Vulcan Energy's Founder Takes on Canberra as Lithium Project Hits Key Milestones

Francis Wedin says Australia's proposed capital gains tax overhaul would have blocked Vulcan Energy's rise; company adds Amanda Lacaze to board.

The political battle over Australia's capital gains tax regime has drawn an unlikely combatant: Francis Wedin, the founder of Vulcan Energy Resources. Wedin has publicly warned that the Labor government's proposed reforms would have made it impossible for his company — now valued at A$1.4 billion and listed on the ASX 200 — to ever get off the ground.

At the heart of the dispute is a plan to replace the existing 50 percent capital gains tax discount with an inflation-adjusted model carrying a minimum rate of 30 percent. Wedin argues the overhaul would blunt the appetite for entrepreneurial risk precisely when capital-intensive ventures need it most. His own flagship project — a combined lithium and geothermal operation in Germany's Upper Rhine Graben with a projected investment of A$3.9 billion — serves as his case in point.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has already signalled carve-outs: early-stage investors, founders, and employee share scheme participants would retain the existing 50 percent discount, with the exemption extended to companies generating under A$10 million in annual revenue. For Vulcan Energy itself, however, the debate remains largely symbolic — the company has long since moved past its formative phase.

A Boardroom Addition With Staying Power

That maturation was underscored earlier this month when Vulcan announced that Amanda Lacaze would join as an independent non-executive director on August 17. Lacaze, who steered rare earths producer Lynas Rare Earths from 2014 until her departure as managing director in June 2026, transformed the company into a globally significant supplier of critical minerals for electronics, renewables, and electric vehicles.

The announcement, which reached shareholders roughly two weeks ago, triggered an immediate 10.2 percent surge in Vulcan's share price. The stock has since settled just above the €1.80 mark, closing Friday at €1.82 — up 0.4 percent on the day and nearly identical to its 50-day moving average of €1.83.

The appointment's effect has lingered without producing further dramatic movement, suggesting the market has absorbed the news and is now watching for operational execution.

Institutional Moves and Market Signals

Alongside the governance upgrade came a notable shift in the shareholder register. Citigroup Global Markets Australia reported on August 6 that it, together with affiliated Citi entities, had fallen below the substantial shareholder threshold at Vulcan Energy. The bank cited routine market transactions and securities lending arrangements as the cause.

While institutional exits of this scale often attract scrutiny, market observers note that securities lending activity is frequently technical in nature rather than a reflection of changed fundamental views — a distinction that matters when assessing whether the move carries negative connotations.

The company's own positioning remains firmly operational. Its August corporate presentation continues to frame Vulcan as a future lithium producer for the battery industry, built around a fully integrated European supply chain using direct lithium extraction technology. The civil construction works at the Lionheart geothermal power plant in Landau, underway since July 27, stand as the summer's central operational milestone.

The Chart Tells a Cautious Story

Despite the recent positive headlines, the share price picture remains challenging. Vulcan's stock trades 56 percent below its 52-week high of €4.15, reached on October 15. Year-to-date losses stand at 29 percent, while the twelve-month decline is 13 percent.

The current price sits almost exactly on the 50-day average but trails the 200-day average of €2.32 by 22 percent — a gap that signals short-term stabilisation after months of volatility, without yet suggesting the broader downtrend has been reversed.

Investor attention now shifts to the upcoming quarterly report, scheduled for September 11. The previous earnings release, delivered just over three weeks ago, confirmed a financing milestone and has since been accompanied by a 15.1 percent gain in the share price. Between now and then, the focus will likely remain on the integration of Lacaze into the boardroom and the pace of construction activity in Landau.

For Wedin, the tax debate in Canberra may be a sideshow to the company's German operations — but his willingness to engage signals a founder who intends to shape the regulatory environment his company will need to navigate as it pursues one of Europe's most ambitious energy transition projects.