From ABC News (30/5/24)…
Vanadium a key part of Future Made in Australia policy — if Senate can be convinced to back it
The federal government is planning to pour billions of dollars into critical minerals in an effort to build up local production of batteries, solar panels and wind turbines.
It’s the biggest spend in the Future Made in Australia policy, which has the twin aims of supporting technology that helps the transition to net zero emissions and developing supply chains that don’t rely on China.
Producers of the critical mineral vanadium, which is used in long-duration batteries, are counting on the financial support to scale up their production.
But with the Coalition rejecting the idea and the Greens reserving their support, it’s not clear whether Labor’s plan will come to fruition.
Haven’t heard of vanadium? You will soon
Companies planning to mine and process vanadium stand to be big beneficiaries of the critical minerals subsidy.
Vanadium is a rare metal used in vanadium flow batteries, a large-scale alternative to lithium-ion batteries.
They were invented in Australia in the 1980s but haven’t been used widely because of their size and scale.
But the rapid expansion of renewable energy has created a new market for megawatt-scale batteries for electricity grids.
Australian Vanadium Limited plans to mine vanadium and manufacture vanadium electrolyte in Western Australia, as well as make and assemble vanadium batteries for use domestically and internationally.
Read about how vanadium flow batteries work: