly attributable to the acquisition of the items.
Once assets are available for use, depreciation is calculated using the straight-line method to allocate asset costs over their estimated useful lives, as follows:
| Software | 3 -5 years |
|---|---|
| Plant & Equipment | 2-20 years |
| Buildings | 20 years |
| Mine Properties in Development | 20-30 years |
The assets' residual values and useful lives are reviewed, and adjusted if appropriate, at each balance date. An asset's carrying amount is written down immediately to its recoverable amount if the asset's carrying amount is greater than its estimated recoverable amount.
Assets under construction are carried at historical cost, and are transferred to the relevant class of property, plant and equipment once completed and ready for use, at which point depreciation commences.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
An exploration and evaluation asset shall be reclassified to mine properties in development when the technical feasibility and commercial viability of extracting a mineral resource is demonstrable, and when evaluation procedures have been completed.
Since publication of the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) and Bridging Engineering Study (BES), the Group has further demonstrated the commercial viability of the Phase One Lionheart Project through its financing progress and first production achieved at its Lithium Extraction Optimisation Plant (LEOP) and Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimisation Plant (CLEOP) during the year ended 31 December 2024.
The Group has reclassified costs relating to the Phase One Lionheart project from exploration and evaluation expenditure to mine properties in development, within property, plant & equipment. Costs relating to Phase Two licence areas remain classified as exploration and evaluation expenditure and are subject to ongoing annual impairment indicator testing under IFRS 6.
Immediately prior to reclassification, exploration and evaluation expenditure assets are tested for impairment. Impairment testing is conducted at the cash-generating unit (CGU) level in accordance with IFRS 6.
The Group has identified an area of interest as a CGU for the purpose of assessing impairment. Three licence areas comprising of the Phase One Lionheart Project are identified as a single area of interest and CGU, for which impairment was assessed.
The recoverable amount of exploration and evaluation expenditure reclassified to mine properties in development has been determined by a value-in-use calculation using a discounted cash flow model for the Group's Phase One Lionheart Project, based on a 30-year projection period.
Key assumptions used in the discounted cash flow model to which the recoverable amount of the CGU is most sensitive include:
The pre-tax discount rate of 8% reflects management's estimate of the time value of money.
There were no other key assumptions used in the discounted cash flow model.
Based on the above, no impairment was recognised as the carrying amount of exploration and evaluation expenditure reclassified to mine properties in development exceeded its recoverable amount.
| Right-of-use asset |
Buildings | Vehicles | Hardware and Software |
Technical Equipment |
Land | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Cost | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 24 | 5,539 | 954 | 15 | 41 | 306 | 6,855 |
| Additions | 508 | 108 | - | - | 22 | 638 |
| Disposals | (1,256) | (202) | (15) | (41) | (6) | (1,520) |
| Remeasurements | - | 11 | - | - | - | 11 |
| At 31 Dec 24 | 4,791 | 871 | - | - | 322 | 5,984 |
| Accumulated Depreciation | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 24 | (1,844) | (501) | (15) | (39) | (40) | (2,439) |
| Depreciation for the year |
(882) | (267) | - | - | (70) | (1,219) |
| Disposals | 1,260 | 175 | 15 | 39 | 5 | 1,494 |
| Remeasurements | - | 16 | - | - | - | 16 |
| At 31 Dec 24 | (1,466) | (577) | - | - | (105) | (2,148) |
| Carrying amount | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 24 | 3,695 | 453 | - | 2 | 266 | 4,416 |
| At 31 Dec 24 | 3,325 | 294 | - | - | 217 | 3,836 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Right-of-use asset | Buildings | Vehicles | Hardware and Software |
Technical Equipment |
Land | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Cost | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 23 | 3,400 | 512 | 21 | 14 | 23 | 3,970 |
| Additions Acquired in |
2,210 | 498 | 24 | 27 | 283 | 3,042 |
| Business Combinations |
- | 33 | - | - | - | 33 |
| Disposals | (71) | (89) | (30) | - | - | (190) |
| At 31 Dec 23 | 5,539 | 954 | 15 | 41 | 306 | 6,855 |
| Accumulated Depreciation | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 23 | (422) | (148) | (15) | (3) | (5) | (593) |
| Depreciation for the year |
(1,444) | (442) | (30) | (36) | (35) | (1,987) |
| Eliminated on cancellation |
42 | 89 | 30 | - | - | 161 |
| FX loss | (20) | - | - | - | - | (20) |
| (1,844) | (501) | (15) | (39) | (40) | (2,439) | |
| Carrying amount | ||||||
| At 1 Jan 23 | 2,978 | 364 | 6 | 11 | 18 | 3,377 |
| At 31 Dec 23 | 3,695 | 453 | - | 2 | 266 | 4,416 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Lease Liabilities | Buildings | Vehicles | Hardware and Software |
Technical Equipment |
Land | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| At 1 Jan 24 | 3,814 | 328 | - | 1 | 268 | 4,411 |
| New lease liabilities entered during the year |
508 | 108 | - | - | 22 | 638 |
| Add: Interest | 146 | 14 | - | - | 13 | 173 |
| Less: Payment | (1,086) | (204) | - | (1) | (79) | (1,370) |
| Foreign exchange loss | ||||||
| At 31 Dec 24 | 3,382 | 246 | - | - | 224 | 3,852 |
| Represented by: | ||||||
| Current lease liabilities | 580 | 127 | - | - | 64 | 771 |
| Non-current lease liabilities |
2,802 | 119 | - | - | 160 | 3,081 |
| 3,382 | 246 | - | - | 224 | 3,852 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Lease Liabilities | Buildings | Vehicles | Hardware and Software |
Technical Equipment |
Land | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| At 1 Jan 23 | 3,020 | 263 | 6 | 9 | 18 | 3,316 |
| New lease liabilities entered during the year |
2,156 | 376 | (6) | 27 | 283 | 2,836 |
| Acquired in business combinations |
- | 33 | - | - | - | 33 |
| Add: Interest | 147 | 19 | - | - | 5 | 171 |
| Less: Payment | (1,480) | (363) | 0 | (35) | (38) | (1,916) |
| Foreign exchange loss |
(29) | - | - | - | - | (29) |
| At 31 Dec 23 | 3,814 | 328 | - | 1 | 268 | 4,411 |
| Represented by: | ||||||
| Current lease liabilities |
792 | 236 | - | 1 | 57 | 1,086 |
| Non-current lease liabilities |
3,022 | 92 | - | - | 211 | 3,325 |
| 3,814 | 328 | - | 1 | 268 | 4,411 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
A right-of-use asset is recognised at the commencement date of a lease. The right-of-use asset is measured at cost, which comprises the initial amount of the lease liability, adjusted for, as applicable, any lease payments made at or before the commencement date net of any lease incentives received, any initial direct costs incurred, and, except where included in the cost of inventories, an estimate of costs expected to be incurred for dismantling and removing the underlying asset, and restoring the site or asset.
Right-of-use assets are depreciated on a straight-line basis over the unexpired period of the lease or the estimated useful life of the asset, whichever is the shorter. Where the consolidated entity expects to obtain ownership of the leased asset at the end of the lease term, the depreciation is over its estimated useful life. Rightof use assets are subject to impairment or adjusted for any remeasurement of lease liabilities.
The consolidated entity has elected not to recognise a right-of-use asset and corresponding lease liability for short-term leases with terms of 12 months or less and leases of low-value assets. Lease payments on these assets are expensed to profit or loss as incurred.
A lease liability is recognised at the commencement date of a lease. The lease liability is initially recognised at the present value of the lease payments to be made over the term of the lease, discounted using the interest rate implicit in the lease or, if that rate cannot be readily determined, the consolidated entity's incremental borrowing rate. Lease payments comprise of fixed payments less any lease incentives receivable, variable lease payments that depend on an index or a rate, amounts expected to be paid under residual value guarantees, exercise price of a purchase option when the exercise of the option is reasonably certain to occur, and any anticipated
termination penalties. The variable lease payments that do not depend on an index or a rate are expensed in the period in which they are incurred.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Lease liabilities are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method. The carrying amounts are remeasured if there is a change in the following: future lease payments arising from a change in an index or a rate used; residual guarantee; lease term; certainty of a purchase option and termination penalties. When a lease liability is remeasured, an adjustment is made to the corresponding right-of use asset, or to profit or loss if the carrying amount of the right-of-use asset is fully written down.
The Group leases office space, a laboratory, vehicles and land through its German subsidiary Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH as well as the subsidiaries of the German operating Company.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Goodwill | 1,076 | 1,076 |
| Less: Impairment | (1,076) | (1,076) |
| - | - | |
| Customer contracts – at cost | 1,809 | 1,526 |
| Acquired in Business Combinations | - | 387 |
| Less: Impairment | - | (104) |
| Less: Accumulated amortisation | (1,514) | (1,466) |
| 295 | 343 | |
| VULSORB® – at cost | ||
| Reclassified from exploration & evaluation expenditure1 |
2,308 | - |
| Less: Accumulated amortisation | - | - |
| 2,308 | - | |
| Operating permit - at cost | 1,500 | 1,500 |
| Less: Accumulated amortisation | (282) | (188) |
| 1,218 | 1,312 | |
| Total Intangible Assets | 3,821 | 1,655 |
1 The Group reclassified costs relating to VULSORB® from exploration and evaluation expenditure to intangible assets, to more clearly reflect the nature of costs.
Reconciliation of the written down values at the beginning and the end of the current and previous financial year are set out below:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Customer Contracts |
Operating Permit |
Goodwill | VULSORB® | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Balance at 1 Jan 23 | 622 | 1,406 | 1,040 | - | 3,068 |
| Acquired through business combinations |
387 | - | - | - | 387 |
| Less: amortisation | (562) | (94) | - | - | (656) |
| Less: impairment | (104) | - | (1,040) | - | (1,144) |
| Balance at 31 Dec 23 | 343 | 1,312 | - | - | 1,655 |
| Transferred from exploration & evaluation expenditure1 |
- | - | - | 2,308 | 2,308 |
| Less: amortisation | (48) | (94) | - | - | (142) |
| Balance at 31 Dec 24 | 295 | 1,218 | - | 2,308 | 3,821 |
1 The Group reclassified costs relating to VULSORB® from exploration and evaluation expenditure to intangible assets, to more clearly reflect the nature of costs.
Goodwill arises on the acquisition of a business and is carried at cost less accumulated impairment losses. Goodwill is not amortised, but rather tested annually for impairment, or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate that it might be impaired. Impairment losses on goodwill are taken to profit or loss and are not subsequently reversed.
Customer contracts, operating permits and order backlog are deferred and amortised on a straight-line basis over the period of their expected benefit, being their finite life of 3-5 years.
VULSORB® is the Group's internally generated intangible asset. The technology is an internally developed lithium extraction sorbent which is used by the Group in the adsorption-type direct lithium extraction (A-DLE) process at LEOP.
During the year ended 31 December 2024, the company reclassified €2,308,000 of capitalised VULSORB® costs from exploration and evaluation expenditure to intangible assets, to more clearly reflect the nature of costs. As the asset is used at LEOP in testing quantities, the technology will continue to be developed and will be amortised when ready for use in commercial production, as intended by management. The asset will be subject to annual impairment testing until it is ready for use in commercial production. As at 31 December 2024, the value-in-use of VULSORB® was assessed as exceeding its carrying value, and no impairment was recognised during the period.
The consolidated entity tests annually, or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate impairment, whether goodwill and other indefinite life intangible assets have suffered any impairment, in accordance with the accounting policy stated in note 1. The recoverable amounts of cash-generating units have been determined based on value-in-use calculations. These calculations require the use of assumptions, including estimated discount rates based on the current cost of capital and growth rates of the estimated future cash flows.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Intangible assets acquired as part of a business combination, other than goodwill, are initially measured at their fair value at the date of the acquisition. Intangible assets acquired separately are initially recognised at cost. Indefinite life intangible assets are not amortised and are subsequently measured at cost less any impairment. Finite life intangible assets are subsequently measured at cost less amortisation and any impairment. The gains or losses recognised in profit and loss arising from the derecognition of intangible assets are measured as the difference between the net disposal proceeds and the carrying amount of the intangible asset. The method and useful lives of finite life intangible assets are reviewed annually. Changes in the expected pattern of consumption or useful life are accounted for prospectively by changing the amortisation method or period.
The consolidated entity assesses impairment of non-financial assets other than goodwill and other indefinite life intangible assets at each reporting date by evaluating conditions specific to the consolidated entity and to the particular asset that may lead to impairment. If an impairment trigger exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is determined. This involves fair value less costs of disposal or value-in-use calculations, which incorporate a number of key estimates and assumptions.
Recoverable amount is the higher of an asset's fair value less costs of disposal and value-in-use. The value-inuse is the present value of the estimated future cash flows relating to the asset using a pre-tax discount rate specific to the asset or cash-generating unit to which the asset belongs. Assets that do not have independent cash flows are grouped together to form a cash-generating unit.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Deferred tax asset comprises of differences attributable to: | ||
| Other | 823 | 2,145 |
| Property, plant and equipment | 1,417 | 241 |
| Tax losses | 1,328 | 826 |
| Deferred tax asset | 3,568 | 3,212 |
| Movements: | ||
| Opening balance | 3,212 | 1,681 |
| Charged to income statement | 356 | 1,531 |
| Closing balance | 3,568 | 3,212 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Refer to note 8 for accounting policy.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Trade payables (i) | 11,488 | 9,514 |
| Accrued expenses | 3,852 | 5,868 |
| Other payables | 1,296 | 1,812 |
| VAT Payable | 1,776 | - |
| 18,412 | 17,194 |
(i) Trade payables are non-interest bearing and are normally settled on 30-day terms.
Due to the short-term nature of these payables, their carrying value is assumed to be the same as their fair value.
Trade payables and other payables represent liabilities for goods and services provided to the Group prior to the end of the financial year which are unpaid. The amounts are unsecured and are usually paid within 30 days of recognition.
There is no derivative financial instruments in the statement of financial position as at 31 December 2024.
The group has the following derivative financial instruments in the following line items in the statement of financial position:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Forward foreign currency contract held for trading | - | 133 |
| - | 133 |
Certain derivative instruments do not qualify for hedge accounting. Changes in the fair value of any derivative instrument that does not qualify for hedge accounting are recognised immediately in profit or loss and are included in other gains/(losses).
Derivatives are only used for economic hedging purposes and not as speculative investments. However, where derivatives do not meet the hedge accounting criteria, they are classified as 'held for trading' for accounting purposes and are accounted for at fair value through profit or loss. They are presented as current assets or liabilities to the extent they are expected to be settled within 12 months after the end of the reporting period.
(iii) Fair value measurement
For information about the methods and assumptions used in determining the fair value of derivatives see note 26.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Leave obligations | 1,523 | 1,509 |
| 1,523 | 1,509 |
The leave obligations cover the group's liabilities for long service leave and annual leave which are classified as either other long-term benefits or short-term benefits. The current portion of this liability includes all of the accrued annual leave and the unconditional entitlements to long service leave where employees have completed the required period of service. The entire provision of €1,523,000 (31 December 2023: €1,509,000) is presented as current, since the group does not have an unconditional right to defer settlement for any of these obligations.
Contributions to defined contribution superannuation plans are expensed in the period in which they are incurred.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Liabilities for wages and salaries, including non-monetary benefits, annual leave and long service leave expected to be settled wholly within 12 months of the reporting date are measured at the amounts expected to be paid when the liabilities are settled.
The liability for annual leave and long service leave not expected to be settled within 12 months of the reporting date are measured at the present value of expected future payments to be made in respect of services provided by employees up to the reporting date using the projected unit credit method. Consideration is given to expected future wage and salary levels, experience of employee departures and periods of service. Expected future payments are discounted using market yields at the reporting date on corporate bonds with terms to maturity and currency that match, as closely as possible, the estimated future cash outflows. There were no long-term employee benefit liabilities at 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil).
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Current Government grants | 2,110 | - |
| Non-current Government grants | - | 2,818 |
| 2,110 | 2,818 |
Government grants are not recognised until there is a reasonable assurance that the Group will comply with the conditions attached to them and that the grants will be received.
Assistance from the Project sponsors aims to support the Group in testing, development and optimisation in production of geothermal energy. Unfulfilled conditions relate to the spend requirements as part of the grant acquittal processes which will be validated by the project sponsors by 31 December 2025. Therefore, all deferred income is presented as current.
| Current: | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Restructuring provision (i) | - | 750 |
| - | 750 | |
| Non-Current: | ||
| Other provisions | 261 | 264 |
| Restoration provision (ii) | 1,726 | - |
| 1,987 | 264 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
In December 2023, the decision was made to centralise engineering operations in Karlsruhe to ensure closer collaboration between the engineering teams and proximity to future construction locations, resulting in closure of the Augsburg office. All Augsburg located employees were offered new contracts in Karlsruhe, and a provision of €750,000 was recognised representing potential termination benefits to those employees who did not accept new contracts. During the year ended 31 December 2024, termination benefits were paid, and no further restructuring provisions were required at 31 December 2024.
The extraction and processing activities of the Vulcan Group typically give rise to obligations for site closure or restoration and rehabilitation.
Provisions for the cost of closure and rehabilitation program are recognised as soon as environmental disturbance occurs. The nature of decommissioning activities includes dismantling and removing structures, rehabilitating mine sites, dismantling operating facilities, closure of plant sites and restoration, reclamation, and revegetation of affected areas.
Restoration provisions are measured based on the expected value of future cash flows, discounted to their present value and determined according to the probability of alternative estimates of cash flows occurring. Discount rates used are risk-free interest rates specific to Germany and the expected timing of the closure and restoration expenditure. Material changes in Germany specific risk-free interest rates may affect the discount rates applied. The Group reviews its discount rates used periodically.
The provision is recognised as a non-current liability with a corresponding asset included in property, plant, and equipment and depreciated accordingly. The value of the provision is progressively increased over time due to the unwind effect of discounting and inflation. The change is recorded as an expense in finance costs. If the liability decreases and exceeds the carrying amount of the asset, the asset is written down to nil and the excess is recognised immediately in the consolidated statement of profit or loss. If the liability increases and results in an addition to the cost of the asset, the recoverability of the new carrying amount is considered and an impairment indicator test is performed. In the event that an impairment expense occurs, this is recognised in the consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income in the period in which it occurs.
| Restructuring obligations |
Waste disposal | Decontamination provision |
Restoration provision |
Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Cost | |||||
| Carrying amount at 1 Jan 24 |
750 | 200 | 64 | - | 1,014 |
| (Provisions utilised)/ charged to profit or loss during the year |
(750) | 34 | (37) | - | (753) |
| Recognised in property, plant & equipment |
- | - | - | 1,726 | 1,726 |
| Carrying amount at 31 Dec 24 |
- | 234 | 27 | 1,726 | 1,987 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Provisions are recognised when the consolidated entity has a present (legal or constructive) obligation as a result of a past event, it is probable the consolidated entity will be required to settle the obligation, and a reliable estimate can be made of the amount of the obligation. The amount recognised as a provision is the best estimate of the consideration required to settle the present obligation at the reporting date, taking into account the risks and uncertainties surrounding the obligation. If the time value of money is material, provisions are discounted using a current pre-tax rate specific to the liability. The increase in the provision resulting from the passage of time is recognised as a finance cost.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Deferred tax liability comprises temporary differences attributable to: | ||
| Other | 913 | 253 |
| Property, plant and equipment | 622 | 1,157 |
| Deferred tax liabilities | 1,535 | 1,410 |
| Movements: | ||
| Opening balance | 1,410 | 1,702 |
| Additions through business combinations | - | 115 |
| Charged to income statement | 125 | (407) |
| Closing balance | 1,535 | 1,410 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Refer to note 8 for accounting policy.
(i) Fair value hierarchy
This section explains the judgements and estimates made in determining the fair values of the financial instruments that are recognised and measured at fair value in the financial statements. To provide an indication about the reliability of the inputs used in determining fair value, the group has classified its financial instruments into the three levels prescribed under the accounting standards. An explanation of each level follows underneath the table.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | ||
| Level 1 | |||
| Financial assets | |||
| Financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income |
|||
| Australian listed equity securities | 1,396 | 2,550 | |
| Level 2 | |||
| Financial liabilities | |||
| Forward foreign currency contracts held for sale | - | 133 |
There were no transfers between levels 1 and 2 for recurring fair value measurements during the year. The group's policy is to recognise transfers into and out of fair value hierarchy levels as at the end of the reporting period.
Level 1: The fair value of financial instruments traded in active markets (such as publicly traded derivatives and equity securities) is based on quoted market prices at the end of the reporting period. The quoted market price used for financial assets held by the group is the current bid price. The quoted market price incorporates the market's assumptions with respect to changes in economic climate such as rising interest rates and inflation, as well as changes due to ESG risk. These instruments are included in level 1.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Level 2: The fair value of financial instruments that are not traded in an active market (e.g. over-the counter derivatives) is determined using valuation techniques that maximise the use of observable market data and rely as little as possible on entity-specific estimates. If all significant inputs required to fair value an instrument are observable, the instrument is included in level 2.
Level 3: If one or more of the significant inputs is not based on observable market data, the instrument is included in level 3. This is the case for unlisted equity securities and for instruments where ESG risk gives rise to a significant unobservable adjustment.
(ii) Valuation techniques used to determine fair values
Specific valuation techniques used to value financial instruments include:
When an asset or liability, financial or non-financial, is measured at fair value for recognition or disclosure purposes, the fair value is based on the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date; and assumes that the transaction will take place either: in the principal market; or in the absence of a principal market, in the most advantageous market.
Fair value is measured using the assumptions that market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability, assuming they act in their economic best interests. For non-financial assets, the fair value measurement is based on its highest and best use. Valuation techniques that are appropriate in the circumstances and for which sufficient data are available to measure fair value, are used, maximising the use of relevant observable inputs and minimising the use of unobservable inputs.
Assets and liabilities measured at fair value are classified into three levels, using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the significance of the inputs used in making the measurements. Classifications are reviewed at each reporting date and transfers between levels are determined based on a reassessment of the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement.
For recurring and non-recurring fair value measurements, external valuers may be used when internal expertise is either not available or when the valuation is deemed to be significant. External valuers are selected based on market knowledge and reputation. Where there is a significant change in fair value of an asset or liability from one period to another, an analysis is undertaken, which includes a verification of the major inputs applied in the latest valuation and a comparison, where applicable, with external sources of data.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No.'000 | €'000 | No.'000 | €'000 | ||
| Fully paid ordinary shares | 214,528 | 453,643 | 172,073 | 323,739 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Ordinary shares entitle the holder to participate in the dividends and the proceeds on winding up in proportion to the number of and amounts paid on the shares held.
At shareholders' meetings, each ordinary share is entitled to one vote when a poll is called, otherwise each shareholder has one vote on a show of hands.
There is no current on-market share buy-back.
| Date | Number | Issue Price € |
€'000 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| At 1 Jan 24 | 172,073,008 | 323,739 | ||
| Placement | 12/06/2024 | 16,000,000 | 2.5 | 40,000 |
| Exercise of Class Y performance rights | 12/06/2024 | 60,000 | - | |
| Exercise of Class AC performance rights | 12/06/2024 | 9,490 | - | |
| Exercise of Class AE performance rights | 12/06/2024 | 41,357 | - | |
| Shares issued in exchange for service | 12/06/2024 | 4,716 | - | |
| Placement | 16/12/2024 | 5,602,241 | 3.57 | 20,000 |
| Placement | 17/12/2024 | 20,737,004 | 3.57 | 74,032 |
| Less capital raising costs | - | - | (4,128) | |
| At 31 Dec 24 | 214,527,816 | - | 453,643 |
| Date | Number | Issue Price € |
€'000 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| At 1 Jan 23 | 143,435,301 | 259,158 | ||
| Placement | 12/05/2023 | 21,400,000 | 3.15 | 67,350 |
| Exercise of Class J performance rights | 6/06/2023 | 1,500,000 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class M performance rights | 6/06/2023 | 1,000,000 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class J performance rights | 30/08/2023 | 1,000,000 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class G performance rights | 23/11/2023 | 250,000 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class H performance rights | 23/11/2023 | 472,727 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class I performance rights | 23/11/2023 | 910,909 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class M performance rights | 23/11/2023 | 500,000 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class N Performance rights | 23/11/2023 | 1,500,000 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class S performance rights | 23/11/2023 | 12,896 | - | - |
| Exercise of Class D performance shares | 23/11/2023 | 91,175 | - | - |
| Less capital raising costs | - | - | (2,769) | |
| At 31 Dec 23 | 172,073,008 | - | 323,739 |
Ordinary shares are classified as equity. Incremental costs directly attributable to the issue of new shares or options are shown in equity as a deduction, net of tax, from the proceeds. Incremental costs directly attributable to the issue of new shares or options for the acquisition of a business are not included in the cost of the acquisition as part of the purchase consideration.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Share-based payment reserve | 12,373 | 11,522 |
| Revaluation reserve | (2,960) | (1,870) |
| Foreign currency translation reserve | (330) | 3,725 |
| Total | 9,083 | 13,377 |
| Number of Performance Shares |
Number of Performance Rights |
€'000 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Movement reconciliation | |||
| On issue at 1 Jan 24 | - | 1,551,268 | 11,522 |
| Issue of performance rights during the year | - | 2,703,756 | - |
| Exercise of Performance Rights during the year |
- | (110,847) | - |
| Recognition of share - based payment expense for performance rights issued to Directors, staff & consultants (note 35) |
- | - | 851 |
| Performance rights cancelled | - | (84,029) | - |
| Performance rights lapsed | - | (909,349) | - |
| On issue at 31 Dec 24 | - | 3,150,799 | 12,373 |
| Number of Performance Shares |
Number of Performance Rights |
€'000 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Movement reconciliation | |||
| On issue at 1 Jan 23 | 91,174 | 8,382,801 | 9,706 |
| Issue of performance rights during the year | - | 385,754 | - |
| Exercise of Performance Rights during the year |
- | (7,146,533) | - |
| Exercise of Performance Shares during the year |
(91,174) | - | - |
| Recognition of share - based payment expense for performance rights issued to Directors, staff & consultants (note 35) |
- | - | 1,688 |
| Performance rights issued for acquisition of subsidiary (note 32) |
- | 82,714 | 128 |
| Performance rights cancelled | - | (153,468) | - |
| On issue at 31 Dec 23 | - | 1,551,268 | 11,522 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The share-based payment reserve is used to record the value of share-based payments provided to outside parties, and share-based remuneration provided to employees and directors.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Balance at the beginning of the year | 3,725 | 6,169 |
| Movement during the year | (4,055) | (2,444) |
| Balance at the end of the year | (330) | 3,725 |
The foreign currency translation reserve is used to recognise exchange differences arising from the translation of the financial statements of foreign operations to Euro.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Balance at the beginning of the year | (1,870) | - |
| Movement during the year | (1,090) | (1,870) |
| Balance at the end of the year | (2,960) | (1,870) |
The revaluation reserve is used to recognise the revaluation of investments at fair value through other comprehensive income.
Prior to 17th July 2023, the Company's interest in Kuniko Limited was recognised as an investment in associate accounted for using the equity method. On 17th July 2023 the Group discontinued the use of the equity method as a result of its shareholding in Kuniko Limited reducing to 19%, and a gain on discontinuation of use of the equity method of accounting was recognised as follows:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|
| Opening carrying value | 974 |
| Share of loss - associate | (456) |
| Fair value of Kuniko shares at the date of discontinuation of use of the equity method (note 30) | 4,392 |
| Gain on discontinuation of use of the equity method of accounting | 3,874 |
Since 17th July 2023, the interest held in Kuniko Limited has been accounted for at fair value through other comprehensive income. Refer to note 30 for further information.
As at 31 December 2023, the Group held a 50.1% interest in an immaterial associate accounted for using the equity method. As at 16 December 2024, the Group's interest in the associate reduced to 12.5% and use of the equity method of accounting was discontinued. The interest is carried at cost in the Statement of Financial Position at 31 December 2024 for a value of €30,000, recorded in other investments (refer to note 14).
| Name of Associate | % of ownership | Carrying amount | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 % |
31 Dec 23 % |
31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
| Immaterial associate | - | 50.1 | - | 124 |
The share of losses of the associate prior to discontinuation of the equity method of accounting are recognised as a loss from equity accounted investments in the Statement of Profit or Loss and Other Comprehensive Income for the year ended 31 December 2024. The prior year share of loss from associate related to the interest in Kuniko Limited before the equity accounting method was discontinued.
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Loss from equity accounted investments | (92) | (456) |
Associates are entities over which the consolidated entity has significant influence but not control or joint control. Investments in associates are accounted for using the equity method. Under the equity method, the share of the profits or losses of the associate is recognised in profit or loss and the share of the movements in equity is recognised in other comprehensive income. Investments in associates are carried in the statement of financial position at cost plus post-acquisition changes in the consolidated entity's share of net assets of the associate.
When the consolidated entity's share of losses in an associate equals or exceeds its interest in the associate, including any unsecured long-term receivables, the consolidated entity does not recognise further losses, unless it has incurred obligations or made payments on behalf of the associate.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The consolidated entity discontinues the use of the equity method upon the loss of significant influence over the associate and recognises any retained investment at its fair value. Any difference between the associate's carrying amount, fair value of the retained investment and proceeds from disposal is recognised in profit or loss.
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Australian listed shares | 1,396 | 2,550 |
| 1,396 | 2,550 |
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Carrying amount at the start of the year | 2,550 | - |
| Discontinuation of the use of equity method of accounting for investments (note 29) |
- | 4,392 |
| Charged to other comprehensive income | ||
| - change in value | (1,154) | (1,870) |
| Foreign exchange gain | - | 28 |
| Carrying amount at end of year | 1,396 | 2,550 |
Financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income include equity investments which the consolidated entity intends to hold for the foreseeable future and has irrevocably elected to classify them as such upon initial recognition. The group initially measures a financial asset at its fair value, with subsequent fair value movements recognised through other comprehensive income.
Financial assets are derecognised when the rights to receive cash flows from the financial assets have expired or have been transferred and the group has transferred substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership.
The consolidated financial statements incorporate assets, liabilities and results of the following wholly owned subsidiaries in accordance with the accounting policy described in note 1.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Entity | Location | Primary activity | Date of foundation or acquisition |
Ownership Interest 31 Dec 24 (%) |
Ownership Interest 31 Dec 23 (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH |
Karlsruhe | Operating entity | September 26, 2019 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Resources Europe Pty Limited |
Perth | Operating entity | October 11, 2019 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Subsurface Solutions GmbH1 |
Karlsruhe | Operating entity | July 2, 2021 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Engineering GmbH |
Augsburg | Group holding | July 2, 2021 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Geothermal GmbH | Karlsruhe | Group holding | July 09, 2021 | 100 | 100 |
| VER GEO LIO GmbH | Karlsruhe | Group holding | July 12, 2021 | 100 | 100 |
| Vercana GmbH | Karlsruhe | Operating entity | December 09, 2021 | 100 | 100 |
| Natürlich Insheim GmbH | Karlsruhe | Operating entity | December 31, 2021 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Italy Pty Limited | Perth | Group holding | July 5, 2021 | 100 | 100 |
| Comeback Peronaldienstleistungen GmbH |
Lingen | Operating entity | February 1, 2023 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Projektgesellschaft 3 GmbH2 |
Karlsruhe | Operating entity | April 26, 2023 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Projektgesellschaft 2 GmbH |
Karlsruhe | Operating entity | April 26, 2023 | 100 | 100 |
| Natürlich Südpfalz Geschaftsführungs GmbH |
Landau i.d. Pfalz |
Operating entity | December 28, 2022 | 100 | 100 |
| Natürlich Südpfalz GmbH & Co. KG |
Landau i.d. Pfalz |
Operating entity | February 7, 2023 | 100 | 100 |
| Lionheart Marketing GmbH3 | Karlsruhe | Operating entity | December 28, 2022 | 100 | 100 |
| Landau-Süd Joint Venture GmbH & Co KG |
Landau i.d. Pfalz |
Group holding | March 17, 2023 | 51 | 51 |
| Landau-Süd Joint Venture Verwaltungs GmbH |
Landau i.d. Pfalz |
Group holding | March 17, 2023 | 51 | 51 |
| Vulcan Energie France SAS | Haguenau | Operating entity | June 22, 2022 | 100 | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy SA Pty Limited | Perth | Group holding | September 23, 2023 | 100 | 100 |
1 Vulcan Energy Subsurface Solutions was merged into Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH on 8 October 2024.
2 This entity was renamed to Natürlich Landau Lithium GmbH on 12 February 2025.
3 This entity was renamed from Vulcan Lily Lithium Geschäftsführungs GmbH, on 2 December 2024.
The entity Vulcan Lily Lithium (Höchst) GmbH & Co.KG was dissolved on 2 December 2024
No business combinations occurred in the year ending 31 December 2024.
In the year ended 31 December 2023, Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH, a subsidiary of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited, acquired 100% of drilling labour hire company, Comeback Personaldienstleistungen GmbH, in accordance with the Share Purchase Agreement, with an effective date on 1 February 2023 (closing-date).
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
As deferred consideration for the acquisition, two tranches of performance rights, each valued at €100,000 were issued and vest subject to achieving the following milestones:
Performance rights issued as deferred consideration were valued at acquisition date using probability weighted assumptions, and therefore the consideration value at acquisition date differs to the value of performance rights vested at these dates.
The values identified in relation to acquisition of Comeback were final as at 31 December 2023.
| €'000 | |
|---|---|
| Cash | 35 |
| Trade and other receivables | 458 |
| Property, plant & equipment | 23 |
| Right-of-use assets | 33 |
| Loans and borrowings | (81) |
| Trade and other payables | (429) |
| Lease Liabilities | (33) |
| Fair value of net assets acquired | 6 |
| Intangible assets acquired | 387 |
| Deferred tax liabilities arising on acquisition | (115) |
| Acquisition-date fair value of total consideration | 278 |
| €'000 | |
|---|---|
| Cash paid | 150 |
| Performance rights issued as consideration | 128 |
| Total consideration | 278 |
The acquisition method of accounting is used to account for business combinations regardless of whether equity instruments or other assets are acquired.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The consideration transferred is the sum of the acquisition-date fair values of the assets transferred, equity instruments issued, or liabilities incurred by the acquirer to former owners of the acquiree and the amount of any non-controlling interest in the acquiree. For each business combination, the non-controlling interest in the acquiree is measured at either fair value or at the proportionate share of the acquiree's identifiable net assets. All acquisition costs are expensed as incurred to profit or loss.
On the acquisition of a business, the consolidated entity assesses the financial assets acquired and liabilities assumed for appropriate classification and designation in accordance with the contractual terms, economic conditions, the consolidated entity's operating or accounting policies and other pertinent conditions in existence at the acquisition-date.
Contingent consideration to be transferred by the acquirer is recognised at the acquisition-date fair value. Subsequent changes in the fair value of the contingent consideration classified as an asset or liability is recognised in profit or loss. Contingent consideration classified as equity is not remeasured and its subsequent settlement is accounted for within equity.
The difference between the acquisition-date fair value of assets acquired, liabilities assumed and any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree and the fair value of the consideration transferred and the fair value of any pre-existing investment in the acquiree is recognised as goodwill. If the consideration transferred and the preexisting fair value is less than the fair value of the identifiable net assets acquired, being a bargain purchase to the acquirer, the difference is recognised as a gain directly in profit or loss by the acquirer on the acquisitiondate, but only after a reassessment of the identification and measurement of the net assets acquired, the noncontrolling interest in the acquiree, if any, the consideration transferred and the acquirer's previously held equity interest in the acquiree.
The Group's overall risk management programme focuses on the unpredictability of the financial markets and seeks to minimise potential adverse effects on the financial performance of the Group. The Group uses different methods to measure and manage different types of risks to which it is exposed.
These include monitoring levels of exposure to interest rate and foreign exchange risk and assessments of market forecasts for interest rate and foreign exchange prices. Ageing analysis and monitoring of specific credit allowances are undertaken to manage credit risk. Liquidity risk is monitored through the development of cash flow forecasts.
Risk management is carried out by Management and overseen by the Board of Directors with assistance from suitably qualified external advisors.
The main risks arising for the Group are foreign exchange risk, interest rate risk, credit risk and liquidity risk. The Board reviews and agrees policies for managing each of these risks and they are summarised below.
The carrying values of the Group's financial instruments are as follows:
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Financial Assets | ||
| Cash and cash equivalents | 97,054 | 78,728 |
| Trade and other receivables | 11,904 | 6,187 |
| Investment at fair value through other comprehensive income |
1,396 | 2,550 |
| Other investments (note 14) | 401 | - |
| 110,755 | 87,465 | |
| Financial Liabilities | ||
| Trade and other payables | 18,412 | 17,194 |
| Derivative financial instrument | - | 133 |
| Lease liabilities | 3,852 | 4,411 |
| 22,264 | 21,738 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The consolidated entity undertakes certain transactions denominated in foreign currency and is exposed to foreign currency risk through foreign exchange rate fluctuations.
Foreign exchange risk arises from future commercial transactions and recognised financial assets and financial liabilities denominated in a currency that is not the entity's functional currency. The risk is measured using sensitivity analysis and cash flow forecasting.
In order to protect against exchange rate movements, the consolidated entity entered into forward foreign exchange contracts during the year ended 31 December 2023. No forward foreign exchange contracts were entered during the year ended 31 December 2024.
A summary of the maturity, settlement amounts and the average contractual exchange rates of the consolidated entity's forward foreign exchange contracts is as follows:
| Sell Australian dollars | Average exchange rates | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | |
| Buy Euros | ||||
| Maturity: | ||||
| 0 - 3 months | - | 10,000 | - | 0.610 |
The carrying amount of the consolidated entity's foreign currency denominated financial assets and financial liabilities at the reporting date were as follows:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Assets | Liabilities | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
| Consolidated | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 |
| US dollars | - | - | 2,069 | 3,237 |
| Canadian dollar | - | - | 238 | 9,465 |
| Australian dollar | 75,617 | 44,007 | 1,725 | - |
| 75,617 | 44,007 | 4,032 | 12,702 |
The aggregate net foreign exchange gains/(losses) recognised in the P&L were:
| 31 Dec 24 €'000 |
31 Dec 23 €'000 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Net foreign exchange gains/(losses) recognised in the P&L: | 1,456 | 299 |
As shown in the table above, the group is primarily exposed to changes in EUR/AUD exchange rates. The sensitivity of profit or loss to changes in the exchange rates is as follows (holding all other variables constant):
| Impact on post-tax profit | ||
|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| EUR/AUD exchange rate - increase 5% | (3,781) | (2,096) |
| EUR/AUD exchange rate – decrease 5% | 3,781 | 2,096 |
| EUR/USD exchange rate – increase 5% | 103 | 162 |
| EUR/USD exchange rate – decrease 5% | (103) | (162) |
| EUR/CAD exchange rate – increase 5% | 12 | 473 |
| EUR/CAD exchange rate – decrease 5% | (12) | (473) |
The Group is exposed to interest rate risk, which is the risk that a financial instrument's value will fluctuate as a result of changes in the market interest rates on interest bearing financial instruments. The Group's exposure to this risk relates primarily to the Group's cash and any cash on deposit. The Group does not use derivatives to mitigate these exposures. The Group manages its exposure to interest rate risk by holding certain amounts of cash in fixed and floating interest rate facilities. At the reporting date, the interest rate profile of the Group's interest-bearing financial instruments was:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weighted average interest rate |
Average Balance €'000 |
Weighted average interest rate |
Average Balance €'000 |
|
| Cash and cash equivalents | 4.27% | 62,476 | 3.93% | 63,359 |
Within the analysis, consideration is given to potential renewals of existing positions and the mix of fixed and variable interest rates. The following sensitivity analysis is based on the interest rate risk exposures in existence at the reporting date. The 1% increase and 1% decrease in rates is based on reasonably expected possible changes over a financial year.
At 31 December 2024, if interest rates had moved, as illustrated in the table below, with all other variables held constant, losses and equity would have been affected as follows:
| Profit higher/(lower) | Profit higher/(lower) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | ||
| €'000 | €'000 | ||
| + 1.0% (100 basis points) | 625 | 634 | |
| - 1.0% (100 basis points) | (625) | (634) |
Credit risk arises from the financial assets of the Group, which comprise cash and cash equivalents, trade and other receivables and other financial assets. The Group's exposure to credit risk arises from potential default of the counterparty, with maximum exposure equal to the carrying amount of the financial assets.
The Group's policy is to trade only with recognised, creditworthy third parties. It is the Group's policy that all customers who wish to trade on credit terms will be subject to credit verification procedures.
In addition, receivable balances are monitored on an ongoing basis with the result that the Group's exposure to bad debts is not significant. There are no significant concentrations of credit risk within the Group except for cash and cash equivalents.
Liquidity risk is the risk that the Group will not be able to meet its financial obligations as they fall due. The Group's approach to managing liquidity is to ensure, as far as possible, that it will always have sufficient liquidity to meet its liabilities when due, under both normal and stressed conditions, without incurring unacceptable losses or risking damage to its reputation.
The Group manages liquidity risk by maintaining adequate cash reserves from funds raised in the market and by continuously monitoring of forecast and actual cash flows.
The Group had access to a secured revolving credit facility of €10,000,000 for the year ended 31 December 2024, which was not drawn at any time during the financial year. The facility is held with BNP Paribas, with an interest rate of 1.8% plus EURIBOR charged on drawn funds. The facility matures in June 2029, with the interest rate increasing to 2.3% plus EURIBOR on drawn amounts from 1 January 2026.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| Revolving credit facility | €'000 | €'000 |
| Financing facility available at year-end | 10,000 | - |
| Amount drawn at year-end | - | - |
| Amount undrawn at year-end | 10,000 | - |
The following are the contractual maturities of financial liabilities:
| 1 year or less | 1-5 years | > 5 years | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 24 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | €'000 |
| Trade and other payables | 18,412 | - | - | 18,412 |
| Derivative liabilities | - | - | - | - |
| Lease Liabilities | 771 | 2,553 | 528 | 3,852 |
| 31 Dec 23 | ||||
| Trade and other payables | 17,194 | - | - | 17,194 |
| Derivative liabilities | 133 | - | - | 133 |
| Lease Liabilities | 1,086 | 2,596 | 729 | 4,411 |
The Group is exposed to commodity price risk, as its energy sales are predominantly subject to prevailing market prices. The contract with Pfalzwerke guarantees a minimum price of €0.25 per megawatt-hour (MWh) (31 Dec 2023: €0.25 per MWh). During the year ended 31 December 2024, Vulcan sold 18,490 MWh at an average price of €0.25 per MWh (31 Dec 2023: 16,279 MWh at an average price of €0.26 per MWh).
A 50% upward movement in the average price for MWh would result in the Group's loss decreasing by €2.3m, or by €4.6m for a 100% upward price movement.
The Group's objectives when managing capital are to:
In order to manage capital risk, the Group may issue new shares or sell assets within the Group.
Given the stage of the Company's development there are no formal targets set for return on capital. The Company is not subject to externally imposed capital requirements. The Company is equity funded and does not hold interest-bearing debt as at 31 December 2024. Net capital has historically been obtained through share placements on the Australian Securities Exchange ("ASX").
| Lease liabilities | Loan | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | €'000 | ||
| Balance at 1 Jan 23 | 3,316 | - | 3,316 | |
| Net cash used in financing activities | (1,744) | (81) | (1,825) | |
| Acquired in business combinations | 33 | 81 | 114 | |
| Additions to leases | 2,835 | - | 2,835 | |
| Other changes | (29) | - | (29) | |
| Balance at 31 Dec 23 | 4,411 | - | 4,411 | |
| Net cash used in financing activities | (1,197) | - | (1,197) | |
| Additions to leases | 638 | - | 638 | |
| Balance at 31 Dec 24 | 3,852 | - | 3,852 |
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Recognised share-based payment transactions | ||
| Performance rights issued to Directors, staff and consultants | 2,115 | 315 |
| Performance rights issued to Directors & staff in prior year | (1,535) | 1,373 |
| Performance rights cancelled during the year | 271 | - |
| Performance rights issued as consideration for acquisition of subsidiary Comeback (note 32) |
- | 128 |
| 851 | 1,816 | |
| Represented by | ||
| Shared-based payment expense | 851 | 1,688 |
| Acquisition of subsidiary (note 32) | - | 128 |
| 851 | 1,816 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
On 29 March 2024 and 4 October 2024, the company granted 382,256 performance rights to staff to align their interests to that of the Company's shareholders and assist as an effective means of retention.
In addition to remaining an employee on 31 December 2024, the rights were granted with the following vesting conditions:
On the 24th of June, the Company granted 50,000 Special Performance Rights to the CFO of Germany, which will vest upon the recipient remaining employed by the Company on 31 December 2025.
On the same date, the Company also granted 40,000 performance rights to an external consultant, which were subject to a vesting condition of achieving production of battery-grade lithium hydroxide to specification from the Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimisation Plant (CLEOP) by 31 December 2024.
The value of performance rights granted, and vesting outcomes are summarised as follows:
| Type | Fair value of rights (EUR) |
Number of Rights granted |
Grant date | Vesting date |
Expiry date |
Number of rights vested at 31 Dec 24 |
Share based payment expense for the year (€'000) |
Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 Employee Incentive Plan – tranche 1 |
1.73 | 363,660 | 29/3/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 333,951 | 587 | IP |
| 2024 Employee Incentive Plan – tranche 2 |
2.61 | 18,596 | 4/10/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 17,356 | 46 | IP |
| Special Performance Rights – CFO Germany |
2.36 | 50,000 | 24/06/2024 | 31/12/2025 | 31/12/2026 | - | - | IP |
| Performance rights – external consultant |
2.36 | 40,000 | 24/06/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 38,000 | 88 | IP |
| Total | 472,256 | 389,307 | 721 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Under the Company's Incentive Award plan, the Company issued the following incentives to Executives during the year:
The STI and LTI performance rights issued for the year ended 31 December 2024 were as follows:
| Type | Number of Rights Granted |
Number of Rights Vested at 31 Dec 24 |
Number of Rights Lapsed at 31 Dec 24 |
Share-based payment expense for the year (€'000) |
Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MD-CEO - STI | 119,500 | 115,694 | (3,806) | 271 | IP |
| MD-CEO - LTI | 348,000 | - | - | 73 | IP |
| Group CFO - STI |
72,500 | 70,445 | (2,055) | 184 | IP |
| Group CFO - LTI |
202,500 | - | - | 64 | IP |
| Executives - STI |
236,000 | 219,709 | (16,291) | 510 | IP |
| Executives - LTI |
653,000 | - | - | 175 | IP |
| Special - STI | 600,000 | - | - | 101 | IP |
| Total | 2,231,500 | 405,848 | (22,152) | 1,378 |
The number of performance rights issued to the MD-CEO and Group CFO include a multiplier for the following milestones tested at the measurement date:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
• The financing milestone (STI) includes a 1.5x multiplier;
• If project construction is as per the Controlled Schedule (P50) (LTI) includes a 1.5x multiplier; and
• If project construction is within six months of the Controlled Schedule (P50) (LTI) includes a 1.25x multiplier.
Refer to Section 5 of the Remuneration Report for the STI financing milestones outcome.
Details of the Executive STIs are as follows:
| Item | Executive Rights – STI | Special Executive Rights – STI | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | ||
| Grant date | 24/6/2024, 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024, 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024, 21/8/2024 |
5/12/2024 | 5/12/2024 | 5/12/2024 | |
| Fair value of each right (EUR) |
2.36, 2.36 |
2.36, 2.36 |
2.36, 2.36 |
3.82 | 3.82 | 3.82 | |
| Commencement of performance period |
24/6/2024, 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024, 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024, 21/8/2024 |
5/12/2024 | 5/12/2024 | 5/12/2024 | |
| Performance measurement date |
31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2025 | 31/12/2025 | |
| Vesting date | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2025 | 31/12/2025 | |
| Expiry date | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 4/12/2028 | 4/12/2028 | 4/12/2028 | |
| Number of Rights granted |
118,000 | 47,200 | 70,800 | 100,000 | 250,000 | 250,000 | |
| Valuation per Tranche (€'000) |
278 | 111 | 167 | 382 | 956 | 956 |
| Item | MD-CEO Rights– STI | Group CFO Rights – STI | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | ||
| Grant date | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | |
| Fair value of each right (EUR) |
2.28 | 2.28 | 2.28 | 2.63 | 2.63 | 2.63 | |
| Commencement of performance period |
13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | |
| Performance measurement date |
31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | |
| Vesting date | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | 31/12/2024 | |
| Expiry date | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | |
| Number of Rights |
59,750 | 23,900 | 35,850 | 36,250 | 14,500 | 21,750 | |
| Valuation per Tranche (€'000) |
136 | 55 | 82 | 95 | 38 | 57 |
Performance conditions of the STI performance rights issued to the MD-CEO, Group CFO and other executives are as follows:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Tranche 3 will vest subject to specific individual performance milestones. Refer to Section 5 of the Remuneration Report for individual milestones of Executive KMP.
Special STI performance rights issued on 5 December 2024 have different performance milestones to the MD-CEO, Group CFO and other executive milestones described above, to align the incentive with the creation of short-term shareholder value.
Performance conditions of the special STI performance rights are as follows:
Continued full-time employment with the Company or one of its subsidiaries until 31 December 2026
The Company secures all land that its lenders require the Company to hold prior to financial close and first debt draw down as contained in the final financing documents signed by the lenders or amended at a later date or in accordance with a potential future land acquisition rider causing no delay to the Schedule Completion Date or the Completion Date beyond the Completion Longstop Date;
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The Company receives such Permits envisaged to be awarded under the Permitting Action Plan by December 31 2025 for Phase 1 signed by the lenders or amended at a later date, either by 31 December 2025 or by a later date without causing a delay to the Scheduled Completion Date or the Completion Date beyond the Completion Longstop Date based on Permitting Non-Conformance.
Details of LTI performance rights issued to the MD-CEO, Group CFO and other executives during the year ended 31 December 2024 are as follows:
| Item | MD-CEO Rights – LTI | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | Tranche 4 | Tranche 5 | ATSR Rights |
RTSR Rights |
|||
| Grant date | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | 5/8/2024 | ||
| Fair value of each right (EUR) |
2.28 | 2.28 | 2.28 | 2.28 | 2.28 | 1.33 | 1.72 | ||
| Commencement of performance period |
13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | 13/6/2024 | ||
| Performance measurement date |
31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | ||
| Vesting date | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | ||
| Expiry date | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | ||
| Volatility | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 70% | 70% | ||
| Risk-fee rate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 3.64% | 3.64% | ||
| Number of Rights Valuation per |
46,400 | 46,400 | 46,400 | 34,800 | 34,800 | 69,600 | 69,600 | ||
| Tranche (€'000) | 106 | 106 | 106 | 79 | 79 | 93 | 119 |
| Item | Group CFO Rights – LTI | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | Tranche 4 | Tranche 5 | ATSR Rights |
RTSR Rights |
||
| Grant date | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | |
| Fair value of each right (EUR) |
2.63 | 2.63 | 2.63 | 2.63 | 2.63 | 1.88 | 2.14 | |
| Commencement of performance period |
17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | 17/6/2024 | |
| Performance measurement date |
31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | |
| Vesting date | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | |
| Expiry date | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | |
| Volatility | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 70% | 70% | |
| Risk-fee rate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 3.79% | 3.79% | |
| Number of Rights Valuation per |
27,000 | 27,000 | 27,000 | 20,250 | 20,250 | 40,500 | 40,500 | |
| Tranche (€'000) | 71 | 71 | 71 | 53 | 53 | 76 | 87 |
| Item | Executive Rights – LTI | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | Tranche 4 | Tranche 5 | ATSR Rights |
RTSR Rights |
||
| Grant date | 24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
|
| Fair value of each right (EUR) |
2.36 | 2.36 | 2.36 | 2.36 | 2.36 | 1.69 | 1.79 | |
| Commencement of performance period |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
24/6/2024 21/8/2024 |
|
| Performance measurement date |
31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | |
| Vesting date | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | 31/12/2026 | |
| Expiry date | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | 31/12/2027 | |
| Volatility | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 70% | 70% | |
| Risk-fee rate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 3.93% | 3.93% | |
| Number of Rights Valuation per Tranche (€'000) |
87,068 205 |
87,065 205 |
87,067 205 |
65,300 154 |
65,300 154 |
130,600 220 |
130,600 233 |
Performance conditions of the LTI performance rights are as follows:
Tranche 1 will vest subject to project construction and execution of the Central Lithium Plant per the Controlled Schedule (P50) (Project Construction).
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Tranche 2 will vest subject to delivering CAPEX as per the Phase 1 bridging phase (as aligned with BNPP financing package) and assumptions.
Tranche 3 will vest subject to obtaining Project Financing for Phase Two capital expenditure.
Tranche 4 will vest subject to achieving financing with ESG criteria and successfully executing all ESMP (Environmental, Social Management Plan) requirements.
Tranche 5 will vest when a publicly announced GHG emissions target is set (linked to a credible framework such as Science Based Targets) and meet the target within timeline and volume of reduction requirements.
The ATSR Rights will vest according to the following schedule:
| ATSR compound annual growth rate (CAGR) | Percentage of ATSR Rights eligible to vest |
|---|---|
| Less than 7.5% | Nil |
| Between 7.5% and 10% | 50% to 75% on a pro-rata basis |
| Between 10% and 12.5% | 75% to 100% on a pro-rata basis |
| Greater than 12.5% | 100% |
Relative TSR is based on an increase in share-price and market capitalisation relative to a basket of peer companies in the lithium sector and wider resource companies predominately in the ASX 300 comparative to the beginning of the review period. The RTSR Rights will vest according to the following schedule:
| Company's TSR performance relative to the Peer Group |
Percentage of RTSR Rights eligible to vest |
|---|---|
| 50th percentile | 50% |
| Between 50th percentile and 75th percentile | Pro-rata |
| 75th percentile | 100% |
One third of the rights vest on each 12 month anniversary of 24 June 2021, with the final tranche vesting on 24 June 2024. All performance rights have vested.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The rights vest subject to the Company being issued a building permit for the first geothermal power plant or, in the case of a pure heating project with no electricity production, the transfer station, on or before the Expiry Date of 1st December 2024. The vesting conditions were not met and therefore all rights lapsed.
The rights vest subject to the Company being issued a building permit for the first Direct Lithium Extraction system, on or before the Expiry Date of 1st December 2024. The vesting conditions were not met and therefore all rights lapsed.
The rights vest subject to the Company being granted a permit according to BImSchG for the first lithium refinery, on or before the Expiry Date of 1st December 2024. The vesting conditions were not met and therefore all rights lapsed.
The rights vest subject to the Company obtaining project finance for the first commercial plant, on or before the Expiry Date of 1 December 2024. The vesting conditions were not met and therefore all rights lapsed.
The STI rights issued in the year-ended 31 December 2022 vest subject to:
Tranche 1:
• the Company obtaining sufficient funding in order to allow for completion of the first plant that will be able to produce lithium on a commercial scale and/or the first new commercial geothermal heating plant, in accordance with Vulcan's business plan (First Plant) by 30 June 2023.
• the achievement of various individual and business KPIs. The STI targets reflect a balance of individual and organisational goals impacting overall STI. Individual goals in the assessment of the STI include items such as sustainability, cost performance, funding, approval of drilling permits, drilling activity, compliance and governance, growth and safety. Individual executive goals are all clearly defined and specifically measurable.
Tranche 3 will vest subject to the achievement of shared objectives as follows:
80% retention rate for agreed critical roles at all levels of the organisation for FY 23 onwards; and
Social:
All tranches of the STI rights have been assessed and the vesting conditions were partially met, resulting in 26,903 rights vesting and 63,797 rights lapsing.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The LTI rights issued in the year-ended 31 December 2022 vest subject to:
Tranche 1:
• the successful ramp up to nameplate capacity for Phase 1 energy and lithium chemicals production, and achievement of corresponding revenue.
Tranche 2:
• obtain positive definitive feasibility study for Phase 2 energy and lithium chemicals production, and achievement of corresponding revenue.
Tranche 3:
• obtain project financing for completion of Phase 2 capital expenditure
Tranche 4:
• achievement of carbon neutral emission certification across all operations through each year in the fouryear period commencing 30 June 2022.
Tranche 5:
• achievement of the lowest quartile absolute GHG emissions.
Tranche 6 and 7:
• the achievement of Total Shareholder Returns (TSR) over the four years from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2026.
The performance rights are tested on 30 June 2026 and will vest or lapse on that date.
One third of the rights vest on each 12 month anniversary of 29 November 2022, with the final tranche vesting on 29 November 2025. A total of 14,237 performance rights have vested, 9,491 lapsed, and 4,746 will be assessed on 29 November 2025.
One third of the rights vest on each 12 month anniversary of 28 May 2023. A total of 8,411 performance rights have vested and 16,823 have lapsed.
The performance rights were issued as consideration for the acquisition of Comeback Personaldienstleistungen GmbH (refer to note 32) and vest subject to successful staffing of the drilling rigs at the time of setting up the same, and during the drilling of the wells according to the drilling plan. The vesting conditions have been met, with 41,357 rights vesting at 31 December 2023, and 41,357 rights vesting at 31 December 2024.
Set out below is a summary of movements of performance rights by class during the year ended 31 December 2024:
| As at 1 Jan 24 |
Granted | Exercised | Lapsed or Cancelled |
As at 31 Dec 24 |
Exercisable performance rights |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class S | 12,894 | - | - | - | 12,894 | 12,894 |
| Class T | 260,000 | - | - | (260,000) | - | - |
| Class U | 250,000 | - | - | (250,000) | - | - |
| Class V | 110,000 | - | - | (110,000) | - | - |
| Class Y | 60,000 | - | (60,000) | - | - | - |
| Class Z | 50,000 | - | - | (50,000) | - | - |
| Class AA | 37,232 | - | - | (10,329) | 26,903 | 26,903 |
| Class AB | 274,200 | - | - | (65,000) | 209,200 | - |
| Class AC | 28,474 | - | (9,490) | (9,492) | 9,492 | 4,746 |
| Class AD | 25,234 | - | - | (16,823) | 8,411 | 8,411 |
| Class AE | 82,714 | - | (41,357) | - | 41,357 | 41,357 |
| Class IP | 360,520 | 2,703,756 | - | (221,734) | 2,842,542 | 989,042 |
| 1,551,268 | 2,703,756 | (110,847) | (993,378) | 3,150,799 | 1,083,353 |
Set out below is a summary of movements of performance rights by class during the year ended 31 December 2023:
| As at 1 Jan 23 |
Granted | Exercised Lapsed or Cancelled |
As at 31 Dec 23 |
Exercisable performance rights |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class G | 250,000 | - | (250,000) | - | - | - |
| Class H | 472,727 | - | (472,727) | - | - | - |
| Class I | 910,909 | - | (910,909) | - | - | - |
| Class J | 2,500,000 | - | (2,500,000) | - | - | - |
| Class M | 1,500,000 | - | (1,500,000) | - | - | - |
| Class N | 1,500,000 | - | (1,500,000) | - | - | - |
| Class S | 25,791 | - | (12,897) | - | 12,894 | - |
| Class T | 260,000 | - | - | - | 260,000 | - |
| Class U | 250,000 | - | - | - | 250,000 | - |
| Class V | 110,000 | - | - | - | 110,000 | - |
| Class W | 100,000 | - | - | (100,000) | - | - |
| Class Y | 60,000 | - | - | - | 60,000 | 60,000 |
| Class Z | 50,000 | - | - | - | 50,000 | - |
| Class AA | 90,700 | - | (53,468) | 37,232 | - | |
| Class AB | 274,200 | - | - | - | 274,200 | - |
| Class AC | 28,474 | - | - | - | 28,474 | 9,491 |
| Class IP | - | 360,520 | - | - | 360,520 | - |
| Class AE | - | 82,714 | - | - | 82,714 | 41,357 |
| Class AD | - | 25,234 | - | - | 25,234 | - |
| 8,382,801 | 468,468 | (7,146,533) | (153,468) | 1,551,268 | 110,848 |
Equity-settled and cash-settled share-based compensation benefits are provided to Directors, Key Management Personnel and employees.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Equity-settled transactions are awards of shares, or performance rights which convert to shares, and are provided to employees in exchange for the rendering of services and achieving performance based milestones. Cash-settled transactions are awards of cash for the exchange of services, where the amount of cash is determined by reference to the share price or paid in lieu of the issue of performance rights.
The cost of equity-settled transactions are measured at fair value on grant date. Fair value of equity-settled transactions containing market conditions are independently determined using an appropriate valuation model that takes into account the exercise price, term of the option, impact of dilution, share price at grant date, expected price volatility of the underlying share, expected dividend yield and risk free interest rate for the term of the performance right, together with non-vesting conditions.
The cost of equity-settled transactions are recognised as an expense with a corresponding increase in equity reserves over the vesting period. The cumulative charge to profit or loss is calculated based on the grant date fair value of the award, the best estimate of the number of awards that are likely to vest and the expired portion of the vesting period. The amount recognised in profit or loss for the period is the cumulative amount calculated at each reporting date less amounts already recognised in previous periods.
The cost of cash-settled transactions is initially, and at each reporting date until vested, determined by applying an appropriate valuation model, taking into consideration the terms and conditions on which the award was granted. The cumulative charge to profit or loss until settlement of the liability is calculated as follows:
All changes in the liability are recognised in profit or loss. The ultimate cost of cash-settled transactions is the cash paid to settle the liability.
Market conditions are taken into consideration in determining fair value. Therefore, any awards subject to market conditions are considered to vest irrespective of whether or not that market condition has been met, provided all other conditions are satisfied.
If equity-settled awards are modified, as a minimum an expense is recognised as if the modification has not been made. An additional expense is recognised, over the remaining vesting period, for any modification that increases the total fair value of the share-based compensation benefit as at the date of modification.
If the non-vesting condition is within the control of the consolidated entity or employee, the failure to satisfy the condition is treated as a cancellation. If the condition is not within the control of the consolidated entity or employee and is not satisfied during the vesting period, any remaining expense for the award is recognised over the remaining vesting period, unless the award is forfeited.
If equity-settled awards are cancelled, it is treated as if it has vested on the date of cancellation, and any remaining expense is recognised immediately. If a new replacement award is substituted for the cancelled award, the cancelled and new award is treated as if they were a modification.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited is the parent entity.
Interests in subsidiaries are set out in note 31.
Interests in associates are set out in note 29.
The aggregate compensation made to directors and other members of key management personnel of the consolidated entity is set out below.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| € | € | |
| Short-term benefits | 1,450,292 | 1,434,501 |
| Post-employment benefits | 116,852 | 100,608 |
| Share-based payments | 698,481 | 309,652 |
| 2,265,625 | 1,844,761 |
There were no loans to or from associates at 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil).
There was an outstanding balance payable to JRB Consulting Ltd, a related party of Ms Josephine Bush, of €4,780 in relation to directors' fees for the year ended 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil). During the previous year, payments for consultancy fees of €12,056 were made to JRB Consulting Ltd in respect of expert advice on ESG reporting.
There were outstanding balances payable to Mr Gavin Rezos of €8,563 (December 2023: €11,666) , Dr Günter Hilken of €5,583 (December 2023: nil) and Dr Heidi Grön of €5,028 (December 2023: nil) in relation to directors' fees for the year ended 31 December 2024.
Other than the above, there were no other transactions with related parties during the year ended 31 December 2024.
There were no loans to or from related parties at 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil).
All transactions were made on normal commercial terms and conditions and at market rates.
Below are the commitments in relation to its exploration and evaluation assets:
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | ||
| Within one year | 2,239 | 1,888 | |
| One to five years | 6,766 | - | |
| 9,005 | 1,888 |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Below are the commitments in relation to capital expenditure:
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Within one year | 2,566 | 22,472 |
| One to five years | - | - |
| 2,566 | 22,472 |
The Group has given bank guarantees as at 31 December 2024 of €3,707,000 (31 December 2023: €958,000)
The Group has no contingent assets and liabilities as at 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023 : nil).
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Amounts received or due and receivable by RSM Australia Partners for: |
||
| Audit or review of the annual financial report | 126 | 102 |
| Comfort letter in relation to listing prospectus | - | 111 |
| Amounts received or due and receivable by RSM GmbH for: |
||
| Review of the financial report | - | 46 |
| Comfort letter in relation to listing prospectus | - | 46 |
| Amounts received or due and receivable by RSM Ebner Stolz: |
||
| Audit of the annual financial report | 176 | 135 |
| Audit of standalone German entity financial statements | 35 | - |
| 337 | 440 |
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Balance at beginning of the year | (68,835) | (41,872) |
| Loss after income tax for the year | (42,358) | (26,963) |
| Balance at end of the year | (111,193) | (68,835) |
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| 31 Dec 24 | 31 Dec 23 | |
|---|---|---|
| €'000 | €'000 | |
| Statement of Financial Position | ||
| Assets | ||
| Current Assets | 90,955 | 49,838 |
| Non-Current Assets | 331,413 | 254,262 |
| Total Assets | 422,367 | 304,100 |
| Liabilities | ||
| Current Liabilities | 4,222 | 1,052 |
| Non-Current Liabilities | 274 | - |
| Total Liabilities | 4,496 | 1,052 |
| Equity | ||
| Issued Capital | 453,643 | 323,739 |
| Reserves | (7,127) | 6,049 |
| Accumulated losses | (28,645) | (26,740) |
| Total Equity | 417,871 | 303,048 |
| Statement of Profit or Loss and other comprehensive income |
||
| Loss for the year | (3,132) | (3,498) |
| Total Comprehensive Loss | (3,132) | (3,498) |
The parent entity has no other contingent assets or contingent liabilities as at 31 December 2024 and 31 December 2023.
The parent entity had no capital commitments for property, plant and equipment as at 31 December 2024 and 31 December 2023.
The parent entity has no exploration commitments as at 31 December 2024 and 31 December 2023.
The accounting policies of the parent entity are consistent with those of the consolidated entity, as disclosed in the financial statements, except for the following:
(i.) Investments in subsidiaries are accounted for at cost, less any impairment, in the parent entity.
No dividend has been declared or paid during the year ended 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: nil), and the Directors do not recommend the payment of a dividend in respect of the year ended 31 December 2024.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
Dividends are recognised when declared during the financial year and no longer at the discretion of the Company.
On 1 January 2025, Ms Felicity Gooding commenced the role of Executive Director, in addition to her role as Group Chief Financial Officer, and Mr Angus Barker commenced his role as Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair.
Apart from the above, no other matter or circumstance has arisen since 31 December 2024 that has significantly affected, or may significantly affect the consolidated entity's operations, the results of those operations, or the consolidated entity's state of affairs in future financial years.
The following fully consolidated German Group companies made use of the exemption provisions in Section 264 Paragraph 3 and Section 264b HGB in 2024.
| Company Name | Seat |
|---|---|
| Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Vulcan Energy Engineering GmbH | Augsburg |
| Vulcan Geothermal GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| VER GEO LIO GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Vercana GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Natürlich Insheim GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Comeback Personaldienstleistungen GmbH | Lingen |
| Vulcan Projektgesellschaft 3 GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Vulcan Projektgesellschaft 2 GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Natürlich Südpfalz Geschäftsführungs GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Natürlich Südpfalz GmbH & Co. KG | Landau i.d. Pfalz |
| Lionheart Marketing GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Landau Süd JV-Verwaltungs GmbH | Karlsruhe |
| Landau Süd Joint Venture GmbH & Co. KG | Landau i.d. Pfalz |
As at 31 December 2024
The following table provides a list of all entities included in the Gorup's consolidated financial statements, prepared in accordance with the requirements of Section 295(3A) of the Corporations Act. The ownership interest is only disclosed for those entities which are a body corporate, representing the direct and indirect percentage share capital owned by the Company.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
| Entity name | Entity type | Country of incorporation |
Australian resident |
Foreign jurisdiction(s) in which the entity is a resident for tax purposes |
Ownership interest % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd | Body Corporate |
Australia | Yes | N/A | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Italy Pty Ltd | Body Corporate |
Australia | Yes | N/A | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Resources Europe Pty Ltd |
Body Corporate |
Australia | Yes | N/A | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy SA Pty Ltd | Body Corporate |
Australia | Yes | N/A | 100 |
| Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Vulcan Energie France, SAS | Body Corporate |
France | No | France | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Engineering GmbH |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Vercana GmbH | Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Comeback Personaldienstleistungen GmbH |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Vulcan Geothermal GmbH | Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Landau-Süd JV Verwaltungs GmbH |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 51 |
| Landau-Süd JV GmbH & Co. KG |
Partnership | Germany | No | Germany | 51 |
| VER GEO LIO GmbH | Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Vulcan Projektgesellschaft 3 GmbH1 |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Natürlich Insheim GmbH | Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Natürlich Südpfalz Geschäftsführungs GmbH |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Natürlich Südpfalz GmbH & Co. KG |
Partnership | Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Lionheart Marketing GmbH2 | Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Vulcan Energy Subsurface Solutions GmbH3 |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
| Vulcan Projectgesellschaft 2 GmbH |
Body Corporate |
Germany | No | Germany | 100 |
1 This entity was renamed to Natürlich Landau Lithium GmbH on 12 February 2025.
2 This entity was renamed from Vulcan Lily Lithium Geschäftsführungs GmbH, on 2 December 2024.
3 Vulcan Energy Subsurface Solutions was merged into Vulcan Energie Ressourcen GmbH on 8 October 2024.
The entity Vulcan Lily Lithium (Höchst) GmbH & Co.KG was dissolved on 2 December 2024.
In the Directors' opinion:
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited – Annual Report 1 January2024 – 31 December 2024
The Directors have been given the declarations required by section 295A of the Corporations Act 2001.
This declaration is made in accordance with a resolution of the Board of Directors made pursuant to section 295(5)(a) of the Corporations Act 2001 and is signed for and on behalf of the Directors by:
Dr Francis Wedin Executive Chair
25 March 2025

Level 32 Exchange Tower, 2 The Esplanade Perth WA 6000 GPO Box R1253 Perth WA 6844
T +61 (0) 8 9261 9100
www.rsm.com.au
We have audited the financial report of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited (the Company) and its subsidiaries (the Group), which comprises the consolidated statement of financial position as at 31 December 2024, the consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income, the consolidated statement of changes in equity and the consolidated statement of cash flows for the year then ended, and notes to the financial statements, including a summary of material accounting policies, the consolidated entity disclosure statement, and the directors' declaration.
In our opinion, the accompanying financial report of the Group is in accordance with the Corporations Act 2001, including:
We conducted our audit in accordance with Australian Auditing Standards. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's Responsibilities for the Audit of the Financial Report section of our report. We are independent of the Group in accordance with the auditor independence requirements of the Corporations Act 2001 and the ethical requirements of the Accounting Professional and Ethical Standards Board's APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (the Code) that are relevant to our audit of the financial report in Australia. We have also fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with the Code.
We confirm that the independence declaration required by the Corporations Act 2001, which has been given to the directors of the Company, would be in the same terms if given to the directors as at the time of this auditor's report.
We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgement, were of most significance in our audit of the financial report of the current period. These matters were addressed in the context of our audit of the financial report as a whole, and in forming our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate opinion on these matters.
RSM Australia Partners is a member of the RSM network and trades as RSM. RSM is the trading name used by the members of the RSM network. Each member of the RSM network is an independent accounting and consulting firm which practices in its own right. The RSM network is not itself a separate legal entity in any jurisdiction. RSM Australia Partners ABN 36 965 185 036 Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation

| Going Concern | |
|---|---|
| Key Audit Matter Refer to Note 1 in the financial statements For the year ended 31 December 2024, the Group incurred a loss after tax of €42.36m and had net cash outflows from operating and investing activities of €30.42m and €76.24m respectively for the year ended 31 December 2024. As at that date, the Group had a net current assets surplus of €88.95m and cash and cash equivalents of €97.05m. The directors have prepared the financial report on the going concern basis. The directors' assessment of the Group's ability to continue as a going concern is based on a cash flow budget which includes future capital raisings and debt financing. We determined this assessment of going concern to be a key audit matter due: • to the significant management assumptions and judgements involved in preparing the cash flow budget; and • the achievement of the cash flow forecasts is subject to future events, some of which are beyond the direct control of the Group. Property, plant and equipment, including Mine development properties Refer to Note 16 in the financial statements The Group has property, plant and equipment, including mine development properties, with a carrying value of €237,329,000 as at 31 December 2024. We considered this to be a key audit matter due to the significant level of costs capitalised and management judgements involved in assessing the carrying value of these assets including: - Determination of the nature of costs incurred meet the specific recognition criteria in AASB 116 Property, plant and equipment for capitalisation; |
How our audit addressed this matter Our audit procedures included: • Assessing and discussing with management and Directors the reasonableness of the Group's cash flow forecast for the 15-month period ended 31 March 2026; • Checking the mathematical accuracy of management's cash flow forecast; • Challenging the reasonableness of the key assumptions and mitigating factors used by management in the cash flow forecast by comparison to our knowledge of the business and supporting documentation; • Assessing the sensitivity of the key assumptions within management's cash flow forecast, particularly in relation to dent and equity funding; and • Assessing the adequacy of disclosures made in the financial report. Our audit procedures included: • Assessing the Group's accounting policy for compliance with Australian Accounting Standards; • Obtaining the schedule of property, plant and equipment and on sample basis, testing the additions to supporting documentation and ensuring the amounts were capital in nature; • Assessing management's determination of when assets are available for use, including challenging management assumptions used; • Assessing and evaluating management's assessment for the reclassification of exploration |
| - Determination of timing of when the exploration expenditure capitalised should be |
and evaluation assets to mine development properties; |
| re-characterised as mine development properties - mandatory impairment of exploration and evaluation assets immediately prior to transfer to mine development properties; and at year end, assessing whether any indicators of impairment with respect to property, plant and equipment and other non current assets are present. |
• Assessing and evaluating the reasonableness of the management's mandatory impairment testing of exploration and evaluation assets immediately prior to transfer to mine development properties; • At 31 December 2024, evaluating management's assessment that no indicators of impairment existed in relation to property, plant and equipment and other non current assets; and • Assessing the appropriateness of disclosures in the financial statements. |


| Key Audit Matter | How our audit addressed this matter | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Share-based payment | |||||
| Refer to Note 35 in the financial statements | |||||
| During the year, the Group issued performance rights | Our audit procedures included: | ||||
| to key management personnel and employees. | |||||
| Management have accounted for these instruments in accordance with AASB 2 Share-Based Payment. We have considered this to be a key audit matter because: • The complexity of the accounting associated with recording these instruments and management estimation in determining the fair value of instruments granted; • Management judgement is required to determine the probability of vesting conditions of these instruments and the inputs used in the valuation model to value these instruments; and • The recognition of the share-based payment expense is complex due to the variety of vesting conditions attached to these instruments. |
• Assessing the Group's accounting policy for compliance with Australian Accounting Standards; • Obtaining an understanding of the terms and conditions of these instruments granted during the year; • Assessing the completeness of the instruments granted/cancelled/lapsed during the reporting period; • Assessing the appropriateness of management's valuation methodology used to determine the fair value of those instruments granted in the current year, including assessing the work performed by management experts; • Testing the appropriateness of assumptions and data used in determining the fair value of instruments granted in the current year; • Critically assessing management's determination |
||||
| - | of the vesting probability of each instrument; • Recalculating the value of the share-based payment expense to be recognised in |
||||
| consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income; and • Assessing the appropriateness of disclosures in the financial statements. |
The directors are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the information included in the Group's annual report for the year ended 31 December 2024 but does not include the financial report and the auditor's report thereon.
Our opinion on the financial report does not cover the other information and accordingly we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.
In connection with our audit of the financial report, our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial report or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated.
If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard.
The directors of the Company are responsible for the preparation of:


for such internal control as the directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of:
In preparing the financial report, the directors are responsible for assessing the ability of the Group to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the directors either intend to liquidate the Group or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial report as a whole is free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with the Australian Auditing Standards will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of this financial report.
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial report is located at the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board website at: https://www.auasb.gov.au/admin/file/content102/c3/ar1_2020.pdf This description forms part of our auditor's report.
We have audited the Remuneration Report included in the directors' report for the year ended 31 December 2024.
In our opinion, the Remuneration Report of Vulcan Energy Resources Limited, for the year ended 31 December 2024, complies with section 300A of the Corporations Act 2001.
The directors of the Company are responsible for the preparation and presentation of the Remuneration Report in accordance with section 300A of the Corporations Act 2001. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Remuneration Report, based on our audit conducted in accordance with Australian Auditing Standards.
RSM AUSTRALIA
Perth, WA Matthew Beevers Dated: 25 March 2025 Partner
Additional information required by the Australian Securities Exchange and not shown elsewhere in this Annual Report is as follows. The information is current as of the date of this Report unless otherwise noted.
| Ordinary Shares67 | Performance Rights | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Range | Number of holders |
Number of shares |
% of issued capital |
Number of holders |
Number of performance rights |
% of issued capital |
|
| 1 - 1,000 | 18,986 | 6,211,625 | 2.85% | 91 | 73,337 | 2.33% | |
| 1,001 - 5,000 | 5,668 | 13,375,107 | 6.15% | 317 | 491,413 | 15.60% | |
| 5,001 - 10,000 | 1,099 | 8,159,941 | 3.75% | 7 | 57,909 | 1.84% | |
| 10,001 - 100,000 | 980 | 25,586,401 | 11.76% | 25 | 1,145,946 | 36.37% | |
| 100,001 and over | 85 | 164,241,746 | 75.49% | 5 | 1,382,194 | 43.87% | |
| Total | 26,818 | 217,574,820 | 100.00% | 445 | 3,150,799 | 100.00% |
67 As at 20 March 2025.
Holders of non-marketable parcels are deemed to be those whose shareholding is valued at less than \$500. As at 20 March 2025, there were 6,213 shareholders who held less than a marketable parcel of shares, which amounts to 0.21% of issued capital based on a price per Share of \$4.00.
As at 20 March 2025, the names of substantial shareholders who have notified the Company in accordance with section 671B of the Corporations Act 2001 are:
| Holding balance | % of issued capital | |
|---|---|---|
| Mr Francis Edward Barnabas Wedin and related parties | 16,458,561 | 7.56 |
| Hancock Prospecting Pty Limited | 14,123,048 | 6.49 |
| CGI3 Pty Limited | 13,520,284 | 6.21 |
| PSA Automobiles S.A | 11,448,959 | 5.26 |
There is currently no on-market buyback program for any of Vulcan Energy Resources' listed securities.
All fully paid ordinary shareholders are entitled to vote at any meeting of the members of the Company via proxy, attorney or corporate representative and their voting rights are on:
Holders of performance rights do not have any voting rights.
Twenty largest shareholders
| Rank | Shareholders | Number held | Percentage (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BNP PARIBAS NOMINEES PTY LTD |
41,143,861 | 18.91% |
| 2 | HSBC CUSTODY NOMINEES (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED | 28,013,099 | 12.88% |
| 3 | CITICORP NOMINEES PTY LIMITED | 13,890,780 | 6.38% |
| 4 | CGI3 PTY LIMITED | 13,520,284 | 6.21% |
| 5 | PSA AUTOMOBILES SA | 11,448,959 | 5.26% |
| 6 | J P MORGAN NOMINEES AUSTRALIA PTY LIMITED | 8,066,691 | 3.71% |
| 7 | MR FRANCIS EDWARD BARNABAS WEDIN 68 | 6,096,667 | 2.80% |
| 7 | MR FRANCIS EDWARD BARNABAS WEDIN 68 | 6,096,667 | 2.80% |
| 8 | MR JOHN LANGLEY HANCOCK | 4,053,128 | 1.86% |
| 9 | BNP PARIBAS NOMS PTY LTD | 3,560,521 | 1.64% |
| 10 | MR FRANCIS EDWARD BARNABAS WEDIN 68 | 3,452,727 | 1.59% |
| 11 | DR HORST DIETER KREUTER | 2,644,096 | 1.22% |
| 12 | MONSLIT PTY LTD |
1,600,000 | 0.74% |
| 13 | LHO LA PTY LTD |
1,018,559 | 0.47% |
| 14 | BNP PARIBAS NOMINEES PTY LTD |
962,779 | 0.44% |
| 15 | SNOWBALL 3 PTY LTD |
957,000 | 0.44% |
| 16 | MR HOANG HUY NGUYEN |
900,815 | 0.41% |
| 17 | MAGNI ASSOCIATES PTY LTD 68 | 812,500 | 0.37% |
| 18 | RHODIUM CAPITAL PTY LIMITED |
750,000 | 0.34% |
| 19 | MR LEENDERT HOEKSEMA | 730,000 | 0.34% |
| 20 | CITICORP NOMINEES PTY LIMITED |
553,646 | 0.25% |
| Totals | 150,272,779 | 69.07% |
68 Mr. Francis Edward Barnabas Wedin and his related parties (Francis Wedin Group) hold a total of 16,458,561 shares (7.56%).
69 Part of the Torresan Group which holds a total of 2,557,000 shares (1.18%).
There are no listed or unlisted options on issue as at the date of this Report.
The Company is treated as a public company for taxation purposes.
The Company has no franking credits.
Vulcan Energy Resources Limited has used its cash and cash equivalents held at the time of listing in a way consistent with its stated business objectives.
The information as required by ASX Listing Rule 5.20 is set out below:
| Name | State | Resources applied for |
Area (km²) |
Expiry | Ownership As at 30 June 2024 |
Change in ownership |
Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ried | Hessen | Geothermal, brine & lithium |
289.92 | 7.2025 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Luftbrücke | Hessen | Geothermal, brine & lithium |
207.25 | 9.2026 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Rift-Nord | RLP | Geothermal & lithium |
61,83 (VER share), 149.74 km² total |
6.2027 | 50 % VER GmbH, 50 % GET, Vulcan has rights to develop production projects with 100% ownership in the licence area |
N/A | exploration |
| Waldnerturm | BW | Geothermal, brine & lithium |
20.43 | 12.2026 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Lampertheim II | Hessen | Geothermal, brine & lithium |
1.99 | 7.2026 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Ortenau II | BW | Geothermal, brine & lithium |
374.1 | 12.2025 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Mannheim | BW | Geothermal, brine & lithium |
144.49 | 6.2027 | 100 % VER Pty Ltd | N/A | exploration |
| Taro | RLP | Geothermal | 32.68 | 8.2025 | 100% GGH (part of VER Group) |
N/A | exploration |
| Lisbeth | RLP | Lithium | 9.2027 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration | |
| Ludwig | RLP | Geothermal & lithium |
96.34 | 12.2027 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Therese | RLP | Geothermal & lithium |
81.12 | 12.2027 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Lampertheim | Hessen | Geothermal, brine & lithium |
108.03 | 7.2026 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Kerner | RLP | Geothermal & lithium |
72.26 | 12.2027 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Löwenherz | RLP | Geothermal & lithium |
75.43 | 12.2026 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Flaggenturm 2023 |
RLP | Geothermal | 12.2027 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration | |
| Fuchsmantel 2023 |
RLP | Lithium | 166.75 | 7.2025 | 100 % VER GmbH | N/A | exploration |
| Name | State | Resources applied for |
Area (km²) |
Expiry | Ownership As at 30 June 2024 |
Change in ownership |
Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Landau-Süd | RLP | Geothermal | 5.2034 | Agreement signed by Vulcan to acquire 100% |
N/A | production | |
| Ilka | RLP | Lithium | 19.41 | 11.2025 | Agreement signed by Vulcan to acquire 100% |
N/A | exploration |
| Insheim | RLP | Geothermal | 11.2037 | 100% Natürlich Insheim GmbH |
N/A | production | |
| LiThermEx | RLP | Lithium | 19 | 3.202570 | 100% Natürlich Insheim GmbH |
N/A | exploration |
| Kachelhoffa | FR | Geothermal | 463.34 | 7.2029 | 100% Vulcan Énergie France |
N/A | exploration |
| Kachelhoffa minéral |
FR | Lithium | 7.2029 | 100 % Vulcan Énergie France |
N/A | exploration | |
| Cesano | IT | Geothermal & Lithium |
11.46 | 01.2027 | 50% Vulcan Energy Italy Pty Ltd., 50 % Enel Green Power |
N/A | exploration |
| Boccaleone | IT | Geothermal & Lithium |
4.31 | 07.2025 | 50 % Vulcan Energy Italy Pty Ltd., 50 % Enel Green Power |
N/A | exploration |
70 Vulcan has submitted an extension application for this licence.
Vulcan's combined Upper Rhine Valley Project Lithium Brine Measured, Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource estimates as at 31 December 2024.
| Vulcan's combined Project lithium (Li) brine Measured, Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource Estimates | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| -- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -- | -- |
| Licence/Area | Reservoir | Classification | GRV km3 | Avg. NTG % |
Avg. Phie % |
Avg. Li mg/L |
Elemental Li t |
LCE kt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insheim | *MUS, BST, ROT, BM |
Measured | 13 | % | Phie | mg/L | 151,823 | 808 |
| Rift-Nord | *MUS, BST, ROT, BM |
Measured | 9.5 | 69 | % | 181 | 110,181 | 586 |
| *MUS, BST, ROT, BM |
Indicated | 29 | 70 | 9 | 181 | 355,443 | 1892 | |
| Landau- Süd | *MUS, BST, ROT; BM |
Measured | 12 | 71 | 9 | 181 | 134,677 | 717 |
| *MUS, BST, ROT; BM |
Indicated | 2.7 | 68 | 9 | 181 | 29,620 | 158 | |
| Flaggenturm | BST | Indicated | 7 | 69 | 9 | 181 | 115,215 | 613 |
| BST | Inferred | 37 | 90 | 9 | 181 | 391,201 | 2,082 | |
| Kerner | BST | Indicated | 5 | 65 | 10 | 181 | 76,242 | 406 |
| BST | Inferred | 13 | 90 | 9 | 181 | 132,558 | 705 |
| Reservoir | Classification | GRV km3 | Avg. NTG % |
Avg. Phie % |
Avg. Li mg/L |
Elemental Li t |
LCE kt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *MUS, BST, ROT |
Indicated | 4.3 | 73 | 8 | 181 | 66,708 | 355 |
| *MUS, BST, ROT |
Indicated | 14.5 | 73 | 8 | 181 | 237,362 | 1,263 |
| *MUS, BST, ROT |
Indicated | 57 | 73 | 8 | 181 | 659,013 | 3,507 |
| BST | Inferred | 105 | 73 | 8 | 181 | 1,883,212 | 10,024 |
| BST | Indicated | 4 | 90 | 10 | 153 | 54,111 | 288 |
| BST | Inferred | 32 | 65 | 9 | 153 | 290,312 | 1,545 |
| BST | Indicated | 7 | 90 | 10 | 153 | 93,220 | 496 |
| BST | Inferred | 22 | 65 | 9 | 153 | 199,226 | 1,060 |
| BST | Indicated | 2 | 90 | 10 | 153 | 29,907 | 159 |
| BST | Inferred | 22 | 65 | 9 | 153 | 200,708 | 1,068 |
| Measured | 181 mg/L | 2,112 kt | |||||
| Indicated | 178 mg/L | 9,137 kt | |||||
| Inferred | 172 mg/L | 16,484 kt | |||||
Note 1: Mineral Resources are not Ore Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. Refer to Competent Person Statement and Mineral Resource Statement in the Appendix for further information.
Note 2: The weights are reported in metric tonnes (1,000 kg or 2,204.6 lbs). Numbers may not add up due to rounding of the resource value percentages.
Note 3: Reservoir abbreviations: MUS – Muschelkalk Formation, BST – Buntsandstein Group; ROT Rotliegend Group; BM - Variscan Basement.
Note 4: To describe the resource in terms of industry standard, a conversion factor of 5.323 is used to convert elemental Li to Li2CO3, or Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE).
Note 5: NTG and Phie averages have been weighted to the thickness of the reservoir.
Note 6: GRV refers to gross rock volume, also known as the aquifer volume.
Note 7: Mineral Resources are considered to have reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction under current and forecast lithium market pricing with application of Vulcan's A-DLE processing.
Note 8: The values shown are an approximation and with globalised rounding of values in the presented summary table as per JORC guidelines, cannot be multiplied through to achieve the Mineral Resource estimated volumes shown above.
The following table sets out Vulcan's Phase One Ore Reserves as at 31 December 2024.
| Reserves Classification | Lithium grade | Economic Reserves Quantity at Wellhead Reference Point |
|---|---|---|
| mg/l Li | kt LCE | |
| Proved | 181 | 318 |
| Probable | 181 | 252 |
The table above shows Vulcan's Phase One Ore Reserves. Note: see Competent Person Statement and Ore Reserves Statement contained in the Appendix for further information.
Dr Francis Wedin Executive Chair
Mr Cris Moreno Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer
Group Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director (appointed Executive Director from 1 January 2025)
Non-Executive Director (appointed 13 September 2024) (appointed Lead Independent Director and Deputy Chair from 1 January 2025)
Dr Horst Kreuter Chief Representative Germany
Mr Daniel Tydde
Level 11, 1 Spring Street Perth WA 6000 Australia Telephone: 08 6331 6156
Website: https://v-er.eu
Listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX Code: VUL)
Listed on Prime Standard of Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE Code: VUL)
Auditors
Ms Josephine Bush Non-Executive Director
Dr Günter Hilken Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Dr Heidi Grön
RSM Australia Partners Level 32, 2 The Esplanade Perth WA 6000
Ashurst Brookfield Place Tower II Level 10 and 11 St Georges Terrace Perth WA 6000
Level 4, Brookfield Place, Tower Two 123 St Georges Terrace Perth WA 6000
Level 5, 191 St Georges Terrace Perth WA 6000 Telephone: 1300 288 664
The Company reviews and reports its Ore Reserves and Mineral Resources at least annually. The date of reporting is 31 December each year, to coincide with the Company's end of financial year balance date.
The Company has ensured that the Mineral Resources and Ore Reserve reported are subject to thorough governance arrangements and internal controls. The Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves for the Project were prepared by independent energy consulting group GLJ Ltd (GLJ).
The Company confirms the following:
The information in this Report that relates to Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves, and any Exploration Results and Production Targets is extracted from the ASX announcement made by Vulcan on 16 November 2023 ("Positive Zero Carbon Lithium™ Project Bridging Study Results")71, which is available to view on Vulcan's website at https://v-er.eu. Vulcan confirms that:
71 https://www.investi.com.au/api/announcements/vul/22623520-1b3.pdf
At the date of this Report there were the following performance rights on issue, none of which have an exercise price:
| Class | Number | Number of Holders | Expiry Date | Exercise Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class S | 12,894 | 3 | 30/6/2025 | Nil |
| Class AA | 26,903 | 7 | 30/6/2026 | Nil |
| Class AB | 209,200 | 5 | 30/6/2027 | Nil |
| Class AC | 9,492 | 1 | 31/12/2025 | Nil |
| Class AD | 8,411 | 1 | 30/6/2026 | Nil |
| Class AE | 41,357 | 1 | 31/12/2025 | Nil |
| Class IP | 193,886 | 163 | 1/7/2025 | Nil |
| Class IP | 845,156 | 251 | 31/12/2026 | Nil |
| Class IP | 600,000 | 1 | 4/12/2028 | Nil |
| Class IP | 1,203,500 | 12 | 31/12/2027 | Nil |
| Total | 3,150,799 | 445 |
Ordinary shares of Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd were issued during the year ended 31 December 2024 and up to the date of this report on the exercise of 110,847 performance rights and nil performance shares.
| Class | Holders over 20% | Number of performance rights |
Holding %age |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class S | Annie Liu, Dr Heidi Gron and Josephine Bush |
4,298 each | 33% |
| Class AA | Dr Francis Wedin | 9,724 | 36.14% |
| Class AB | Dr Francis Wedin | 116,000 | 55.45% |
| Class AC | Dr Günter Hilken | 9,492 | 100% |
| Class AD | Ranya Alkadamani | 8,411 | 100% |
| Class AE | Sven Schluter | 41,357 | 100% |

https://v-er.eu ABN 38 624 223 132
Building tools?
Free accounts include 100 API calls/year for testing.
Have a question? We'll get back to you promptly.