Potential for the 322,000 Metric Tons of Wenden Stockpile Material to be the Only Domestic Source of EMM in the U.S.

AMY’s EMM Project Was Funded by the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Logistics Agency

American Manganese Inc. (TSX-V: AMY) (OTCQB: AMYZF) (FSE: 2AM) is pleased to announce the successful production of Electrolytic Manganese Metal in the final stages of the Wenden Stockpile Reclamation and Advanced Material Processing project. The U.S. Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) awarded the project to AMY in October 2020 to perform lab-scale work on samples from the United States Government’s 322,000 metric ton manganese stockpile located near Wenden, Arizona. The stockpile has laid dormant for the past six decades due to the need for specialized processing methods to efficiently transform the low-grade ore into useful forms of advanced manganese material for steel and lithium-ion battery production.

American Manganese has since successfully conducted multiple stages of bench-scale tests on the Wenden Stockpile material confirming the viability of the Company’s patented manganese recovery process (US Patent No. 8,460,631) to produce EMM.

“Our lab-scale experiments over the last year have given us key insights into the Wenden Stockpile material, allowing AMY to develop a purpose-built material processing flowsheet, that we will report to the DLA,” said Larry Reaugh, President and CEO of American Manganese. “We see great potential in the reclamation of the Wenden Stockpile and welcome an opportunity for continued cooperation with the DLA to potentially turn the Wenden Stockpile into the only domestic source of Electrolytic Manganese Metal in the U.S.”

Manganese is listed by the U.S. Government as a critical mineral, one of 14 minerals or metals for which the U.S. is 100% import-dependent. EMM is on the acquisition list for the U.S. National Defense Stockpile. The global manganese market is greater than 41 billion pounds per year, with manganese the world’s fourth most-traded metal. There is no substitute for manganese in the production of steel.

Figure 1 – Sample Collection from Wenden Stockpile in Arizona (left); Production of Electrolytic Manganese Metal from Wenden Stockpile Samples (Right)

About American Manganese Inc.

American Manganese Inc. is a critical minerals company focused on the upcycling of lithium-ion battery waste into high-value battery cathode materials, using its closed-loop RecycLiCo™ process. With minimal processing steps and up to 99% extraction of lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese, the upcycling process creates valuable lithium-ion battery materials for direct integration into the re-manufacturing of new lithium-ion batteries.

American Manganese’s original patented manganese process is the cornerstone technology in the development of the Company’s lithium-ion battery cathode recycling process, RecycLiCo™.