Manganese X Energy Corp (TSX-V:MN, OTCQB:MNXXF) told investors it made significant progress in 2022 as it is “methodically fulfilling its mission to become the first publicly traded mining company in Canada and the US to commercialise high-purity EV compliant manganese.”
In a review of 2022 and a look ahead to 2023, the Montreal-based company highlighted the advancement of its Battery Hill manganese project located near Woodstock, New Brunswick.
"Experts are predicting that starting next year there will be a shortage of high-purity manganese,” said Manganese X CEO Martin Kepman in the statement.
“This shortage will continue and, by 2030, with electric vehicles gaining greater market share, high-purity manganese demand should increase 10-fold. This demand would represent a forecast deficit of needed production of high purity manganese exceeding supply by many times," he added.
READ: Manganese X Energy closes nearly $2.1M financing to advance Battery Hill project
Expanding on dynamics in the high-purity manganese market, Kepman said major international electric vehicle (EV) and cathode makers, as well as Canadian Federal/Provincial government funding agencies, are now making commitments in opening major multi-faceted EV/battery production facilities in both Ontario and Quebec to meet the need of high-purity manganese in battery chemistries.
"Manganese continues to be recognised as an integral mineral within the EV battery cathode chemistries,” Kepman added. “Manganese is very cost-effective as well as having the qualities that have the potential to improve density, capacity, rechargeability, safety and battery longevity to achieve the holy grail of 1,000 mile vehicle range. The company is poised to take advantage of this situation and intends to become a major supplier to the North American EV and back-up energy storage supply chain by its methodical progress towards commercial production.”
Highlights of 2022 activities:
- Positive Preliminary Economic Assessment for Battery Hill project with after-tax net present value of $486m and internal rate of return of 25%
- Capital costs (CAPEX) of $350 million; payback 2.8 years;
- 40-year mine production life and seven years of stockpile reclaim feed; and
- Low environmental impact.
- Filed a provisional patent for the processing and purification of manganese sulphate
- Purification process produces high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM);
- New modified process eliminates one of two major purification steps potentially creating important economic advantages for the process;
- All contaminant levels, including calcium and magnesium, are below 100 parts per million, a crucial threshold level for battery-grade HPMSM; and
- High purity final product contains no selenium, considered a toxic pollutant and yet utilized by some of the existing HPMSM producers worldwide to reduce their costs of production.
- Announced and commenced fall drill program; a key step to pre-feasibility study at Battery Hill
- A prefeasibility study drilling program commenced in December at wholly-owned Battery Hill project;
- Goal is to in-fill and expand the Measured and Indicated resources in preparation for the pre-feasibility study; and
- Program will include an estimated 35 NQ drillholes totaling approximately 4,000 metres.
- Commenced pilot plant for EV battery project
- HPMSM pilot plant at Kemetco Research Inc in Richmond, British Columbia
- Kemetco has now received the necessary 1,500-kilogram bulk sample from the Battery Hill manganese property; and
- Pilot plant is designed to demonstrate and validate, at pilot scale, Manganese X's innovative patent-pending process to produce HPMSM, EV-compliant materials suitable for cathode manufacturing.
2023 strategies and goals:
- Pilot plant and end-user verification
- Successfully complete pilot plant project managed by Kemetco Research Inc. in the first quarter 2023; and
- HPMSM samples from Battery Hill project will be tested and evaluated for EV cathode pre-approval qualification as a potential suppler for the North American supply chain.
- Demonstration plant
- Work towards financing and beginning construction of a larger capacity demonstration/processing plant in 2023 - in conjunction with the start of pre-feasibility study.
- Pre-feasibility program for advancement of Battery Hill deposit to commence in 3Q 2023
- Infill and resource expansion drilling to maximize the Measured and Indicated resources in 1Q 2023 and the completion of an updated mineral resource estimate in 1Q and 2Q; and
- Environmental, social/community and geotechnical studies to commence in 2Q.
- Partnerships and offtake agreements
- Continue negotiations with credible potential customers with a view to entering business partnerships or offtake contracts. Various potential customers have already contacted Manganese X expressing interest in its future HPMSM production.
- Disruptive Battery Corp.'s joint venture (JV) partner
- Wholly owned subsidiary DBC's JV partner Purebiotic Air Corp. to continue pursuing application for US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Certification of products. Upgrading of the patented HVAC unit disbursement is planned.
The company said it is well financed to achieve its 2023 program goals. In December it raised aggregate proceeds of $2.07 million from a non-brokered private placement of units.
Manganese X's mission is to advance its Battery Hill project into production, with the intent of supplying value-added materials to the lithium-ion battery and other alternative energy industries.
Located in New Brunswick, Battery Hill consists of 55 claims covering 1,228 hectares encompassing all or parts of five manganese-iron zones in the province.
The company is also striving to achieve new environment-friendly more efficient methodologies, while processing manganese at a lower competitive cost.
Contact the author at stephen.gunnion@proactiveinvestors.com