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![Element 25 Limited](https://investingnews.com/media-library/element-25-limited.png?id=34855262&width=1200&height=799)
Element 25 SPP Investor Presentation May 2024
This presentation (Presentation) contains only a brief overview of Element 25 Limited and its associated entities (Element 25 or E25) and their respective activities and operations. The contents of this presentation, including matters relating to the geology of Element 25's projects, may rely on various assumptions and subjective interpretations which it is not possible to detail in this presentation and which have not been subject to any independent verification.
This presentation contains multiple forward-looking statements. Known and unknown risks and uncertainties, and factors outside of Element 25’s control, may cause the actual results, performance and achievements of Element 25 to differ materially from those expressed or implied in this presentation.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, Element 25 does not warrant the accuracy, currency or completeness of the information in this presentation, nor the future performance of Element 25, and will not be responsible for any loss or damage arising from the use of the information.
The information contained in this presentation is not a substitute for detailed investigation or analysis of any particular issue. Current and potential investors and shareholders should seek independent advice before making any investment decision in regard to Element 25 or its activities.
The information contained in this Presentation is not investment, tax, legal, accounting, financial or other advice and does not, and will not, form any part of any contract or commitment for the acquisition of new shares. It does not account for your particular needs and circumstances, including your investment objectives, financial situation, tax or other position. Any investment decision in relation to an equity raising or the Company should be made solely on the basis of your own independent enquiries.
A booklet in respect of the Share Purchase Plan (SPP) will be made available to eligible shareholders in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Germany following its lodgement with ASX (SPP Booklet). Any eligible shareholder in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong or Germany who wishes to participate in the SPP should carefully read and consider the SPP Booklet (in full) before deciding whether to apply for new shares under the SPP. Eligible shareholders who wish to apply for new shares under the SPP will need to apply in accordance with the instructions contained in the SPP Booklet and the application form.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Element 25 Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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Element 25 Limited
Overview
Element 25 (ASX:E25, OTCQX:ELMTF) is a manganese-focused company with 100 percent ownership of the largest onshore manganese deposit in Australia, which is currently producing high-quality manganese concentrate. The company’s Butcherbird Mine in Western Australia is currently producing around 365,000 tons per annum. The company is advancing towards 1 million tons (Mt) per annum by optimizing its engineering processes. Element 25 (E25) has set the pace by getting up and running quickly.
Element 25 has also moved quickly to progress its ambitions to be a globally significant producer of ethical high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) for supply to the fast growing EV battery raw material supply chains. The company has signed a binding agreement with Stellantis NV (NYSE:STLA) to supply battery-grade HPMSM from E25’s proposed USA-based HPMSM processing facility. Stellantis has further completed its first US$15-million equity investment in E25 in July 2023 towards the development of a battery-grade HPMSM facility in the USA.
Element 25 has also entered an off-take deal with General Motors (GM) to supply the car manufacturer up to 32,500 metric tons of manganese sulfate to support GMs annual production of more than 1 million electric vehicles in North America. Under this agreement, GM will provide an US$85-million loan to E25 to partially fund the construction of the new facility in Louisiana, USA, which will produce battery-grade manganese sulfate. Expected to be the first of its kind in the US, the facility will process manganese concentrate from E25’s mining operations in Western Australia to produce HPMSM.Manganese is Building Momentum
Sales of EVs have exceeded 10 million in 2022 with market analysts expecting the momentum to continue in 2023 and beyond. It’s clear that consumers and automakers are embracing EVs worldwide, with gigafactories springing up across the globe to support the EV transition. Yet, EVs require significant materials to support the increasing demand.
Manganese is essential in manufacturing the nickel-manganese-cobalt cathodes EVs require and is the cheapest and most abundant material available. Additionally, nickel and cobalt have significant supply constraints, while manganese does not. The relative abundance and high value in the use of manganese as a cathode material has prompted automakers such as Tesla, Volkswagen and Stellantis to turn to high-manganese cathodes to satisfy their supply chain requirements.
Manganese also has strong existing demand for usage in steel, aluminum products and specialty alloys. There is no substitute for the element in steel. Mining companies focusing on this vital element are uniquely positioned to serve both established and emerging industries.
The Future has Always Been Electric
Element 25 is committed to delivering on its strategy of producing battery grade HPMSM for EV batteries to power the global transition away from fossil-fuel-powered mobility.
The advancement of EV batteries requires a vast amount of cathode materials. Put simply, nickel and cobalt supplies simply cannot meet projected demand for New Energy Vehicle (NEV) growth.
By 2040 it is estimated that 58 percent of new vehicles will be EV or hybrid.
As demand continues to rise, EV battery makers globally are choosing to adopt manganese-rich cathode designs for safer, more cost-effective battery solutions and E25’s high-purity manganese strategy is ideally placed to feed these surging markets.
Advanced flowsheet development work undertaken in 2019 and 2020 has confirmed a simple, proprietary leach process for E25 ores which, when combined with offsets, will target the world’s first zero-carbon manganese for EV cathode manufacture. Flowsheet optimization for inclusion in upcoming feasibility studies is ongoing.
Strong ESG Credentials
Element 25 understands the importance of an excellent environmental, social and governance (ESG) rating for serving the EV market, as this rating directly reflects on the companies it supplies. The company is working towards producing zero-carbon, high-purity manganese by leveraging sustainable technologies at every step in its process through its Zero Carbon Manganese campaign. This campaign includes sustainable extraction, using renewable energy, low-carbon processing and carbon offsets. Element 25 has partnered with Circulor to provide real-time insights into its ESG status.
Element 25’s Butcherbird Mine has a Joint Ore Reserves Committee (JORC) compliant resource estimate indicating over 260 megatonnes of manganese ore. This significant deposit is Australia's largest onshore manganese deposit, with an estimated mine life of 42 years. The mine does not require blasting or dewatering, instead leveraging a simple mining and processing wash plant.
Importantly, Element 25’s board and management team has decades of experience across a range of key sectors including mining, legal expertise, mineral project development, corporate administration and operational excellence. The management team’s track record of success provides the company with a great platform to deliver on its planned milestones as E25 positions itself as a leading manganese player on the global stage.
Company Highlights
- 100-percent ownership of Australia's largest onshore manganese mine – the Butcherbird Manganese Deposit – comprising more than 260 million tons (Mt) of manganese ore in JORC resources.
- Long mine life of 42 years using only 20 percent of the global resource, significant potential to expand with further drilling.
- Currently producing high-quality manganese lump concentrate for the steel industry.
- Multi-staged expansion strategy to increase concentrate production and move into downstream processing to produce high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) as electric vehicle (EV) fuel for lithium-ion batteries.
- Expansion plans to increase ore production to 1 Mt per annum well advanced.
- Off-take and funding agreement with General Motors (GM) to supply the EV manufacturer up to 32,500 metric tons of HPMSM annually to support GM’s annual production of more than 1 million EVs in North America.
- GM to provide US$85 million in project finance for the HPMSM facility in Louisiana, USA.
- Offtake and funding agreement with global automaker Stellantis NV (NYSE/MTA/Euronext Paris:STLA) includes recently completed US$15-million equity investment to fund HPMSM short and medium term project execution costs.
- STLA is now Element 25’s largest shareholder with a 10.2-percent shareholding.
- STLA has committed to offtake for 15 percent of HPMSM production from the Louisiana facility.
- Element 25 is led by a management team with decades of experience in mineral project management, corporate administration and international law.
Key Projects
Butcherbird Manganese Project
Located in Western Australia, the Butcherbird Manganese Project is presently producing manganese concentrate for the steel industry. The mine has already reached production and is now optimizing its process to improve output. E25 is working towards producing high-quality HPMSM for use in new energy markets.
Project Highlights:
- Australia’s Largest Onshore Manganese Deposit: The Butcherbird Project has a JORC-compliant total resource estimate of 263 megatonnes of ore at 10 percent manganese. The deposit has an estimated mine life of 42 years and the potential to increase drilling in the future.
- Four-stage Growth Strategy: Element 25 has established a four-stage strategy as outlined below:
- Stage 1 (delivered): 365 ktpa
- Stage 2 (2023): 1 Mt per annum by optimizing engineering processes
- Stage 3: Produce sustainable high-purity manganese.
- Stage 4: High-purity manganese sulphate with zero carbon footprint
- Positive Feasibility Study: A feasibility study released in 2023 confirmed the technical and financial feasibility of producing HPMSM at a Louisiana location for sale to local and international offtake partners. Aside from indicating a net present value of US$1.66 million, the feasibility study also showed an environmental impact that is significantly lower than incumbent producers.
- Focusing on an excellent ESG Rating: Achieving and maintaining a great ESG rating is vital to serving the EV market. Element 25 has partnered with Circulor to provide real-time tracking and insights into its ESG rating throughout the entire operation.
Management Team
John Ribbons - Chairperson
John Ribbons is an accountant who has worked within the resources industry for over fifteen years in the capacity of company accountant, group financial controller or company secretary. Ribbons has extensive knowledge and experience with ASX-listed production and exploration companies. He has considerable site-based experience with operating mines and has also been involved with the listing of several exploration companies on the ASX. Ribbons has experience in capital raising, ASX and TSX compliance and regulatory requirements.
Justin Brown - Managing Director
Justin Brown is a geologist with over 20 years of experience in global mineral exploration and mining. He has been involved in the full spectrum of mineral exploration through to mining in a range of commodities. Brown has also held a number of board positions, including an executive role with Element 25 Limited since 2006. He has a strong track record of closing successful commercial transactions and brings a well-rounded set of skills to the management of the Company’s activities.
Sam Lancuba - Non-executive Director
Sam Lancuba is a chemical engineer with more than 40 years’ experience in the global fertilizer industry. Lancuba has worked in research and development, process engineering, manufacturing and management. Following 27 years at Incitec Pivot Limited, an ASX top 50 company, He has been providing expert consulting services for industry clients in Australia, New Zealand, USA, South America, Europe, India and China.
Fanie van Jaarsveld - Non-executive Director
Fanie van Jaarsveld is an experienced company director and has held numerous senior management and executive positions over a career spanning more than 40 years. With a demonstrated history of working in the mining and metals industry, van Jaarsveld is the managing director for OM Manganese which operates the Bootu Creek manganese mine in the Northern Territory and is highly skilled in mining, mineral processing and operational management. He has strong business development expertise and will be a key asset in achieving the company’s production targets at the current manganese operation as well as helping to guide the planning and implementation of the company's expanded production plans and the downstream production of HPMSM. van Jaarsveld has an ND in analytical chemistry from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology - Cape Town.
Sias Jordaan - VP Battery Minerals & Marketing Manager
Sias Jordaan has been involved in the stainless steel production and raw material supply markets as well as rare metals markets for over 25 years. Jordaan held various roles within BHP Billiton in South Africa, The Netherlands and Western Australia in the stainless steel, ferrochrome and nickel divisions. As a result, he has gained extensive experience in the procurement, marketing and logistics of various steel-making metals. Jordaan was also involved in the management team that commissioned the Ravensthorpe Nickel Plant. More recently he performed study work for Arafura Resources Ltd (2011-2015), specifically the Nolans Rare Earths Project located in the Northern Territory, including the study into a suitable offshore separation facility and the establishment of a Letter of Intent with a Korean-based partner. Jordaan has an accounting degree and is qualified as a chartered accountant in South Africa. He also holds a diploma in international logistics from the University of Navarra and is a licensed real estate and business agent in Western Australia.
Neil Graham - VP Battery Minerals & Development Manager
Neil Graham is a chartered chemical engineer with more than 30 years of international experience in the chemical and resources industries. His experience in greenfield and brownfield project development, driving operational change and delivering performance turnarounds has been gained in various managing director/general manager roles, across a breadth of organizations and locations. These roles have been European, Asian and Australian based with multi-nationals, such as Huntsman and Orica, and West Australian resources businesses.
Clint Moxham – General Manager Operations
Clint Moxham has joined the team as general manager operations. Moxham’s key responsibilities include statutory and operational oversight of the safe operation of the Butcherbird Manganese Mine, implementation and oversight of improved operational processes and continued improvement in plant preventative maintenance targeting improved run times to increase production. He is a vision-driven miner with a track record of delivering greenfield and start-up operations. Moxham has a reputation of safe operations with a career-long record of team management and mining operations success.
Ian Huitson - Study Manager
Ian Huitson is a mining executive with 33 years’ experience in executive, operational and technical roles in the manganese, chromite, gold, silver and nickel industries in Australia, Africa and Asia. Huitson has extensive manganese experience through roles as study manager at Shaw River Manganese (2012-2014), chief operating officer at Auvex Resources (2009-2011), group mining engineer at Consolidated Minerals Ltd (2005-2007) and resident manager at Consolidated Minerals’ Woodie Woodie mine site (1999-2005). In addition to the above, Huitson has executive management experience including roles as operations director and managing director at Monarch Gold Mining Company (2007-2009). Prior to this, he had 15 years’ experience as a mining engineer with WMC Resources, Dominion Mining/Plutonic Resources and the Walhalla Mining Company. He has a degree in mining engineering and is a fellow of the AusIMM. Huitson has completed multiple scoping and pre-feasibility studies throughout his career.
Goldfields Exploration Update
Miramar Resources Limited (ASX:M2R, “Miramar” or “the Company”) is pleased to provide an update on gold exploration activities within the Company’s strategic Eastern Goldfields project portfolio.
- RC drill hole completed under high-grade Blackfriars gold prospect (Gidji JV)
- New Exploration Licence application expands land position along Randall Fault
The Blackfriars Target is located at the contact between the Black Flag Group and mafic and ultramafic rocks within the Boorara Shear Zone and shares the same geological setting as the >2 million ounce Paddington gold deposit along strike to the north.
Given the apparent similarities to Paddington, Blackfriars is a high priority target within the Gidji JV Project.
The Blackfriars aircore gold footprint stretches for at least 1 kilometre at greater than 1g/t Au and remains open along strike to the northwest on the other side of the Goldfields Highway.
The recent RC hole, GJRC028, tested beneath the high-grade result in aircore hole GJAC627, which ended in black shale with quartz-carbonate veining and sulphides and returned a result of 1m @ 11.8g/t Au and 6g/t Ag (46-47m EOH) (see ASX Release dated 8 April 2022).
GJRC028 intersected black shale and silicified dolerite with sulphide mineralisation and quartz stringers but was terminated at 130m due to difficult drilling conditions associated with running sands in the overlying Gidji Paleochannel.
Miramar’s Executive Chairman, Mr Allan Kelly, said the Gidji JV Project had the potential to host a new gold camp with multiple deposits but was significantly underexplored.
“Gidji is in a fantastic location within a major mineralised structure, between two major gold camps, Kalgoorlie and Paddington,” Mr Kelly said.
“Despite this, and the record gold price, the Project has had minimal effective historic exploration, and virtually no deep drilling, as evidenced by our ability to discover high-grade bedrock gold mineralisation with shallow aircore drilling only 150 metres from a major highway,” he said.
Samples from the RC hole have been sent for analysis and further aircore and RC drilling is planned.
The Company is also working towards obtaining approvals for drilling of other high-priority targets at Gidji including:
- Marylebone – multiple high grade gold results including GJAC562 (6m @ 2.2g/t Au and up to 28g/t Ag) associated with massive sulphide mineralisation in black shale
- Roaster – 2m @ 3.3g/t Au in GJAC577 – open along strike
- Eight-mile – potential northern extension of Northern Star Resources Limited’s 300,000-ounce “Runway/8 Mile Dam” deposit
- The Jog – gravity anomaly and magnetic depletion within jog in the Boorara Shear Zone
New Application
The Company has also further expanded its strategic Eastern Goldfields tenement portfolio with a new Exploration Licence Application south of the recently acquired Lake Yindarlgooda Project (Figure 2).
The “Venetian” Target, E25/649, covers a package of mafic rocks immediately adjacent to the Randall Fault and contains historic RAB drill holes with anomalous gold results within and along strike of E25/649.
Miramar will compile all historical data and work towards grant of the tenement.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Miramar Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Element 25 Extends Share Purchase Plan
Element 25 Limited (E25 or Company) (ASX: E25; OTCQX: ELMTF) advises that the closing date for the current Share Purchase Plan (SPP)1 will be extended until 5:00pm, Wednesday, 26 June 2024 Australian Western Standard Time (AWST).
- Extension of Element 25 Share Purchase Plan with revised closing date, Wednesday, 26 June 2024 at 5:00pm AWST.
- Funds raised from the Share Purchase Plan will enable the Company to progress its current prime projects at the Butcherbird mine site (located in the southern Pilbara region of Western Australia), as part of the Butcherbird Stage 2 Expansion Project, as well as continuing to support the high purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) project to be built in Louisiana, USA in partnership with General Motors LLC and Stellantis NV.
- Shareholders can request an electronic copy of their personalised Share Purchase Plan form via Element 25’s share registry, Automic Group.
Under the SPP, the Company will offer eligible shareholders, who were registered shareholders as at 5:00pm (AWST) on Monday, 20 May 2024 (Record Date) the opportunity to apply for up to $30,000 of new fully paid ordinary shares (New Shares). New Shares will be issued at $0.27 per share, equivalent to a 14% discount to the volume weighted average price (VWAP) of Element 25 shares over the last five trading days prior to the announcement of the SPP1.
A revised indicative timetable with the new closing date for the SPP is as follows:
REVISED SPP TIMETABLE
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Element 25 Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
E25 Investigates Butcherbird Restart Options Amid Record High Manganese Ore Prices
Element 25 Limited (E25 or Company) (ASX: E25; OTCQX: ELMTF) is pleased to provide an update on activities to investigate the potential to recommence operations at the Company’s 100%-owned Butcherbird Manganese Project in Western Australia (Butcherbird) to take advantage of recent upward movement in manganese ore prices caused by market factors including disruptions at South 32 Limited’s Groote Eylandt (GEMCO) operations1. This may include the sale of stockpiles and or recommencing processing of run-of mine (ROM) stockpiles.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Manganese ore prices rise to four-year highs to U$8.30/dmtu for 44% cif Tianjin, China1.
- E25 operations team and Board investigating opportunities to process ROM and low-grade stockpiles at Butcherbird.
- If operationally feasible, ore production at current prices presents an opportunity to generate short-term cash flow.
GEMCO’s Groote Eylandt Mine typically produces more than 6M tonnes of high-grade manganese ore a year, and damage to the mine’s haul road and ship loading facilities from Tropical Cyclone Megan in March 2024 has resulted in a forecast supply disruption of up to twelve months. GEMCO is currently targeting a production restart in Q3 2025.2
Figure 1: Manganese ore index – Yuan/dmtu Tianjin Port1. Butcherbird Expansion Feasibility Study parameters also shown3.
The loss of GEMCO supply coupled with political instability in South Africa has resulted in a significant and rapid increase in manganese ore prices due to increased competition for available supply. This presents an opportunity to potentially sell stockpiles that are of a lower grade, preventing their previous sale at lower prices but which may be profitable to ship now.
Additionally, ROM stockpiles that have been mined but not yet processed are available at site. The cost structure of a restart is not currently defined, however E25’s Board recognises the potential opportunity of selling existing product stockpiles and/or recommencing the processing of ROM stockpiles at Butcherbird to produce material for sale at current elevated prices. If viable, these activities will occur in parallel with and will not impact the expansion plans for the Butcherbird Project. E25 suspended Butcherbird production in early 2024 during a period of depressed ore prices while readying for an upgrade of facilities to achieve a nominal 1.1Mpta manganese concentrate production, as outlined in a Feasibility Study completed on January 20243.
The expansion of Butcherbird production aligns with E25’s strategy to produce high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) at a facility planned to be built in Louisiana, USA, in partnership with global automakers General Motors LLC and Stellantis NV4.
Element 25 Managing Director Justin Brown said:
“A potential restart of Butcherbird’s processing operations at these increased manganese ore prices on a de-risked basis may be an ideal opportunity to monetise existing stockpiles and generate short-term cashflow. E25 looks forward to updating the market further as these investigations are completed and we will continue to monitor ore markets in the meantime to optimise any potential opportunities that may arise.”
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Element 25 Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Manganese in Australia (Updated 2024)
Manganese is a hard, silvery metal with many uses in the world driving demand today. Manganese mines in Australia are working to meet that demand.
Despite being brittle, it adds strength and wear-resistance to metals like iron. It can be used to make glass and ceramics, and manganese sulphate is even used as a fungicide. Manganese is also an essential mineral in our diets, and is found in bones as well as organs like the kidneys, liver and brain.
But most substantially, manganese is used in the Australian and global industrial metals sector. Right now, about 85 to 90 percent of manganese demand comes from the steelmaking sector, including ironmaking.
Manganese in Australia: Battery market applications
While manganese is most commonly used in the steel and construction industries, the rechargeable battery sector is the second biggest demand sector of manganese. Nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) batteries are one of the most commonly used types of lithium-ion battery in hybrids and electric vehicles (EVs) today, as they have a have a high cycling rate, high capacity and high power, as well as a low self heating rate. Lithium-manganese-iron-phosphate (LMFP) batteries are also growing in popularity as they are more affordable than NMC batteries while bringing the energy density benefits of manganese to the lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) formula.
Much of the world is slated to move toward EVs and hybrid cars, which may lead to a significant rise in demand (and prices) for production from manganese mines in Australia. Additionally, support for electrification and critical metals from many Western governments will be another factor driving their adoption. Not to mention China, which is currently one of the biggest suppliers and buyers of manganese, promises to phase out gas-burning cars entirely by 2035.
Manganese in Australia: Outlook for 2024
Manganese prices may be heavily driven by the steel sector, but it is the EV battery industry that has investors excited about manganese’s future.
In fact, demand for manganese sulphate is expected to double in the next 10 years thanks to the lithium-ion battery market. Though the steel sector will still be the biggest consumer of manganese, the battery industry is expected to impact the manganese supply chain.
While this industry is likely the fastest-growing player in the manganese production market, there are other industries to consider. For instance, the micronutrient market, which includes high-purity manganese, is expected to reach a market size of US$9.03 billion by 2032 compared to 2023's US$4.87 billion.
As mentioned, the alloy demand in the steel sector is huge. The manganese alloy industry was valued at US$20.61 billion in 2023, and it is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.11 percent to reach US$29.21 billion in 2030, according to Maximize Market Research. This growth will be driven by increasing demand from both the steel industry and EV market.
Still, despite this increasing demand, manganese prices have been volatile over the last few years. Looking at the overall market for manganese in 2024, supply and demand should be broadly in balance, although there may be pinch points during the year, according to analysts at Project Blue.
“We expect ore prices to remain under pressure moving into 2024 due to the uncertainty facing the Chinese steel and construction market,” they wrote. The firm sees Chinese domestic demand supporting higher ore and alloy prices in the short term, and a potential global economic recovery in 2024 returning prices to a cost-driven level in the medium term.
“Thereafter, our price forecast is more driven by fundamentals and the need for new capacity to be developed,” the analysts added. “We expect prices in China to rise in the second half of the decade.”
Manganese mines in Australia
South Africa, Gabon and Australia are the world’s largest producers of manganese, and combined they hold about 61 percent of global reserves.
Australia is the third largest producer of manganese, putting out about 3 million tonnes per year. These manganese exports bring around AU$2 billion to the country every year. Although Australia has a large role in the global manganese market, production of the metal in Australia is relatively recent; it wasn’t mined there until 1965.
Australia's key manganese ore mines are Woodie Woodie, Groote Eylandt and Bootu Creek. Woodie Woodie is located in Western Australia and is operated by privately owned Consolidated Minerals. Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory is operated by the Groote Eylandt Mining Company (GEMCO), a joint venture 60 percent owned by South32 (ASX:S32,LSE:S32,OTC Pink:SHTLF) and 40 percent owned by Anglo American (LSE:AAL,OTCQX:AAUKF). Also in the Northern Territory, Bootu Creek is owned by OM Holdings (ASX:OMH,OTCQX:OMHI) and has been on care and maintenance since January 2022.
South32 and Anglo American are both significant companies in the manganese space, with operations in top producer South Africa and other countries.
The Australian manganese market has faced a few ups and downs over the years. Most recently, operations at Groote Eylandt were suspended in mid-March 2024 following the destruction caused by tropical cyclone Megan making landfall in Australia’s Northern Territory.
The storm's impact on critical infrastructure at South32's manganese site included the wharf from which the company shipped its manganese ore as well as a haulage bridge that connected mining areas to processing facilities. South32's management is looking to January to March 2025 for the full resumption of activities at Groote Eylandt.
Australian manganese projects and plants
In terms of advanced-stage manganese projects under development in Australia, Black Canyon (ASX:BCA) holds a substantial land package in Western Australia including across the Balfour manganese field and the Oakover Basin. The company’s global mineral resource across the Balfour manganese field totals 314 million tonnes at 10.5 percent manganese for contained resources of 33.1 million tonnes of manganese.
During 2023 flowsheet testing at its Balfour manganese field project, Black Canyon produced its first batch of battery-grade high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) from manganese oxide samples taken from the KR1 deposit at Balfour. HPMSM is an important component of lithium-ion battery cathodes. Black Canyon is working to establishing a battery-grade manganese plant in Australia with a large-scale HPMSM pilot project to begin this year.
Other manganese companies with advanced development projects in Western Australia include Element 25 (ASX:E25) and Firebird Metals (ASX:FRB).
Element 25 is in the midst of advancing on a stage 2 expansion project at its wholly owned Butcherbird manganese operation to bring production up to approximately 1.1 million tonnes per year of high silica manganese ore. The company is working in partnership with General Motors (NYSE:GM) and Stellantis (NYSE:STLA) to construct a battery-grade HPMSM refinery in Louisiana, US, to produce up to 135,000 tonnes per year of high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate for the US electric vehicle market using material recovered at Butcherbird.
Firebird Metals’ Oakover high-purity manganese project hosts a mineral resource estimate of 172 million tonnes at 9.9 percent manganese and an indicated resource of 105.8 million tonnes at 10.1 percent manganese. According to a recent scoping study, the site could host production of 1.2 million tonnes per year of manganese concentrate with an 18 year mine life.
Firebird is also integrating a downstream processing facility in China to produce battery-grade high-purity manganese sulphate for the LMFP battery market. In late May 2024, the company announced it has received the safety permit for Stage 1 of its China-based manganese sulphate plant in China. Stage 1 operations are slated to begin in late 2025 and will be fed with third party manganese, while Stage 2 is planned to be fed with manganese from Oakover.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Australia for real-time updates!
This is an updated version of an article first published by the Investing News Network in 2022.
Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: Firebird Metals and Element 25 are clients of the Investing News Network. This article is not paid-for content.
Top 5 Manganese Reserves by Country (Updated 2024)
Manganese, a key ingredient for the steel market, is also seeing growth in demand from the electric vehicle battery sector, particularly when it comes to high-purity manganese chemical products.
Manganese investors are often interested to hear which countries produce the most of the metal. After all, if a nation is producing a lot of manganese, many companies are likely operating there — and investment opportunities may thus be available. However, what investors sometimes fail to consider is manganese reserves, or how much economically mineable manganese a country holds, and what companies are working to bring those reserves into production.
CPM Group told the Investing News Network that there are about 60 development-stage manganese ferroalloy projects scheduled to start production by 2027. If all of these new projects in the pipeline are brought online, the impact on the global market would be about a 6 percent increase in manganese ferroalloy production capacity.
With that in mind, here’s an overview of the five countries with the highest manganese reserves. Data for this list comes from the US Geological Survey's latest report on manganese.
1. South Africa
Manganese reserves: 600 million MT
At 600 million metric tons (MT), South Africa holds the highest manganese reserves in the world by a long shot. The nation is also the world's top producer of the metal, with 2023 output of 7.2 million MT.
South32 (ASX:S32,LSE:S32,OTC Pink:SHTLF) is a major presence in the South African manganese space. Its South Africa Manganese operation is located in the manganese-rich Kalahari Basin, and consists of the open-pit Mamatwan mine, the underground Wessels mine and the Metalloys manganese alloy smelter.
Another ASX-listed manganese miner, Jupiter Mines (ASX:JMS,OTC Pink:JMXXF) is also operating in the area at its Tshipi Borwa mine, considered the largest manganese mine in country and one of the largest in the world.
2. China
Manganese reserves: 280 million MT
The country with the next highest manganese reserves is China at 280 million MT. The Asian nation is also the fourth largest producer of manganese ore, the largest producer of refined manganese and the largest consumer of the metal. Unsurprisingly, China's economy and government regulations have an outsized impact on the global manganese market.
In late 2023, new manganese deposits were discovered in the southeast province of Jiangxi during government-led exploration work. This is in addition to the manganese deposits discovered in the southwest province of Guizhou in 2017. These discoveries have yet to be accounted for in estimates from the US Geological Survey.
3. Brazil
Manganese reserves: 270 million MT
Brazil hosts a total of 270 million MT of manganese reserves as of 2023. The country produced 620,000 MT of the metal in 2023, making it the seventh-largest manganese-producing country.
Buritirama Mining, a subsidiary of Grupo Buritipar, is Brazil's leading producer of the metal. Last year, the company invested US$200 million to expand operations at its Para state mine. Major miner Vale (NYSE:VALE), previously the largest manganese miner in the country, offloaded its Brazilian manganese and iron ore assets to J&F Investimentos in 2022. Going forward, J&F has said it plans to invest more than US$1 billion in increasing the iron ore and manganese output from the mines it purchased from Vale.
4. Ukraine
Manganese reserves: 140 million MT
Ukraine produces much less manganese than South Africa, but its reserves of the metal are quite high — it put out 320,000 MT of manganese in 2023 and its reserves stand at 140 million MT. About one-third of its total reserves are hosted in the country's mineral-rich Nikopol Basin, home to Europe's largest manganese ore deposit.
Russia's war against Ukraine has curbed operations in many sectors of its economy, including its manganese production. In late 2023, increased shelling led Marganets Mining to suspend operations at the Nikopol ferroalloy plant. In addition, high electricity costs and low prices for manganese prompted another manganese producer, Pokrovsky GOK, to suspend operations at its manganese mine and plant.
5. Australia
Manganese reserves: 110 million MT
At 110 million MT, Australia holds the fifth highest manganese reserves in the world. The nation is also the world's third largest producer of the metal. In 2023, Australia's manganese output came in at 3.3 million MT.
Australia’s largest manganese ore producer is Groote Eylandt, a 60/40 joint venture between South32 and Anglo American (LSE:AAL,OTCQX:AAUKF) in the nation's Northern Territory. In mid-March, operations at Groote Eylandt were negatively impacted by tropical cyclone Meghan — the second strongest cyclone to hit the area in the past two decades.
The storm damaged critical infrastructure at the site, including a haulage bridge between the mine and processing facilities, as well as the wharf from which manganese ore is shipped. South32 is currently conducting engineering studies to determine a schedule and capital costs to make the repairs needed to restore operations at Groote Eylandt.
More manganese reserves by country
With total global manganese reserves sitting at 1.9 billion MT, many other countries also hold significant reserves of the battery metal. Here’s a quick look at where other nations stand:
6. Gabon — 61 million MT
7. India — 34 million MT
8. Ghana — 13 million MT
9. Kazakhstan — 5 million MT
10. Mexico — 5 million MT
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time news updates.
Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Element 25 Share Purchase Plan Opens
Element 25 Limited (E25 or Company) (ASX: E25; OTCQX: ELMTF) is pleased to announce the opening of the E25 Share Purchase Plan (SPP) Offer.
The Company announced on 21 May 2024 it would be undertaking a SPP1. The SPP is now open to eligible Element 25 shareholders, being shareholders who had a registered address in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong or Germany on Element 25’s register on the Record Date (5.00pm Australian Western Standard Time on Monday, 20 May 2024) (Record Date) to apply for up to A$30,000 of new fully paid ordinary shares in Element 25 (SPP Shares) without brokerage, commission or transaction costs, subject to the terms and conditions that will be set out in the SPP Booklet.
The SPP Shares will be issued at $0.27 per share (Offer Price), representing a 14 per cent discount to the volume weighted average price (VWAP) of Element 25 shares over the last five trading days prior to the Company announcing the SPP, rounded to the nearest whole cent.
The SPP is offered to Eligible Shareholders who were registered as a holder of existing Element 25 shares on the Record Date. Element 25 intends to raise up to A$5 million under the SPP and retains discretion over the allocation of shares per investor. Eligible Shareholders are offered the opportunity to subscribe for a maximum of A$30,000 worth of SPP Shares at the Offer Price.
The term and conditions of the SPP are set out in the SPP Booklet which will be lodged with the ASX today, Monday, 27 May 2024. The SPP Booklet will be available today via the ASX or Element 25 websites or by containing the Company Registry, Automic Group. Eligible Shareholders will also be provided a letter from the Company along with a SPP application form. This letter and application form will be distributed by Element 25’s Registry, Automic Group. Eligible shareholders can obtain information of the SPP within the SPP Booklet and through information provided to Eligible Shareholders. All SPP releases (Letter, Applications Form, SPP Booklet and SPP Annoucements) contain important information about the SPP. Eligible Shareholders are to carefully read this information in full and consider this information before deciding whether to participate in the voluntary SPP and apply for any SPP Shares.
The SPP is not underwritten.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Element 25 Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Element 25 Announces Share Purchase Plan
Element 25 Limited (E25 or Company) (ASX: E25; OTCQX: ELMTF) will offer eligible shareholders the opportunity to participate in a non-underwritten share purchase plan (SPP), targeting to raise $5 million (before costs).
Under the SPP, eligible Element 25 shareholders, being shareholders who had a registered address in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong or Germany on Element 25’s register on the Record Date (5.00pm Australian Western Standard Time on Monday, 20 May 2024), will have the opportunity to apply for up to $30,000 of New Shares free of any brokerage, commission or transaction costs, subject to the terms and conditions that will be set out in the SPP Booklet to be despatched to eligible shareholders in due course. The SPP will be priced at $0.27 which represents a 14 per cent discount to the volume weighted average price (VWAP) of Element 25 shares over the last five trading days prior to this announcement, rounded to the nearest whole cent.
In January 2024, the Company announced that it had completed a Feasibility Study (Study) to investigate the potential to expand the production of manganese concentrate at the Company’s 100% owned Butcherbird Project (Project), located in the southern Pilbara region of Western Australia1. The Study demonstrated strong economics with robust economic returns and rapid capital payback. Expansion of the processing facility at Butcherbird aligns with Element 25’s strategy for its planned battery grade high purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) project to be built in Louisiana, USA in partnership with General Motors LLC and Stellantis NV2.
Funds raised from the SPP will enable the Company to progress its current prime projects at the Butcherbird mine site (located in the southern Pilbara region of Western Australia), as part of the Butcherbird Stage 2 Expansion Project, as well as continuing to support the high purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) project to be built in Louisiana, USA in partnership with General Motors LLC and Stellantis NV.
Butcherbird Stage 2 expansion activities include initial engineering, procurement and project management activities prior to the completion of project financing and final investment decision (FID).
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Element 25 Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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