Material Insights · Understanding the Material World

Flow batteries: Impact and additionality

How longer storage replaces gas peakers, and the supplier risk

What this tab covers The impact and additionality lens: what it displaces on the grid, who gains and who bears the burden along the supply chain, and what happens at end of life.

Flow batteries are among the few non-lithium options already at GWh scale, and their longer duration lets them substitute for gas peakers more directly than 2-hour lithium-ion. Mineral concentration and fragile non-Chinese suppliers are the main impact risks.

Grid decarbonisation versus fossil displacement

Favourable

At 4 to 10 hours, flow batteries can carry solar output through the evening peak and part of the night, competing with new gas peakers that cost USD 144 to 276/MWh in Lazard's 2026 US analysis. China's Jimusar plant is expected to let about 230 GWh a year of extra renewable output be used.39

Gas peaker LCOE, US 2026 USD 144-276/MWh9 Extra renewable output used at Jimusar About 230 GWh a year3

Just transition and local community impact

Mixed

Vanadium mining and refining sit mainly in China and Russia, so most value added stays there. Projects on coal sites, such as Idemitsu's in Australia, reuse grid connections and land, and India's first 100 MWh vanadium project is being built by an Indian firm. Manufacturing outside China has struggled: Redflow failed in 2024 and ESS Inc reported a USD 63.4 million loss for FY2025 on revenue of USD 1.6 million, and has since bought the assets of German iron-salt developer VoltStorage.2671321

China share of vanadium mine output, 2025 About 75% (calculated)2 ESS Inc net loss, FY2025 USD 63.4 million6

Circular economy and end of life

Favourable

The vanadium electrolyte does not degrade chemically and can in principle be reused in a new system, and USGS notes bromine from zinc-bromine batteries can be fully recovered and purified for reuse. Steel tanks and pumps are conventional scrap. Under EU Regulation 2023/1542, industrial batteries above 2 kWh need a digital battery passport from 18 Feb 2027, and the recycling efficiency target for chemistries other than lead-acid, lithium and nickel-cadmium is 50% by end 2025.8111424

EU battery passport start 18 Feb 202711 EU recycling efficiency target, other chemistries 50% by end 202524

Sources

  1. Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Vanadium US Geological Survey, 2026
  2. China connects world's largest vanadium flow battery project ESS News (pv magazine), 2026
  3. Flow battery startup ESS Tech Inc looks to acquisitions, big-name US partnerships for hope in future profitability Energy-Storage.news, 2026
  4. Australian battery manufacturer Redflow enters voluntary administration ESS News (pv magazine), 2024
  5. Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Bromine US Geological Survey, 2026
  6. Lazard's Levelized Cost of Energy+ (LCOE+), July 2026 (LCOS v11.0 key assumptions p. 38; LCOE v19.0 assumptions p. 28) Lazard, 2026
  7. SafeGuardS 115/23: EU issues new regulation on batteries and waste batteries (summary of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542) SGS, 2023
  8. Idemitsu plans 864 MWh vanadium flow battery at Australian coal mine site (22 Jul 2026) ESS News (pv magazine), 2026
  9. Electrolyte lifetime in aqueous organic redox flow batteries: a critical review (Kwabi, Ji and Aziz, Chemical Reviews 120) American Chemical Society / Harvard University, 2020
  10. India's Delectrik wins 100MWh VRFB storage project (21 Jul 2026) Argus Media, 2026
  11. Batteries and waste batteries: summary of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 European Parliament Legislative Observatory, 2023