Use of Mangan reaches new highs
The increased consumption is linked to high demand for steel and lithium.
Although not a well known or understood industrial raw material, manganese is the fourth most common metal by tonnage after iron, aluminum and copper. Most of the manganese extracted worldwide is used to improve the strength and toughness of steel or to remove unwanted elements such as sulfur and oxygen. Manganese is a silvery-white to gray, hard, brittle chemical transition metal that does not occur naturally as a free element, but often in minerals in combination with iron. South Africa was the world's largest producer and exporter of manganese ore in 2019, accounting for 30% of global production and almost 50% of global exports. Australia is the second largest manganese producer in the world, with an annual production of about three million tons. The country, believed to have the fourth largest manganese reserves, produces 15% of the world's manganese ore and has 11% of the world's economically proven manganese resources. Based on its annual production of 2.9 million tons, China ranks third on the list of top manganese producing countries. A huge manganese ore reserve discovered in Guizhou Province in early 2017 is believed to contain an estimated 203 million tons of manganese ore, the total value of which is estimated to be more than $ 10 billion. The growth rates for the manganese market will depend on the outlook for the steel industry, which saw a slight decline in production in 2020. However, last month the World Steel Association released its Short Range Outlook (SRO) for 2021 and 2022, which predicts significant growth prospects for the metal. The study predicts that steel demand will grow 5.8% in 2021 and reach 1.87 billion tons after falling 0.2% in 2020. According to the SRO forecast, steel demand will grow by a further 2.7% in 2022 and reach 1.92 billion tons. (The current forecast assumes that ongoing Covid19 infections will stabilize and that steady progress will be made in vaccinations, which will allow a gradual return to normal in the major steel processing countries). During the pandemic, construction activities in most developed nations were halted to curb the spread of new COVID-19 cases. This led to a sharp drop in the demand for steel in the construction industry. Today the construction industry is on a much firmer footing and recovering, with most market analysts predicting a steady increase in steel demand. However, all of the market growth is being driven by the increasing demand for manganese in lithium-ion batteries due to the increasing demand for electric vehicles. Unsurprisingly, Asia-Pacific is said to dominate the market and show the highest growth rates. The manganese market is segmented by application, end-use sector and geography. By application, the market is divided into alloys, electrolytic manganese dioxide, electrolytic manganese metals and other uses. By end-use sector, the market is divided into industry, construction, energy storage and electricity, and other end-use sectors. Over 40% of global steel production is used in the construction sector, mostly in buildings for structural profiles, rebar, sheet metal products, non-structural steel in addition to infrastructure and transportation needs. Various types of steel are also used in offshore oil rigs, bridges, civil engineering and construction machinery, pressure vessels, power plants and hydroelectric plants. Rapid urbanization has increased the need for new residential buildings, buildings and railways. The global construction industry is expected to reach $ 8 trillion in volume by 2030, largely driven by countries like India, China, and the United States. China is in the midst of a mega construction boom and has the largest construction market in the world, accounting for 20% of all construction investments worldwide. China alone is expected to spend nearly $ 13 trillion on buildings by 2030. In 2019, the total value of new construction in the United States was approximately US $ 1,365 billion and reached approximately US $ 1,430 billion in 2020, representing a growth rate of approximately 4.5%. In Canada, the total value of residential and non-residential construction was around US $ 178 billion in 2019 and reached around US $ 174.5 billion in 2020.