Vanadium energy storage industry chain

Why is the vanadium market so volatile?

We found that the vast majority of vanadium is produced as a co-/by-product in a highly concentrated supply chain, which helps explain the extreme volatility in supply and price witnessed in the vanadium market. These factors also cause concern for the upper bound of the rates at which annual supply can feasibly grow.

Can vanadium flow batteries decarbonize the power sector?

Vanadium flow batteries show technical promise for decarbonizing the power sector. High and volatile vanadium prices limit deployment of vanadium flow batteries. Vanadium is globally abundant but in low grades, hindering economic extraction. Vanadium's supply is highly concentrated as co-/by-product production.

Is the prohibitive price of vanadium a supply chain problem?

Thus, the prohibitive price of vanadium may remain a separate issue from the supply chain challenges discussed here. One method to reduce the burden of the vanadium price does exist via a new market of electrolyte leasing, where a third-party company leases the vanadium – usually in the form of VRFB electrolyte – to a battery vendor or end-user.

How can a vanadium production scale-up accelerate a rapid supply chain growth?

To meet or exceed the limits identified for 2030 and 2050 deployment (which assume 10% CAGRs), production scale-up must accelerate relative to historic vanadium CAGRs (<4%) [ 49, 72 ]. Rapid supply chain growth relies on the expansion of existing vanadium production routes as well as economical beneficiation of new vanadium precursor sources.

Where is the vanadium co-/by-product supply distribution?

Further inspection of the vanadium co-/by-product supply distribution reveals more causes for concern: while co-/by-product production represents the majority (75%) of the global vanadium supply, conversations with industry experts revealed that this stream is concentrated around ∼10 steel mills, primarily in China and Russia.

Why is vanadium a problem?

High and volatile vanadium prices limit deployment of vanadium flow batteries. Vanadium is globally abundant but in low grades, hindering economic extraction. Vanadium's supply is highly concentrated as co-/by-product production. Opportunities for growth of vanadium supply lie in principal and secondary streams.