Vanadium pentoxide (V2O5), the feedstock from which vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) electrolyte is manufactured, continued a slow drift lower in mid-November, with Chinese benchmark assessments describing a market that is fundamentally stable but leaning weak.

The benchmark moves, but barely

SunSirs (生意社) set its V2O5 benchmark at 97,833.33 yuan per tonne on 11 November 2026, down 0.09% from 97,916.67 yuan/t at the start of the month, with a daily change of 0.00%. One day later the same benchmark eased to 97,666.67 yuan/t, accompanied by a market note flagging a "weak adjustment" in battery-grade V2O5.

The move is small in absolute terms — a few hundred yuan per tonne — but it points to a market without a clear directional catalyst.

A year in the middle of the range

Over the trailing twelve months the SunSirs benchmark has traded between 96,583.33 and 99,866.67 yuan/t, with a median of 98,225 yuan/t and an average of 97,959.47 yuan/t. The current level sits in the lower-middle of that band: 2,033.34 yuan below the high and 1,250 yuan above the low.

In other words, the raw material that dominates VRFB electrolyte cost has moved less than 4% peak-to-trough over a full year — unusually tight for a metal with a heavy steel demand base.

International assessments are equally flat

Outside China, price series tell the same story. Vanadium.com quoted Chinese V2O5 at US$4.64/lb on 12 November 2026, unchanged, within a one-year range of roughly US$4.0–5.1/lb. European V2O5 flake 98% stood at US$5.43/lb as of 7 October, also unchanged. True Source Metals Hub listed a vanadium indicative price of US$4.60/lb on 12 November, referencing the Fastmarkets MB V2O5 flake CIF assessment as the market benchmark.

Why the pricing plumbing matters for VRFB buyers

There is no LME physical contract for vanadium. Electrolyte suppliers and project developers therefore price off assessment houses and trade publications rather than an exchange, and hedging options are limited.

SunSirs publishes its benchmark explicitly as a transaction guide, with a settlement formula in which the settlement price equals the benchmark multiplied by an adjustment coefficient K (capturing credit-period costs) plus a premium or discount C (capturing logistics, brand and regional spreads).

"Battery-grade vanadium pentoxide is in a weak adjustment phase," the 12 November SunSirs market note stated, with the benchmark at 97,666.67 yuan/t.

For VRFB procurement teams, a flat-to-soft V2O5 tape is mildly supportive. Electrolyte is a major capital cost line in a flow battery, and the volume required scales directly with storage duration — which is why the industry watches the 100,000-yuan level far more closely than the steel market does.

This article was assisted by AI analysis. Please refer to the original source for official information.