Battery metals developer Giyani Metals is positioning itself to be a sustainable, low-carbon producer of battery materials for the growing electric vehicle (EV) industry through the development of its K.Hill battery manganese project.

The company will focus on leveraging its position as one of the first movers in the industry.

K.Hill, in south-eastern Botswana, will be the first fully integrated battery metals project in the country, and one of the only mining projects in the country to go into full beneficiation, states Giyani Metals president and CEO Danny Keating.

The company’s focus at K.Hill is the integrated production of high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) – a critical lithium-ion battery precursor material.

The product will also be fully beneficiated in Botswana and shipped to international markets.

Further, with more than 90% of the global production capacity for HPMSM being currently restricted to China, K.Hill is planned to be one of few new non-Chinese producers, and one of the largest production facilities, globally.

A key element to this strategy is being a low carbon dioxide (CO2) HPMSM producer, enhancing positive impacts through environmental and social management, stresses Keating.

“An independent life-cycle assessment confirmed that our proprietary hydrometallurgical production process, which eliminates carbon-intensive calcining and electrowinning steps, gives K.Hill the potential to have one of the lowest carbon intensities globally. This carbon intensity is about 35% lower than average Chinese metal producers.”

K.Hill’s high-quality, low CO2 and sustainability credentials make Giyani’s HPMSM attractive to Tier-1 buyers in European and North American markets, owing to these markets being focused on responsibly-produced, non-Chinese battery materials, notes Keating.

While the company has not ruled out other markets to export its product in the future, Giyani will focus on the EV battery market owing to its compelling current demand, which is expected to increase.

Botswana Economic Contribution

Keating says that as K.Hill is moving into its operational phase, Giyani plans to recruit from within the nearby Kanye community and develop local, skilled workers.

He also affirms that Giyani’s commitment to directly and indirectly developing the local Botswana workforce will also support the growth of the country’s mining and manufacturing skills set.

Giyani’s other projects in Botswana are expected to contribute to the development of local infrastructure and provide economic benefits for the country, including transportation networks and water supply systems.

“Where possible, we have focused on the employment of local workers and contractors in the development of our projects. All our exploration programmes to date have been delivered by local specialists.”

Giyani plans to integrate with the K.Hill community and provide value for local stakeholders through investment opportunities, Keating points out.

The details of these plans are laid out in the company’s environmental impact statement (EIS), submitted to the Department for Environmental Affairs in March, and will be made public for review once approved.

Once concerns are addressed and the EIS has been approved, Giyani will be issued an environmental authorisation.

“At the heart of K.Hill will be a sophisticated downstream processing plant – developing specialist minerals processing knowledge will be key to our success and we are proud that this success might contribute to Botswana establishing itself as a battery materials hub,” he says.

Project Development, Investment Opportunities

The initial cost to fund the project is $281- million, but because of its location, potential social and economic benefits, and exposure to battery metals, the project is attractive to specialist mining finance institutions and commercial banks, as well as export credit groups and multilateral investors, says Keating.

Giyani plans to complete project construction in 2026, which will dovetail with commercial production of the forecast ramp-up of HPMSM demand from Tier-1 offtakers.

He states the company released a feasibility study in late 2022, which highlighted the strong economic fundamentals of K.Hill and low-capital intensity for an integrated battery metals project.

“We would also stress the remaining value upside available through the optimisation of the project, as well as expansion of the resource to include the K.Hill extension into inferred resource.”

He notes that Giyani is constructing a demonstration plant that, once operational, will allow for the qualification of HPMSM material by offtakers.

The commissioning of the demonstration plant will also provide a platform to validate Giyani’s process flowsheet, derisk K.Hill’s commercial development and facilitate offtake contracts with battery and original-equipment manufacturer customers.

Giyani will also release the results of additional resource development activities, with an updated mineral resource estimate for K.Hill and a maiden mineral resource estimate for Giyani’s Otse prospect, near K.Hill.

He adds that both of Giyani’s Otse and Lobatse prospects have the potential to contribute to operations, as both are within trucking distance of the proposed K.Hill plant location.

Both prospects also have the potential to extend the life and scale of K.Hill, which would enhance the value of the project.

“Our key long-term focus is on delivering the K.Hill project and establishing it as a significant, responsible producer of battery-grade manganese for the EV market. The company also aims to leverage the strong intellectual property it has developed in the creation of its low carbon hydrometallurgical process and scale up production in Africa and potentially further afield,” concludes Keating.