Australian Vanadium produces first battery-ready electrolyte

Australian Vanadium has announced that it has produced its first high-purity vanadium electrolyte for use in vanadium flow batteries. Vanadium flow batteries are well suited to large-scale energy storage applications, such as those required for electrical grids.

The company reports that independent analysis of the vanadium electrolyte, conducted by LabWest Minerals Analysis, shows the impurities were well within limits typically expected by vanadium flow battery manufacturers. Samples of vanadium electrolyte produced at the facility will be provided to manufacturers of vanadium flow batteries for formal qualifications for use in their batteries.

The company’s vanadium flow batteries-focused subsidiary VSUN Energy has experience working with a range of battery manufacturers and has built relationships for electrolyte supply by Australian Vanadium.

Australian Vanadium says it expects ongoing commercial production of vanadium electrolyte to fulfil orders as they are received.

“The completion of the facility, coupled with the confirmation of the production of on-specification vanadium electrolyte from Western Australia’s first manufacturing facility, achieves another major milestone for AVL and is a positive reflection of the technical and operational expertise within our organisation,” said CEO Graham Arvidson. “We are ready to accept orders for electrolyte and are actively pursuing sales.”

A $3.69 million Australian Government Modern Manufacturing Translation grant was awarded to Australian Vanadium, which helped to build the facility, under the National Manufacturing Priority Roadmap in 2021.

The facility was designed to produce high-purity electrolyte to support up to 33 MWh per year of vanadium flow battery energy storage.

The ability to source local electrolyte will enable the company to become a trusted supplier of vanadium electrolyte for battery projects in Australia and the wider region, at a time when there is increasing community and government interest in ensuring capabilities to support the energy transition.

Australian Vanadium is using proven electrolyte manufacturing technology licensed from US Vanadium (USV) exclusively to the company in Australia and New Zealand. Supplies of the vanadium oxides required by the facility for the production of vanadium electrolyte are currently being provided by USV.

Once the company’s namesake project is in production, Australian Vanadium will provide full ‘pit to battery’ downstream value addition, by generating a vanadium concentrate at the mine site, to be fed to the company’s proposed processing plant for producing the vanadium pentoxide used as a feedstock for the facility.

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