Highlights

• China's Changsha Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (CIMM) signed a framework agreement with Tianyuan Manganese Industry Group to advance manganese processing technologies and battery-materials research.
• The partnership focuses on innovation-driven development, including high-purity manganese compounds, industrial-chain optimization, and manganese-lithium integration for emerging battery manufacturing.
• This collaboration signals China's continued consolidation of its position in high-purity manganese, a critical metal for next-generation batteries, as Western nations attempt to build non-Chinese supply chains.

On critical minerals, in a move that strengthens China’s influence across the global manganese supply chain, the Changsha Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (CIMM) inked a framework cooperation agreement with Tianyuan Manganese Industry Group (opens in a new tab), one of the country’s dominant electrolytic-manganese producers. Senior officials from Zhongning County, Tianyuan, and CIMM attended the ceremony and subsequent talks.

The agreement, signed on November 20 in Changsha, formalizes a partnership aimed at accelerating joint development in manganese processing technologies, industrial-chain integration, and next-generation battery-materials research. CIMM leadership presented detailed reports outlining the institute’s technology portfolio, market outlook, and key projects that will underpin the collaboration.

During discussions, both sides reached consensus on several priorities:

• Innovation-driven technology development, including advanced purification, high-purity manganese compounds, and processing efficiency upgrades.
• Industrial-chain optimization, with a focus on maximizing utilization of China’s manganese resources.
• A push toward “manganese–lithium integration,” leveraging Zhongning County’s renewable-energy capacity and environmental infrastructure to support emerging battery-material manufacturing.

Officials from Zhongning County pledged full support, committing local resources and policy assistance to accelerate the companies’ cooperation and strengthen what they called the region’s “pillar manganese industry.”

Before the signing, Tianyuan Manganese Industry and local officials toured CIMM’s photovoltaic recycling demonstration line and its science and technology innovation hall, praising the institute’s cutting-edge R&D and commercialization capabilities.

For global investors, this agreement signals continued consolidation of China’s position in high-purity manganese — a metal increasingly critical to next-generation high-manganese cathodes, LMO chemistries, and battery cost-reduction pathways. As the U.S. and EU race to build non-Chinese supply chains, China is fusing state research institutes with industrial champions to maintain technological dominance.

Disclaimer: This report is based on information from Chinese state-affiliated media. All details should be independently verified before informing investment or policy decisions.

© 2025 Rare Earth Exchanges™ – Accelerating Transparency, Accuracy, and Insight Across the Rare Earth & Critical Minerals Supply Chain.