Key points
- Initial bench-scale testing recovered over 90% of manganese, nickel, cobalt, and copper from polymetallic nodules using Green Manganese’s proprietary hydrometallurgical platform.
- The single integrated process replaces conventional multi-stage pyrometallurgical smelting, bypassing Submerged Arc Furnaces, electrolysis, and multi-phase converting.
- Green Manganese says the process consumes up to 5 times less energy than conventional flowsheets.
- Iron minerals released during the process are converted into hematite, creating an additional stream to recover iron, titanium, and rare earth elements.
Initial bench-scale testing achieved over 90% recovery of manganese, nickel, cobalt, and copper using Green Manganese’s proprietary hydrometallurgical platform.
Green Manganese Technologies Inc. (“Green Manganese”), a Canadian critical minerals processing company, has successfully completed initial metallurgical test work demonstrating that its proprietary hydrometallurgical process can recover multiple critical metals from polymetallic nodules through a single, integrated process.
Polymetallic nodules contain nickel, cobalt, copper, and manganese, core inputs for global battery, electronics, and defense supply chains. As interest in ocean-based mineral resources grows, efficiently processing the complex matrix of metals contained in nodules remains a primary bottleneck to commercial deployment.
Unlike conventional processing flowsheets that rely on multi-stage pyrometallurgical smelting, sequentially calcining and smelting nodules to separate a nickel-copper-cobalt alloy from a manganese silicate slag, Green Manganese’s hydrometallurgical platform is engineered to extract all principal critical metals from polymetallic nodules in one integrated process. By bypassing Submerged Arc Furnaces (SAF), electrolysis, and multi-phase converting steps entirely, Green Manganese’s process consumes up to 5 times less energy while achieving greater than 90% recovery of manganese, nickel, cobalt, and copper simultaneously.
Selectively dissolving the manganese minerals releases associated critical metals into a unified process solution. Simultaneously, iron minerals are converted into hematite, simplifying downstream handling and creating an additional value stream to recover iron, titanium, and rare earth elements, thereby maximizing overall resource utilization.
“What makes polymetallic nodules so compelling is that several critical metals are concentrated in a single rock. Instead of forcing a next-generation multi-metal feedstock into legacy technologies built for single ores, this new era of critical minerals demands a fundamental shift in processing. By extracting manganese, nickel, cobalt, and copper in one integrated hydrometallurgical circuit, we bypass energy-intensive thermal stages entirely, delivering a streamlined, low-emission pathway to multiple high-value products.”
Alexey Demykin, CEO & Co-Founder, Green Manganese Technologies Inc.
Green Manganese’s hydrometallurgical platform uses specialized manganese chemistry to extract target metals from complex, manganese-bearing materials. As deep-sea resource developers move closer to commercial collection, Green Manganese’s results demonstrate a viable route to simplify nodule processing, establishing a foundation for further pilot-scale testing and commercial collaboration with industry partners.
About Green Manganese Technologies Inc.
Green Manganese Technologies Inc. is a Canadian mineral-processing technology company developing a proprietary hydrometallurgical platform to recover manganese and critical co-metals from industrial residues, tailings, and polymetallic feedstocks. The company’s modular systems are engineered to convert complex and underutilized mineral streams into high-value products while supporting circular-economy goals and resilient critical-material supply chains.
