Mount Ridley Mines has reported that its patent-pending Selectro processing technology extracted 96 per cent vanadium, 49 per cent titanium and 78 per cent iron from a third-party titanomagnetite sample, with combined recoveries of 95.5 per cent vanadium, 48.6 per cent titanium and 77.6 per cent iron. Titanomagnetite is the world's primary source of vanadium.
The test marks the third distinct feed type mastered by Selectro, following bauxite and rare-earth-rich clays. The result, announced on 3 November 2026, is being positioned squarely at the vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) supply chain.
Why the feedstock matters
The external sample graded 1.3 per cent vanadium pentoxide (V2O5), 14.2 per cent titanium dioxide and 52.3 per cent iron — notably richer than typical vanadium-laden titanomagnetite deposits, which carry only 0.2 to 1.5 per cent V2O5. Selectro uses a two-stage ambient leach relying on the same chemistry in both stages, avoiding the expensive high-temperature salt roast used conventionally. Stage one leached vanadium and iron first, upgrading TiO2 grade in the residue from 14.2 per cent to 21.5 per cent; stage two targeted titanium, lifting Ti recovery.
Headline recoveries: 96% V, 49% Ti, 78% Fe (single-stage reporting); combined 95.5% V, 48.6% Ti, 77.6% Fe.
The VRFB supply argument
The company frames the technology against a specific problem: VRFBs are rapidly becoming the global standard for grid-scale long-duration energy storage thanks to their non-flammable nature and multi-decade lifecycles, but widespread deployment has been choked by vanadium's extreme price volatility and concentrated sovereign risk, with China controlling roughly three-quarters of global supply.
Mount Ridley claims that by yielding high-value titanium and iron co-products, Selectro could dramatically subsidise and de-risk primary vanadium production outside dominant jurisdictions, positioning the technology as a disruptive force in the global energy storage supply chain that feeds VRFB electrolyte demand.
Broader Selectro track record
Before the titanomagnetite test, Selectro extracted 94.9 per cent gallium and 91.9 per cent aluminium from Australian Silica Quartz Group's Darling Range bauxite, and up to 91.8 per cent scandium from Mount Ridley's own Grass Patch clays. The company is advancing engineering designs for a dedicated Selectro demonstration plant aimed at a larger-scale bauxite test, targeting the full mine-to-metal pathway and plug-and-play licensing potential.
Mount Ridley's flagship Grass Patch project near Esperance, Western Australia, hosts a 946.1-million-tonne inferred scandium resource. The company is co-developing titanium-scandium master alloys for aerospace and defence under an active CSIRO Kick-Start programme, creating a strategic link to the titanium recovered via Selectro.
This article was assisted by AI analysis. Please refer to the original source for official information.