Name of the Project
K.Hill battery-grade manganese project.

Location
Botswana.

Project Owner/s
Giyani Metals Corporation.

Project Description
K.Hill will be one of the biggest high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) projects in the world.

HPMSM is a refined precursor material used in the production of cathode powders for lithium-ion batteries deployed in electric vehicles.

The feasibility study on the project proposes an integrated mining and processing operation for the on-site production of HPMSM from manganese oxide ore mined at K.Hill.

K.Hill will be a conventional openpit mine with a mine life of about 11 years.

The operation will include an HPMSM hydrometallurgical processing facility. The process plant will treat 200 000 t/y of run-of-mine ore from the openpit, and the plant will have a nameplate production capacity of up to 120 000 t/y of HPMSM crystals.

K.Hill is expected to recover 31 000 t/y of manganese oxide and produce 73 000 t/y of HPMSM.

Giyani also plans to integrate 4.5 MW of solar power into its operation.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value, at an 8% discount rate, of $603-million and an internal of return of 32%, with a payback period of 3.3 years from the start of processing.

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital expenditure of $281-million is estimated for a fully integrated battery raw materials project. This includes contingency of $32-million.

Planned Start/End Date
First commercial production is expected in the third quarter of 2025, with ramp-up expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2027.

Latest Developments
None stated.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
SRK Consulting (feasibility study); Mintek (metallurgical test work); and Tetra Tech (metallurgical test work programme).

Contact Details for Project Information
Giyani Metals Corporation, email info@giyanimetals.com.