CTR’s $4.7B deal signals a new model for U.S. energy and critical minerals

The race for secure energy and domestic critical minerals is accelerating  and a new transaction in the United States may redefine how both are produced.

Controlled Thermal Resources and Plum Acquisition Corp. IV have announced a definitive business combination agreement that will bring CTR to the public markets. The transaction values the company at an estimated $4.7 billion enterprise value and is expected to position CTR as a publicly traded leader in geothermal power and critical mineral production under the ticker CTRH.

All eyes at Imperial Valley Project

At the center of the strategy is CTR’s Hell’s Kitchen Project in California’s Imperial Valley, widely considered one of the most advanced geothermal-critical mineral projects in the United States. The project integrates renewable baseload geothermal power generation with direct lithium extraction (DLE) from geothermal brines, creating a dual infrastructure model designed to deliver:

• up to 650 MW of geothermal baseload power,
• approximately 100,000 metric tons per year of lithium carbonate at full scale.

Beyond lithium, the brine resource also contains potash, zinc, manganese, rubidium, and cesium, minerals increasingly viewed as strategically important for industrial supply chains and national security.

What to expect in initial phase

CTR has already secured more than $285 million in private capital, completed a Definitive Feasibility Study with Baker Hughes, and demonstrated its lithium extraction process at a 1/15 commercial-scale pilot facility. The project also benefits from alignment with Imperial County’s Lithium Valley development plan and has received a Conditional Use Permit to begin Stage 1 construction. The initial phase is expected to include:

• 50 MW geothermal power facility,
• up to 25,000 t/year lithium carbonate production,
• additional critical mineral recovery.

FAST-41

Importantly, Hell’s Kitchen has been designated a FAST-41 project, enabling coordinated federal permitting support. CTR’s leadership believes the project arrives at a critical moment for U.S. infrastructure. As Rod Colwell, CEO of CTR, explained: “Few projects simultaneously address energy security and mineral security at scale. Hell’s Kitchen is structured to deliver clean baseload geothermal power alongside domestically produced strategic critical minerals from a single integrated brine resource.”

After more than a decade of technical development, the company says the project is ready for commercial deployment.

Partnership and synergy

For Plum Acquisition Corp. IV, the partnership reflects the growing convergence between energy infrastructure, AI computing demand, and battery supply chains. As Kanishka Roy, CEO of Plum IV, noted: “Given the exponential growth in AI data center infrastructure, the need for baseload power and for lithium in battery energy storage systems to power these data centers has become exponentially important.”

 If completed, the deal is expected to close in the second half of 2026,  the combined company could become a benchmark for integrated geothermal energy and critical mineral production in North America.

At a time when AI infrastructure, electrification, and supply-chain security are reshaping industrial policy, projects like Hell’s Kitchen highlight an emerging trend: energy production and critical mineral extraction may increasingly be developed as a single integrated system.