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Glossary | Manganese
What is Manganese?
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Manganese is the twelfth most abundant element in the Earth's crust, historically used by the steel industry however in recent years has become a critical mineral for lithium-ion batteries.
The strategic importance of manganese is increasing with the expansion of lithium-ion battery technologies. High-purity manganese sulphate has become a key precursor for cathode chemistries including nickel cobalt manganese (NCM), lithium manganese oxide (LMO), lithium nickel manganese oxide (LMNO), and lithium manganese iron phosphate (LMFP), which power electric vehicles (EVs) and battery energy storage systems (BESS).
Geologically, Manganese occurs in numerous mineral forms, notably:
Pyrolusite (manganese dioxide)
Rhodochrosite (manganese carbonate)
Polymetallic manganese nodules
These resources found across the ocean floor underpin global manganese supply for heavy industry and the energy transition.
How is manganese used in steel and batteries?
Historically, ~90% of mined manganese has been consumed by the steel sector, where it acts as a deoxidiser and alloying agent to improve hardness and durability. However, this landscape is evolving as manganese assumes a key role in next-generation lithium-ion batteries.
Within the cathode (the positive electrode), manganese is typically combined with nickel and cobalt to:
Improve thermal stability
Enhance operational safety
Lower material costs
Its versatility also supports emerging lithium manganese iron phosphate (LMFP) formulations, which aim to balance performance, cost and sustainability. These offer higher energy density than conventional LFP while avoiding the cobalt and nickel dependencies of NCM chemistries.
What challenges exist in producing battery-grade manganese?
Battery-grade manganese is challenging to produce. Standard refining methods produce EMM or EMD, which are not pure enough for battery cathodes.
Battery makers need ultra-high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) with more than 99.95% purity. This requires complex processing to remove impurities that can damage battery performance and lifespan.
Supply is also limited. China dominates HPMSM production, and only Japan, Kazakhstan, and Belgium have commercial-scale output outside China. As battery demand grows, expanding reliable, sustainable supply will be essential.
How manganese is used in lithium-ion batteries
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Manganese takes on a key role in next-generation battery chemistries within the cathode (the positive electrode), it is combined with nickel and cobalt to improve thermal stability, enhance operational safety, and reduce costs compared with high-nickel or cobalt-heavy chemistries.
Its versatility also enables emerging LMFP formulations that balance performance, cost, and sustainability, offering higher energy density than conventional LFP while avoiding the cobalt and nickel dependencies of NCM.
How is battery-grade manganese produced and supplied?
Battery-grade manganese, by contrast, follows a different value chain. Producing high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) suitable for lithium-ion cathodes requires advanced chemical processing rather than smelting.
Three main production routes exist:
Upgrading electrolytic manganese metal (EMM) via dissolution and multi-stage purification
Direct leaching of high-grade ore using controlled acid treatment and impurity removal to obtain a purified solution
Hydrometallurgical extraction from tailings or low-grade resources using selective purification and crystallisation
China currently dominates HPMSM supply, accounting for the majority of global output. Many Chinese refiners upgrade EMM feedstock sourced domestically or imported, mainly from South Africa into high-purity sulphate.
This process is energy-intensive, chemically complex and generates substantial waste, making environmental management an increasing concern.
Ex-China capacity remains limited. Notable projects include Mbombela in South Africa (Bright Resources Group) and Tampico in Mexico (Vibrantz Technologies), although both are still progressing towards commercial scale.
How is manganese used in battery chemistries?
Once refined, HPMSM is supplied to precursor and cathode manufacturers for use in lithium-ion chemistries. Manganese content varies widely depending on formulation - roughly 10%-60% in nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) cathodes, depending on ratios such as 811 or 532.
It is also a key component in lithium manganese oxide (LMO), used in power tools, buses, and certain electric vehicles (EVs), and in the emerging high-voltage, cobalt-free lithium nickel manganese oxide (LMNO) chemistry.
A typical EV using an NCM 622 battery contains ~5-8 kg of manganese. The shift towards higher-manganese formulations such as NCM 532, LMO, and LMNO is accelerating demand growth, transforming manganese from a traditional steel additive into a key material for the energy transition supply chain.
Manganese applications: where does it go?
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Manganese remains an essential industrial metal serving two distinct markets:
Traditional steelmaking
The rapidly expanding battery sector
At present, ~90% of all manganese mined globally is consumed by the steel industry, where it enhances strength, toughness, and wear resistance in structural steels, stainless steels, and high-strength alloys.
These metallurgical uses are mature and well established, showing only modest growth in line with global infrastructure development and manufacturing output. The maturity of the steel sector means that major changes in manganese demand will increasingly arise from new energy technologies rather than traditional metallurgy.
Why are batteries driving new manganese demand?
The next major growth driver lies in batteries. Electric vehicles (EVs) represent the main source of new demand, with lithium-ion chemistries, particularly nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) dominating the market. Within these cathodes, manganese acts as a structural and electrochemical component, improving safety and thermal stability while reducing dependence on high-cost cobalt.
While manganese-rich variants such as NCM 532 have gained attention for their cost and stability advantages, high and mid-nickel formulations such as NCM 811 and NCM 622 are expected to lead demand growth in the forecast period, with low-nickel chemistries' share set to decline.
How is manganese used in energy storage systems?
Beyond transport, manganese is gaining traction in stationary energy storage systems (ESS), where cost, safety, and durability are key priorities. Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) continues to dominate today, but newer manganese-based alternatives are emerging to deliver higher energy density and stronger performance.
Two chemistries stand out:
Lithium nickel manganese oxide (LMNO)
Lithium manganese iron phosphate (LMFP)
LNMO operates at higher voltage, eliminates cobalt, and uses ~30% more manganese than a typical NCM 811 cathode, offering potential for a step-change in demand if commercialised at scale.
LMFP builds on the established LFP platform by adding manganese to enhance both energy density and thermal stability while maintaining the safety and cost advantages that make LFP widely adopted.
What does the future hold for manganese demand?
While steel and other industrial sectors will remain the largest manganese consumers, batteries represent the fastest-growing end use. By 2035, demand from electric mobility and energy storage will have increased 2.5 times. Manganese is therefore evolving from a conventional alloying element into a cornerstone material for the clean energy economy.
Manganese prices: market dynamics
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How is steel-grade manganese priced?
Manganese pricing remains fragmented across its various end-uses and product forms. The steel sector, operates with long-established benchmarks and comparatively transparent pricing.
Steel-grade manganese ore, alloys, and electrolytic manganese metal (EMM) are traded through well-defined spot and contract markets, with prices largely influenced by Chinese steel production cycles and global infrastructure trends. Manganese ore containing ~44% Mn (Gabon origin) averaged $5.71/dmtu in 2025, depending on grade, freight, and logistics. These markets are relatively stable and predictable.
Why is battery-grade manganese pricing less transparent?
In contrast, pricing for battery-grade high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) remains opaque and is mostly negotiated bilaterally. Because HPMSM production involves complex chemical processing and stringent purity control, supply is concentrated among a small group of producers, most based in China.
While most transactions are negotiated bilaterally, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence publishes a price assessment for HPMSM 32% on an ex-works China basis to improve market transparency.
This concentration, combined with rapidly growing demand from electric vehicles (EVs) and battery energy storage systems (BESS), gives Chinese suppliers significant pricing influence. In 2025, HPMSM 32% averaged $765/t, though actual values vary widely according to purity specification, contract duration, delivery terms, and buyer relationships.
What factors drive manganese price volatility?
Several factors drive HPMSM price movements. Changes in Chinese production capacity whether expansions or temporary shutdowns can quickly affect global availability. Cathode production trends, particularly for nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) chemistries, directly shape demand for high-purity material, while fluctuations in cobalt prices can steer manufacturers toward higher-manganese formulations.
Western projects targeting HPMSM production in Europe and North America may, over time, diversify supply and reduce reliance on Chinese output, though commercial timelines remain uncertain. As the market develops, producers and price reporting agencies are beginning to establish dedicated HPMSM benchmarks to improve transparency and strengthen price discovery in this strategically important segment.
Manganese market outlook
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Global manganese demand is entering a new growth phase, driven by the rapid expansion of the lithium-ion battery industry. Battery applications consumed approximately 100,000t of manganese (metal equivalent) in 2025, a figure forecast to reach 450,000t by 2035.
Meeting this demand will require investment in high-purity manganese processing capacity rather than additional ore extraction, as feedstock availability is not the limiting factor. The real bottleneck lies in refining and upgrading capabilities to produce battery-grade high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM).
Can supply chains scale to meet rising demand?
Constructing HPMSM facilities demands significant capital, advanced purification technology, and rigorous environmental permitting. Chinese producers have moved quickly to expand capacity, consolidating their position as the global supply hub. By contrast, Western initiatives in Europe and North America remain at earlier stages of development and face considerable challenges in financing, permitting, and scaling operations.
This imbalance has prompted governments and industry groups across the US and Europe to prioritise manganese within strategic materials policy. The US and the EU classify manganese as critical to the clean energy transition and have aimed to stimulate domestic processing and supply diversification. However, reducing China's dominance in high-purity manganese will require sustained investment over more than a decade.
How could new battery technologies impact demand?
Market projections carry a significant degree of technological uncertainty. If lithium nickel manganese oxide (LMNO) cathodes achieve commercial success - eliminating cobalt, lowering costs, and operating at higher voltage - manganese demand could accelerate even further.
Likewise, lithium manganese iron phosphate (LMFP) is increasingly viable as a next-generation chemistry, offering improved energy density and thermal stability over conventional lithium iron phosphate (LFP), while maintaining cost and safety advantages.. Broad adoption would further increase manganese intensity across the cell market.
What risks could slow manganese demand growth?
Conversely, widespread deployment of alternative systems such as sodium ion or solid-state batteries could moderate demand growth by reducing reliance on nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) or other manganese-based designs.
Benchmark's forecasting models therefore account for multiple scenarios, reflecting both the material's strong potential in the energy transition and the interplay between technological innovation, geopolitical strategy, and industrial policy shaping the global manganese market.
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General FAQs
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Contact UsWhat is high-purity manganese sulfate?
What is high-purity manganese sulfate?
High-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) is a refined chemical compound used as a key precursor in lithium-ion battery cathode manufacturing. Unlike conventional manganese products for steelmaking, HPMSM must reach ultra-high purity levels - typically 99.95% or higher - to prevent trace metal contaminants such as iron or heavy metals from degrading cell performance or lifespan. Production involves leaching manganese ore or intermediate feedstock, followed by multiple stages of purification and crystallisation to achieve the extremely low impurity thresholds required by battery manufacturers.