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Element 25 executes letter of intent for transportation of manganese concentrate from Butcherbird

Last updated: 10:26 27 May 2021 AEST, First published: 10:21 27 May 2021 AEST

Element 25 Ltd -
Haulage for the maiden cargo will be undertaken using agreed terms and rates under the letter of intent

Element 25 Ltd (ASX:E25) has executed a letter of intent (LOI) with AK Evans Group Australia for the transportation of manganese concentrate from Butcherbird Manganese Project to Utah Point at Port Hedland.

The LOI covers initial transport arrangements and the parties are finalising a long-term commercial arrangement that will see the introduction of new quad road trains during the remainder of 2021.

AK Evans is a privately owned construction, civils, heavy and bulk haulage company founded in Port Hedland, with locations across Western Australia and has a strategic partnership with Kurtarra Pty Limited, an 100% Indigenous-owned earthmoving and services company.

They also have a longstanding sponsorship agreement with Beyond Blue, a well-known men’s mental health program.

“Important milestone”

Managing director Justin Brown said: “We are excited to be partnering with AK Evans with a view to having new dedicated road trains to transport our manganese to Port Hedland.

“We are also excited to know we can work with our commercial partners in delivering solutions to fulfil our vision of delivering Zero Carbon Manganese™ for the EV Battery revolution.

“This is another important milestone for the project and company, and we are excited to be heading for our first shipment of Butcherbird’s material to our offtake partners.”

Focus on multi-stage development strategy 

The project team will now turn its focus to the next stages of the multi-stage development strategy.

This includes a stage-2 expansion of the concentrate business followed by a stage-3 development to convert the concentrate material into high purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) for electric vehicle (EV) batteries to power the global transition away from fossil fuel-powered mobility.

Butcherbird is ideally placed to feed this potential demand, with advanced flowsheet development work undertaken in 2019 and 2020 confirming a simple, unique, ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure leach process for E25 ores.

Manganese is emerging as an increasingly important ingredient for EV batteries, with potential supply constraints for nickel and cobalt forcing battery manufacturers to look to high manganese cathodes to produce the vast amount of cathode material required by the EV industry in coming years.

Element 25 takes step forward in establishing US manganese refinery

Element 25 Ltd (ASX:E25, OTCQX:ELMTF) managing director Justin Brown joins Jonathan Jackson in the Proactive studio to talk about the progress being made in establishing a high-purity manganese sulphate (HPMSM) refinery in Louisiana, USA, as it looks to become a leader in ethically sourced...

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