Handbook of Energy Storage for Transmission or ... - W2agz.com

EPRI Proprietary Licensed Material
• Over/under frequency protection
• Manual disconnect switches
These requirements vary by utility, and they typically vary by power rating or
interconnection voltage.
The PCS industry has evolved significantly over the past 20 years and supports a number
of related technologies. These include variable speed wind turbines, fuel cells,
photovoltaics, other battery energy storage technologies, and variable speed drives.
These markets have reduced the cost and increased the reliability of systems, and the
VRB manufacturers benefit by having multiple vendors to select from.
2. Status
2.1. Licensing
The largest VRB suppliers are Sumitomo Electric Industries (Japan) and Vanteck (VRB)
Technology Corporation (Canada). These companies license certain intellectual property
and marketing rights from Pinnacle (Australia). These companies each have nonexclusive
rights to manufacture and market their products anywhere in the world 1 . In
turn, they pay either royalties or site licenses to Pinnacle, depending upon the project
location.
Key patents held by Pinnacle relate to the use of vanadium in each of the two half-cell
reactions, the construction of cells such as the bipolar electrodes, and the electrolyte
formulae that allows for high concentrations of vanadium sulfide in solution without
precipitating into solid. Sumitomo and Vanteck each hold other VRB-related patents that
are independent of the Pinnacle IP.
It is interesting to note that SEI and Vanteck are also component suppliers to each other.
SEI has developed important stack manufacturing expertise, and is a supplier of stacks to
Vanteck. Vanteck has a strategic alliance with Highveld Steel and Vanadium
Corporation (South Africa), producer of 70% of the world's vanadium supply, and will
supply electrolyte to SEI. Vanteck owns a 73% controlling interest in Pinnacle, so SEI
royalty streams indirectly benefit Vanteck.
Cellenium (Thailand) is not a licensee of Pinnacle, and it is unclear whether they plan to
(1) enter into a license agreement, (2) to delay commercialization until after the patents
expire, or (3) to contest the legality of the patents. Cellenium has exclusive rights to a
number of international patents as the sole licensee of Squirrel Holdings, Ltd.
1 The licensing agreements call for certain restrictions in Japan and Africa, and they differentiate between
applications as to whether royalties or license fees apply. However, in practice, these terms are not
expected to materially impact the commercialization efforts of either supplier.
Vanadium Redox Battery 15