The global energy transition is under threat unless more attention is paid to long-duration energy storage, Australian Vanadium Limited (AVL) CEO Graham Arvidson has warned.

Speaking at a mining conference in Kalgoorlie on Monday, he said storing renewable energy beyond four hours was no longer a luxury, but an essential enabler of decarbonisation.

“This is a story of vanadium,” Arvidson said. “Long duration energy storage is a necessity, and vanadium can play a key role in that.”  AVL, he said, is ready with a full supply chain solution to support the rollout of vanadium flow batteries (VFBs).

“Whether you are in the resource sector, data centres or grid-connected applications, every single one of those addressable markets are moving beyond the four-hour mark, which is the important piece for us,” he said.

Arvidson pointed to the UK as an example of a country putting the right policy settings in place to support long-duration storage. “They have specifically said, ‘This needs to be for the long term - 25-year assets are the only thing going to be considered for the cap and for pricing mechanism being contemplated', and eight-hour batteries, importantly.”

In the UK’s most recent tender under this framework, 2.4 GWh of vanadium flow batteries were submitted – representing about 8% of the world’s vanadium supply. “This is happening all over the world,” Arvidson said.

In China, 30 GWh of VFB capacity is under construction, with the world’s largest – a 1 GWh VFB – recently commissioned. China is also building out 35 GWh of full supply chain capacity, potentially doubling or quadrupling the global vanadium industry within five years.

“Pay attention to vanadium, but more importantly, pay attention to vanadium batteries and the supply chain benefits,” Arvidson urged.

KALGOORLIE PROJECT
AVL is especially focused on the Kalgoorlie long-duration battery project, where the Western Australian government has committed A$150-million to support a 500 MWh, 10-hour battery aimed at improving grid reliability and stimulating local industry.

“The government is not focused just on unlocking security of the grid,” Arvidson said. “What we're interested in here, and I'm going to quote [Premier] Roger Cook, ‘I want this project to be a catalyst to drive a new vanadium mining and processing and export industry for WA.’ I think that's telling.”

AVL intends to tender for the Kalgoorlie battery, bringing a supply chain solution that Arvidson said was already 70% locally sourced, and leveraging AVL’s electrolyte production capability – which represents about half the battery’s value.

“These batteries take time to build. The target is 2029 and importantly . . . we bring an 18-month lead time doing the detailed design of what one of these batteries look like,” he said.

END-TO-END SUPPLY CHAIN
AVL is currently completing an optimised feasibility study for its integrated upstream project and has secured key permitting approvals, including a development application for its processing plant in Geraldton.

“In the midstream, we are the only established electrolyte producer,” said Arvidson. “We have a commercial production facility here in Perth. We have successfully deployed electrolyte in operating batteries with Horizon Power.”

AVL’s flow batteries have exceeded expectations under harsh conditions in Kununurra, where they were tested without cooling systems.

On the downstream side, the company has been developing its ‘Project Lumina’ architecture, adapting Chinese gigawatt-scale solutions for local use. “What is the off-the-shelf solution to make sure this is ready to go in Australia with Australian engineering, Australian contractors, Australian content?” Arvidson asked. “That's what we are ready to do.”

He noted that vanadium batteries improve in cost competitiveness as duration increases and that they do not degrade, unlike other chemistries. “You can have it in operation 50 years from now . . . and at full capacity.”

Vanadium’s role in Western Australia’s energy future is also gaining policy recognition. Arvidson shared that Western Australia Energy Minister Amber Sanderson had formally acknowledged AVL’s leadership in vanadium processing and battery supply chain development.

“Our integrated approach aligns well with the government's ambitions,” he said, calling the endorsement a “critical” moment for AVL’s full-value chain strategy.

Tendering for the Kalgoorlie battery will open soon, and Arvidson said AVL was well-positioned. “What we can bring in terms of value is an opportunity to compress that schedule and give certainty of delivery into the Goldfields.”

He also noted the global supply implications of these emerging projects. “Of course, this battery in Kalgoorlie would be 2% roughly of the world's vanadium supply,” he said. “There's a 1.6 GWh battery going into construction in Switzerland – that would be 4% to 5% of the world's vanadium supply.”

In closing, Arvidson called on the mining and energy sectors to see vanadium’s strategic value.

“I hope I made the case that vanadium is a metal that is perhaps overlooked right now and should be on people's minds,” he said. “AVL has a ready-to-go supply chain solution across the full value chain. And importantly, at a competitive lifecycle cost already, with lithium at four hours, we are competitive.”

“Please join us as we seek to unlock Australia's long duration energy future,” he concluded.