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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross has kicked off a Section 232 investigation into U.S. imports of vanadium, citing potential risks to national security, the Department of Commerce announced on June 2. Industrial Info is tracking $5.54 billion in active vanadium mining projects worldwide, more than half of which comes from Australia.
Click here for a full list of projects.
Click on the image at right for a graph showing active vanadium mining project activity, by country.
Vanadium is a metal used across the aerospace, defense and energy sectors and can be found in aircraft, jet engines, ballistic missiles, energy storage, bridges and pipelines, among others. However, the U.S. supply is entirely made up of imports.
Ross initiated the investigation, which falls under the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, into U.S. imports of vanadium, after domestic producers AMG Vanadium LLC (Cambridge, Ohio) and U.S. Vanadium LLC (Hot Springs, Arkansas) requested the investigation in November 2019. The petitioners noted unfair trade of low-priced imports, limited export markets due to value-added tax regimes in vanadium-producing countries and the "distortionary effect of Chinese and Russian industrial policies."
"Vanadium is utilized in our national defense and critical infrastructure, and is integral to certain aerospace applications," Ross said in a statement. "We will conduct a thorough, fair, and transparent investigation to determine whether vanadium imports threaten to impair U.S. national security."
Of the active vanadium mining projects worldwide, Australia accounts for the vast majority in terms of number of projects and project spend, and features two of the top three investments, both from TNG Limited (Perth, Australia):
The U.S. features only two projects, both in Nevada, but they have a total combined investment value of more than $500 million. Although Industrial Info believes it has a low probability of moving forward as planned, First Vanadium Corporation (Vancouver, Canada) is looking toward an April 2027 kickoff of a $410 million grassroot vanadium mine and mill in Carlin, Nevada, which will produce an average of 11.4 million metric tons per year over a 16-year mine life. Kravits Geological Services LLC's grassroot vanadium mine and heap leach process in Eureka, Nevada will tentatively begin construction in April 2021, with completion in October 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's reports on the Carlin and Eureka projects.
Not to be forgotten, China is home to three grassroot projects, although with comparatively modest investments: a phosphate-vanadium ore mine in Jiuquan, to produce 400,000 tons per year; an above-ground vanadium ore mine and concentrator; and an underground vanadium ore mine in Nanyang, both of which are expected to kick off in September. Click here for the Jiuquan, mine and concentrator and Nanyang projects.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
Click here for a full list of projects.
Click on the image at right for a graph showing active vanadium mining project activity, by country.Vanadium is a metal used across the aerospace, defense and energy sectors and can be found in aircraft, jet engines, ballistic missiles, energy storage, bridges and pipelines, among others. However, the U.S. supply is entirely made up of imports.
Ross initiated the investigation, which falls under the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, into U.S. imports of vanadium, after domestic producers AMG Vanadium LLC (Cambridge, Ohio) and U.S. Vanadium LLC (Hot Springs, Arkansas) requested the investigation in November 2019. The petitioners noted unfair trade of low-priced imports, limited export markets due to value-added tax regimes in vanadium-producing countries and the "distortionary effect of Chinese and Russian industrial policies."
"Vanadium is utilized in our national defense and critical infrastructure, and is integral to certain aerospace applications," Ross said in a statement. "We will conduct a thorough, fair, and transparent investigation to determine whether vanadium imports threaten to impair U.S. national security."
Of the active vanadium mining projects worldwide, Australia accounts for the vast majority in terms of number of projects and project spend, and features two of the top three investments, both from TNG Limited (Perth, Australia):
- a $547.7 million vanadium mine and processing plant in Ti Tree, designed to extract 3 million metric tons per year of vanadium ore to produce 900,000 tons per year of magnetite concentrate. Kickoff is scheduled for October, with completion in October 2022; see project report
- at the same plant, a $663.5 million second-stage expansion, to double the planned processing capacity from 3 million metric tons per year to 6 million. The project is assessed by Industrial Info as having a low probability of moving forward as planned, and timing of the second-stage expansion will depend on the grassroot project, but kickoff is targeted for 2024, with completion in 2026; see project report
The U.S. features only two projects, both in Nevada, but they have a total combined investment value of more than $500 million. Although Industrial Info believes it has a low probability of moving forward as planned, First Vanadium Corporation (Vancouver, Canada) is looking toward an April 2027 kickoff of a $410 million grassroot vanadium mine and mill in Carlin, Nevada, which will produce an average of 11.4 million metric tons per year over a 16-year mine life. Kravits Geological Services LLC's grassroot vanadium mine and heap leach process in Eureka, Nevada will tentatively begin construction in April 2021, with completion in October 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's reports on the Carlin and Eureka projects.
Not to be forgotten, China is home to three grassroot projects, although with comparatively modest investments: a phosphate-vanadium ore mine in Jiuquan, to produce 400,000 tons per year; an above-ground vanadium ore mine and concentrator; and an underground vanadium ore mine in Nanyang, both of which are expected to kick off in September. Click here for the Jiuquan, mine and concentrator and Nanyang projects.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
