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Manganese developer Giyani Metals (TSXV: EMM) says its demonstration plant in Johannesburg, South Africa, has moved into the commissioning phase and is tracking towards first production of battery-grade metal this quarter.
The demo plant represents a smaller-scale, direct copy of the company’s proposed commercial plant in Botswana, where it is developing the K.Hill project that is estimated to contain over 2.2 million tonnes of manganese oxide resources.
A preliminary economic assessment last year gave the K.Hill project a base case post-tax net present value (discounted at 8%) of $984 million and an internal rate of return of 29%. Over a projected 57-year life, the project is expected to supply over 3.5 million tonnes of high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) to the electric vehicle battery industry.
Through the demo plant, Giyani is looking to better understand how the proposed commercial plant in southern Botswana will respond in advance of commissioning and ramp-up of that facility, which is planned for 2027 and is expected to be built next to its manganese oxide ore source.
The demo plant, says Giyani, will also enable further optimization of the engineering design and flowsheet to reduce operating costs and carbon profiles, in parallel with the definitive feasibility study that is underway and expected to be completed in 2025.
Once construction is completed, the facility will be the largest HPMSM demo plant globally, the company says. Production from the plant is estimated to be 600 kg per day, and the HPMSM material will be provided to offtakers for testing and qualification.
“The superiority of the demo plant in kind and size establishes a strong foundation for Giyani to engage with potential offtake partners and offers Giyani many advantages that would not be available with other smaller or non-continuous facilities,” Giyani CEO Charles FitzRoy said.
“In particular, the continuous process flow of the demo plant will allow the team to target steady-state operations over extended periods, consequently proving Giyani’s ability to produce consistent battery-grade manganese and satisfy offtake requirements,” he added.
“Similarly, continuous operation at pre-commercial scale provides critical information for understanding how the commercial plant will respond, significantly de-risking the project.”
