ABN AMRO provides financing for GEL’s geothermal and lithium growth
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Marieke Ziedses des Plantes
Sr Press Officer Corporate Banking, WM, Personal & BB
An initial funding of £10m from ABN AMRO to support onshore development of geothermal power and critical mineral extraction at GEL sites in Cornwall. The funding follows recent announcements from GEL on UK’s first geothermal electricity production and commercial scale lithium carbonate production at its United Downs project. The funding for GEL makes it possible to grow and increase maturity of the company and UK geothermal and lithium sectors. It follows a similar financing in the geothermal lithium sector by ABN AMRO in Germany.
Geothermal Engineering Limited (GEL), the UK’s leading developer of geothermal power and critical minerals extraction, has secured £10 million in financing from ABN AMRO. This facility will help fund both expansion of lithium production at the pioneering GEL plant at its United Downs site and allow for development preparations of further sites in Cornwall where the company already has planning permission. The backing of a major bank also enables GEL to start the process of raising significant capital for further expansion in the UK.
Britisch Industry Minister Chris McDonald: "We need critical minerals for everything, from the phones we use to the cars we drive, and this £10m boost for GEL is not only vital for ramping up domestic lithium production and creating local jobs, but a big step forward for geothermal power production in the UK. Projects like these are exactly what our Critical Minerals Strategy aims to support, as we look to secure the supplies of minerals we need by leveraging Britain’s mineral wealth, attracting new investment and building more resilient supply chains.”
Ryan Law, CEO of GEL: “Following the switch on of the UK’s first geothermal power and commercial-scale lithium production last month, this represents a cornerstone financing to help GEL realise our geothermal and critical minerals ambitions in the UK. It is exciting to have a partnership with ABN AMRO, with their experience of financing other European geothermal lithium projects. At a time of significant instability in global energy and mineral supplies, it is essential we start to realise the UK potential of 24/7 geothermal power and critical mineral production. Similarly, as Europe ramps up electric vehicle and battery power storage ambitions, we need to produce more of the critical minerals like lithium required for batteries to be sustainably sourced and produced without geopolitical risk. GEL now represents a huge opportunity for both investors and government to get involved and help the sector to expand.”
ABN AMRO is financing the energy transition and has actively supported new energy investments across Europe, most recently Vulcan Energy for a €2.2bn raise in Germany.
Dan Dorner, Chief Commercial Officer Corporate Banking ABN AMRO: “The UK and Europe are at a turning point. Strengthening their energy resilience requires a new wave of large-scale investment and close cooperation between governments, industry and the financial sector. We are proud to support GEL with its geothermal power and lithium production ambitions across Cornwall.This financing reflects ABN AMRO’s commitment to supporting the UK’s energy security and critical minerals supply. Building on our strong track record, we aim to finance renewable energy and decarbonisation technologies across the UK and Europe to €8 billion by 2028. In addition, we plan to allocate a further €1bn in early-stage capital through our Corporate Investments department by 2030.”
The ABN AMRO funding will be used to expand the lithium production capabilities at the UK’s first commercial-scale lithium plant which is currently owned and operated by GEL at United Downs in Cornwall. The geothermal fluid at United Downs contains over 340 parts per million (ppm) of lithium making it one of the highest concentrations found in any well to date in the world. The team at GEL intends to use this financing to expand its direct lithium extraction production from 100 tonnes of lithium carbonate per annum to close to 2,000 tonnes per annum by 2028/9. GEL is targeting production of over 18,000 tpa over the next decade from multiple sites in the UK.
As the leading developer of geothermal power in the UK, GEL is also working on new and larger geothermal power projects across the county, and has set its sights on producing a minimum of 25 MWe of renewable electricity across GEL’s portfolio over the next 10 years. GEL has further sites in Cornwall which have already received planning permission and are each anticipated to deliver at least 5 MWe of baseload power which is enough to power around 70,000 UK homes. The financing from ABN AMRO will also be used to start preparing these sites for drilling.
The United Downs deep geothermal power plant started power production in February 2026 and represents the UK’s first integrated deep geothermal power and commercial-scale lithium production project. The first plant will deliver 3MWe of baseload electricity which is being sold via Octopus Energy to power around 10,000 UK homes.
This financing in GEL adds to the current funding from Thrive Renewables plc, Kerogen Capital, the European Regional Development Fund and Cornwall Council.