Euro Manganese believes its Chvaletice manganese project in the Czech Republic should be awarded a strategic project status by the European Commission.

The Canada-based firm announced on Thursday the application for the designation under the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA). The European Commission is due to announce the first strategic projects in December.

“Achieving strategic project designation would strengthen our role in the EU’s raw materials value chain, enable access to government-backed funding, facilitate collaboration with EU institutions, and accelerate permitting,” explains ceo Matthew James. “Today’s announcement underscores our commitment to becoming the only integrated European producer of high-purity manganese for the battery supply chain.”

Under the CRMA regulation, battery-grade high-purity manganese is a strategic raw material, and manganese is a critical raw material, Kallanish notes.

The Chvaletice project is described as a “unique” waste-to-value recycling and remediation opportunity. It involves the reprocessing of old tailing from a decommissioned mine, rather than a mining project. Euro Manganese claims it is the only sizable resource of manganese in the EU.

If the status is granted, the project would likely benefit from diverse public and private financing options, as well as a streamlined permitting process. The latter would decrease the scheduling risk related to permitting, the company adds.

According to a 2022 feasibility study, Chvaletice could produce 100,000 tonnes/year of high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) and 15,000 t/y of high-purity electrolytic manganese metal (HPEMM). Initial production would demand $757 million in investment, unlocking a 25-year project life.

The company estimates the project could supply 20% of the European demand for high-purity manganese. It is also moving forward with a dissolution plant at Bécancour, Quebec, for potential localised supply to the North American EV market.

Earlier this month, Euro Manganese announced two potential offtake deals with US companies Wildcat Discovery Technologies and Blue Grass Chemical.