MEDIA RELEASE

PERTH September 19

Perth-based energy company Protean Energy's subsidiary KORID Energy has received a AU$3.0 million grant to supply its patented V-KOR stack technology to a project seeking to devise an industry-standard for vanadium battery solutions across South Korea.

The AU$3 million grant was awarded to KORID Energy by the Korean Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP) and forms part of the institute's broader AU$9.7 million project, in which the V-KOR stack technology will be integrated with a 1MW/4Wh vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB).

The V-KOR stack technology is an energy storage system that stacks a series of repeating cell frames to form a number of cells within the overall battery stack - improving battery performance and lowering manufacturing costs, compared to conventional VRFB technology.

Protean Chair Bevan Tarratt said KETEP reviewed several VRFB producers and selected KORID Energy due to the V-KOR stack technology, which has a 250 per cent higher power output when compared to competing technology.

"KORID Energy's selection for such a nationally significant project in South Korea was further validation of the considerable technological advancements it had made in recent times. We are very pleased to have been awarded the role ahead of such a strong field of energy storage competitors, in a country so focused on the sector," Mr Tarratt said.

The KETEP project brings together a collective of leading energy industry stakeholders, with the aim to demonstrate the most efficient vanadium battery solution.

Other project participants include CHEMTROS, an electrolyte manufacturer, and EKOS, which will provide power conditioning (see figure 1).

"KORID Energy will benefit directly from this project and the improvements made by other project participants. For example, its anticipated the project will double the energy density of vanadium electrolyte," Mr Tarratt said.

"This will significantly reduce the physical footprint of the V-KOR battery solution, and enable KORID Energy to execute further improvements, including scaling the technology."

Mr Tarratt said this would particularly improve the V-KOR technology's 25kW stack (see figure 2), leading to substantial cost reductions as well as enhancing the assembly process.

"Improving the assembly process of V-KOR's 25kW stack is a key part of KORID Energy's commercialisation strategy for large-scale utility applications, especially in commercial and industrial settings," Mr Tarrat said.

Protean Energy is at the forefront of vanadium resource and battery technology development, targeting the development of mineral projects and the commercialisation of its patented products.


ABOUT PROTEAN ENERGY LIMITED (ASX: POW)

Protean Energy Limited is an energy company focused on the commercialisation of vanadium battery energy storage systems via its 50% owned Korean subsidiary, KORID Energy Ltd. Protean is also developing a multi‐energy mineral (vanadium and uranium) project in South Korea through its 50% holding in Stonehenge Korea Limited (SHK). SHK is a Korean JV company with two KOSDAQ-listed industry partners being DST Company Ltd (DST) and BHI Co Ltd (BHI). SHK owns 100% of the rights to 3 projects in South Korea, including the Company's flagship Daejon Vanadium Project.

For further information, see www.proteanenergy.com



Media Contact

Heidi Cuthbert
+61 411 272 366
heidi.cuthbert@multiplier.com.au