PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Automotive giant General Motors (GM) has accepted ASX-listed Element25’s (E25’s) feasibility study for its planned US-based manganese sulphate facility.
The acceptance of the feasibility study was a condition of a definitive agreement inked in June this year for the supply of battery-grade high-purity manganese sulphate for GM’s electric vehicle (EV) battery requirements.
Under the agreement, E25 could supply up to 32 500 t/y of manganese sulphate from its proposed battery grade high purity manganese sulfate monohydrate (HPMSM) plant, in Louisiana. GM would provide E25 with an $85-million loan to partially fund the construction of the $290-million project, which is scheduled to open in 2025.
“GM’s acceptance of the HPMSM feasibility study is an important milestone for the project and for our project financing activities for the proposed Louisiana facility,” said E25 MD Justin Brown.
“It is a key step in our journey to becoming a key supplier to the battery raw materials supply chain servicing the US EV markets.”
The remaining conditions to the GM agreement include the completion of product validation, securing the balance of the required project financing, finalising project permitting and executing the contracts in relation to the preferred plant site in Louisiana.
E25’s proposed HPMSM plant will have a 65 000 t/y capacity, which could expand to 130 000 t/y with the addition of a second train at an additional capital cost of $187-million. At full production, the project is estimated to have a net present value of $1.66-billion and an internal rate of return of 29%, with average yearly cash flows from the two-train operation estimated at $155-million.