Australian Vanadium Limited (AVL) has appointed engineering group Primero – a subsidiary of NRW Holdings – to undertake the Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) for the building of its vanadium electrolyte manufacturing plant in Western Australia.
AVL recently secured a A$3.69 million grant to co-fund the development of Australia’s first commercial vanadium battery electrolyte plant to support the rollout of vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) that can be used to support residential power grids, or in off-grid settings such as mining, agriculture and remote communities.
Featuring vanadium electrolyte manufacturing technology recently acquired from specialty chemical producer US Vanadium, the facility will initially produce enough electrolyte per annum to fill VRFBs that can store up to 33MWh of energy.
For comparison, a single Tesla Powerwall stores 13.5 kWh of energy, with the electrolyte plant producing the equivalent energy storage capacity of 2,444 Powerwalls per year.
Managing Director, Vincent Algar said the ECI stage will incorporate analysis of the US Vanadium plant design including alignment with Australian standards, design layouts and EPC contract preparation.
“The contract award to Primero is the next step in AVL’s vertical integration strategy, cementing the Company’s goal to develop downstream processing capability in Australia,” Mr Algar stated, adding that the two companies will also work together to review potential locations for the plant.
“We are delighted to be working with Primero on this project, who have a proven track record for delivery of battery minerals projects in Australia and worldwide,” he continued.
“We look forward to delivering Australia’s first vanadium electrolyte manufacturing plant, built in Western Australia by an Australian company.”
