Euro Manganese Inc. (TSX-V / ASX: EMN), a Vancouver-based battery materials company, has announced plans to restart its pilot plant for the production of high-purity manganese samples for prospective customers, primarily in Europe.
The pilot plant, which in 2018 produced ultra-high-purity manganese samples as part of the project’s PEA metallurgical test work programme, will be refurbished and restarted to prepare an initial batch of about 50 kg of high-purity electrolytic manganese metal and 150 kg of high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate. These product samples will be used by prospective customers for supply chain qualification, which involves the testing and evaluation of battery raw materials prior to approval for use by cathode, battery and electric vehicle manufacturers.
A demonstration plant (DP) is currently being constructed for delivery and installation at the project site later this year. The DP, a seven-times scale-up of the pilot plant, will recycle tailings material to produce larger samples of battery-grade manganese products. The pilot plant and DP will use the same process proposed for the full-scale commercial plant, targeted for production in late 2024/early 2025.
Euro Manganese CEO Marco Romero said: “With the restart of our pilot plant, we will be able to move more quickly on delivering finished-product samples, and to follow on in early 2022 with larger samples from our Demonstration Plant.”
Demand for sustainably produced manganese is picking up quickly
Demand for sustainably-produced, battery-grade manganese is increasing rapidly. As Romero explains: “There simply isn’t enough production capacity in the world to meet it today. New producers need to come on stream soon and undergo rigorous supply chain qualification of their products. The restart of our pilot plant will help us better service several prospective customers’ near-term objectives to pre-qualify new producers like us.”
Changsha Research Institute for Mining and Metallurgy (CRIMM), the original operators of the pilot plant, have been tasked to restart the facility, with a target of delivering product samples in the fourth quarter of 2021. CRIMM is also the lead contractor for the demonstration plant.
Euro Manganese says it is continuing to make solid progress on the definitive feasibility study, which is targeted for completion in the first quarter of 2022. So far, the study is on schedule and on budget, with about half of physical work done (as at the end of April 2021). The study is expected to provide the design, cost and scheduling details needed to arrive at a final investment decision and secure full financing for the project.
Euro Manganese is mainly focused on advancing the development of the Chvaletice Manganese Project, in which it holds a 100% interest. The proposed project entails re-processing a significant manganese deposit hosted in tailings from a decommissioned mine, located 90 km east of Prague in the Czech Republic. The project has earned support from local and regional stakeholders, in part because Euro Managanese aims to eliminate the longstanding source of water pollution from the old mine and restore the site back to a more natural state.
Well-positioned to serve the demands of the automotive industry
Euro Manganese’s location in the Czech Republic is crucial to its goal of becoming a leading, competitive and environmentally superior primary producer of ultra-high-purity manganese products in the heart of Europe, and strategically situated to supply the lithium-ion battery industry, as well as other high-technology applications for automotive and other manufacturers using next generation batteries.
Separately, Euro Manganese has also announced its common shares have started trading on the US-based OTCQX Best Market (OTCQX), under the symbol EUMNF. Euro Manganese has joined the OTCQX market in response to growing US investor interest in its Chvaletice Manganese Project. The OTCQX is the highest market tier operated by the OTC Markets Group Inc, on which approximately 11,000 US and global securities trade. Euro Manganese shares will continue to trade on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) and Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) under the symbol EMN, and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol EO6.
