Tender process imminent for $150 million Kalgoorlie-Boulder vanadium battery power project, company says

The company eyeing construction and installation of Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s $150 million vanadium battery says the project will be “tendered competitively very soon”. Australian Vanadium chief executive Graham Arvidson told the Digger & Dealers Mining Forum on Monday that importantly for the company the tender would not only include measures of competitiveness and value but also “readiness”. “(This is) what we bring to the table,” he said. “Our local supply chain solution should be able to bring a compelling offer to that proposition on all points. “These batteries take time to build, the target is 2029, and . . . we bring an 18-month lead time doing the detailed design on what one of these batteries look like (and) we bring proven electrolyte capability that we can scale immediately. “What we can bring in terms of value as an opportunity to compress that schedule and give certainty of delivery into the Goldfields where we all know the grid needs an improved solution and multiple solutions.” Mr Arvidson said the Kalgoorlie-Boulder project would play an extremely important role in the next steps of the energy transition. “(This is) because we are going to unlock vanadium-flow batteries as a proven, competitive technology delivering value here in Kalgoorlie,” he said. The battery is planned to be a 500-megawatt-hour model that can run for 10 hours. Mr Arvidson said the energy transition would come to a “grinding halt” unless something was done about long-duration energy storage. “That term may not be on everyone’s minds but I’m here to say it should be right now — it is no longer a luxury, it is a necessity,” he said. The company also told the market on Monday the WA Planning Commission had approved the development application for its proposed vanadium processing plant at Tenindewa, about 65km east of Geraldton. Australian Vanadium said the Tenindewa facility would be a central component of the Australian Vanadium Project, which also included a mine and concentrator at Gabanintha near Meekatharra, and a vanadium electrolyte manufacturing plant already operating in Perth. Together, these facilities would enable the company to produce vanadium products, manufacture electrolyte and support deployment of vanadium-flow batteries entirely within WA. “This is a landmark moment for (Australian Vanadium) and a significant step forward in realising our vision of a homegrown, fully integrated vanadium value chain,” Mr Arvidson said.