Bushveld Minerals Limited

Bushveld Minerals Limited (AIM: BMN), the AIM quoted, integrated primary vanadium producer and energy storage provider, with ownership of high-grade assets in South Africa, announces that in line with the announcements made on 9 March 2020 and 1 April 2020, it has formed a special purpose company in partnership with Invinity Energy Systems plc (“Invinity”), named Vanadium Electrolyte Rental Limited (“VERL”). VERL’s purpose is to provide a vanadium electrolyte rental option to Invinity’s customers.

The formation of this company reinforces Bushveld Minerals’ strategy of partnering with Vanadium Redox Flow Battery (“VRFB”) companies for the supply of vanadium material, vanadium electrolyte and vanadium electrolyte rental products, as announced on 1 November 2019.

In addition, Bushveld is pleased to announce that VERL has signed a contract for electrolyte rental with Pivot Power, part of EDF Renewables. Under this contract, VERL will hold, and rent to Pivot for a period of ten years, the electrolyte in Pivot Power’s five megawatt-hour flow battery, supplied by Invinity and to be delivered to Pivot Power’s project at the Energy Superhub Oxford.

Fortune Mojapelo, CEO of Bushveld Minerals commented: 

 “Since setting up Bushveld Energy in 2016 we have said that the metal’s unique characteristics will give it certain advantages in the energy storage sector. In this case it is the lack of degradation, even after years of charging and discharging cycles, that allows for us to loan the metal into a battery, thereby removing a significant portion of the upfront cost of the battery and ensuring the reusability of its electrolyte. 

 This partnership puts the rental model into a specific business unit, formalising a commercial partnership and ringfencing the vanadium rental sub-entity. We anticipate adding other rental agreements and VRFB companies to the partnership in growing the electrolyte rental model, ensuring that the VRFB is affordable and the most sustainable battery technology.”

Larry Zulch, CEO of Invinity Energy Systems commented:

“Both Invinity and Bushveld are intent on removing any obstacle to vanadium flow batteries demonstrating their superiority for heavy cycling and long duration applications. VERL is an excellent means of giving our customers the option to reduce the capex of their energy storage system.

 The ability to rent electrolyte and be confident of its residual value shows why vanadium flow batteries have an environmental life-cycle assessment consistent with their purpose of making renewable energy a reliable resource.”