Redox recap: New flow battery JV in US, Japanese utility adds 12.5MWh flow battery

A new JV aims to establish domestic vanadium electrolyte production and tackle the high upfront costs that have historically challenged flow battery adoption through an innovative leasing model.

Stryten Energy, US-based energy storage solutions provider, and Largo, a miner and supplier of minerals including vanadium, have formed Storion Energy, combining Largo’s Brazilian vanadium mining operations with Stryten’s manufacturing capabilities. The partnership focuses on scaling US domestic production of vanadium electrolyte, a key component that typically represents a substantial portion of total system costs for vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs).

Storion’s strategy, according to a press release, is a vanadium electrolyte leasing model, structured through Largo Physical Vanadium Corp., which could help VRFBs compete more directly with lithium-ion systems on initial capital costs. The company plans to use proprietary continuous manufacturing and purification processes for electrolyte production.

The venture has aligned its cost targets with the U.S. Department of Energy’s energy storage goal of $0.05/kWh by 2030. The announcement of the JV was first made in December, which was the intent to close the deal. That release also included a specific cost claim that it would “deliver vanadium electrolyte at less than $0.02 per kilowatt-hour (kWh).” The second release made in February indicated the deal had closed, and removed the mention this specific cost figure, though a company spokesperson confirmed to ESS News that it was still a target.

For utility-scale applications requiring more than four hours of storage duration, VRFBs offer advantages through their ability to independently scale power and energy capacity over longer durations. The press release notes that with appropriate maintenance, VRFBs can operate for over 20 years without capacity degradation, a common claim in the VRFB space.

Storion Energy will operate from facilities in Alpharetta, Georgia and Wilmington, Massachusetts. Financial terms of the JV agreement include Stryten paying $1 million in cash directly to Largo and contribute to Storion over time a total of US$6 million in cash, for the purpose of funding Storion’s operation, for a 50/50 split in ownership between Stryten and Largo.

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“We are excited to announce the formation of Storion Energy to bring a much-needed, cost-effective domestic supply chain for vanadium electrolyte and component parts that will enable the rapid adoption of VRFB technology for utility-scale BESS applications,” said Mike Judd, CEO and President of Stryten Energy. “VRFBs are safe and reliable long-duration energy storage solutions that provide energy resilience for commercial and industrial applications where access to continuous sources of power is critical to their operations.”

“The finalization of our joint venture with Stryten Energy marks an important step forward in accelerating LPV’s vanadium electrolyte leasing offering to the North American long-duration energy storage market,” said Francesco D’Alessio, President of Largo Clean Energy, the subsidiary of Largo involved in the Storion EnergyJV. “Storion Energy’s competitive VRFB pricing model is expected to challenge the dominance of lithium for utility-scale deployments, increase the adoption of this technology and secure leadership for the U.S. in this key energy infrastructure application.”

Japanese 12.5 MWh redox flow project

Sumitomo Electric Industries has announced that it will construct a 4 MW/12.5 MWh redox flow battery system in Ama Town on Japan’s Oki Islands, marking a significant deployment for the technology in a remote island setting.

The project, backed by Japan’s Ministry of Environment, brings together Chugoku Electric Power Transmission & Distribution, Ama Town, and a company named by Sumitom as como-gomo.company, in a public-private partnership. The system will form part of a microgrid designed to enhance grid resilience and support renewable energy integration across the Oki Islands network.

Sumitomo Electric’s flow battery technology was selected for attributes suited to remote applications, including its non-flammable electrolyte, which eliminates the need for specialized hazardous material handlers on site. The company also noted that the electrolyte’s 20-year operational lifetime without degradation reduces maintenance requirements.

Sumitomo didn’t specify if the battery would be vanadium redox flow battery; the word vanadium didn’t feature anywhere on the press release. The company has almost solely featured VRFBs in its commercialized redox flow energy storage projects since 2001.

The installation timeframe and specific project costs were not disclosed in the announcement. The system will be integrated into the existing power infrastructure that connects the Oki Islands, though details about the planned microgrid configuration and renewable energy capacity were not specified.