Australian vanadium miner targets solar + storage market in deal with Germany’s Gildemeister

ASX-listed Australian Vanadium has inked a deal with German battery maker Gildemeister Energy Storage to sell the CellCube range of vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFB) in Australia, as part of the company’s plans to take on the large-scale solar and energy storage market.

The deal, alongside another February agreement with local commercial solar installer Sun Connect, will allow Australian Vanadium (AVL) to ramp up its activity in Australia’s commercial and utility-scale battery markets.

Vanadium redox flow batteries are considered uniquely suited to on- and off-grid commercial energy storage applications due to their scalability and long asset lives, with deep and very high cycling capability.

Gildemeister’s CellCube technology is regarded as the world’s most commercially advanced vanadium flow battery, with more than 100 sold units worldwide.

Under the terms of the deal with Gildemeister, the CellCube range of battery products will be marketed and sold in Australia by AVL’s 100 per cent-owned subsidiary, VSUN, for an initial five-year period.

AVL’s key role in the strategy lies in its development of the Gabanintha vanadium mine near Meekatharra in Western Australia, which has been described as one of the highest-grade vanadium projects in the world.

Sun Connect – one of Australia’s top five commercial solar installers – will, meanwhile, collaborate with AVL on providing a renewable power source for the Gabanintha vanadium project as part of ongoing feasibility studies.

“The future of vanadium demand is strongly tied to the global need for large-scale energy storage,” said AVL managing director Vince Algar in a statement.

“(The) agreement allows VSUN to ramp-up its activity in commercial target markets and utility related storage opportunities,” Algar continued.

“Gildemeister considers the Australian market one of enormous potential and suitability for storage systems like the CellCube. AVL and VSUN will now help to realise that potential,” he said.