Prominent figure elevating new energy source (4)

I believe the answer is:

lion

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'prominent figure' is the definition.
'lion' can be an answer for 'figure' (I have seen 'Important figure' mean 'lion' so perhaps 'figure' could also mean 'lion'). I'm not sure about the 'prominent' bit.

I can't explain the remainder of the clue.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for lion that I've seen before include "Touring rugby player" , "Courageous person" , "King of the forest" , "Wild cat" , "Buddhist scripture; Sanskrit rule" .)

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