Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King officially cut the ribbon on Australian Vanadium Limited’s (AVL) vanadium electrolyte manufacturing facility at Wangara in Perth yesterday.
The facility has the potential to produce up to 33-megawatt hours (MWh) of high-purity electrolyte per year, with the aim of catering to the growing demands of the vanadium flow battery (VFB) market.
In 2021, AVL was awarded a $3.69 million Federal Government grant to build the facility, which was constructed by NRW subsidiary Primero Group.
On display at the opening was the recently-landed VFB manufactured by Invinity Energy Systems, which is destined for a Horizon Power project in Kununurra.
AVL used U.S. Vanadium’s (USV) electrolyte manufacturing technology for the plant’s design and holds exclusive rights for the technology in Australia and New Zealand.
“We are grateful to the teams at Primero and USV for their contributions in delivering a facility that is the first of its kind for Western Australia,” AVL chief executive officer Graham Arvidson said.
“Production of AVL’s first vanadium electrolyte will position the company to become a trusted supplier for battery projects in Australia and the wider region.”
AVL’s vanadium mining project in the Murchison province of Western Australia boasts 15 tenements over 200 square kilometres, and is set to supply the company’s processing facility once open-pit operations begin.
Minister King welcomed AVL’s ‘pit to battery’ strategy as the next step in establishing Australia as a key producer of critical minerals.
“Vanadium flow batteries were invented in Australia, and Australian vanadium will play a key role in the energy transition,” she said.
Subscribe to Australian Mining and receive the latest news on product announcements, industry developments, commodities and more.
