As a critical raw material for the steel industry, manganese is experiencing rapidly growing demand in the electric vehicle (EV) battery sector, particularly for high-purity manganese chemical products. According to the US Geological Survey’s 2025 report, global manganese reserves are highly concentrated, with five countries—South Africa, China, Brazil, Australia, and Gabon—holding significant reserves that underpin both the steel and new energy industries.
The CRU Group notes that while multiple manganese mining projects are under development outside China, most remain years away from commercial production. As demand from steel and EV sectors rises, competition among resource-rich nations and industrial chain strategies will profoundly shape the global manganese market.
Below are the top five countries with the largest manganese reserves:
South Africa dominates globally with 560 million metric tons of manganese reserves and produced 7.4 million metric tons in 2024, securing its position as the world’s top producer. Mining giant South32 operates a key manganese complex in the Kalahari Basin, including the Mamatwan open-pit mine, Wessels underground mine, and the Metalloys smelter. Additionally, Jupiter Mines’ Tshipi Borwa mine is hailed as South Africa’s largest and a globally leading manganese project.
China ranks second with 280 million metric tons of reserves and is the sixth-largest manganese ore producer, the top refined manganese producer, and the largest consumer. Recent discoveries include new deposits in Jiangxi (2023), Guizhou (2017), and Sichuan’s Maowanli project (2025), which holds an inferred resource of 6.07 million tons. Downstream, Australian miner Firebird Metals has partnered with China National Chemical Engineering to build a high-purity manganese sulfate plant (now in pilot production), potentially fed by Firebird’s Oakover project in Australia.
Brazil holds 270 million metric tons of reserves and produced 590,000 metric tons in 2024. Buritirama Mining (a subsidiary of Grupo Buritipar) invested 1 billion in investments to boost iron ore and manganese output.
Australia ranks fourth in reserves (110 million metric tons) and third in production (2.8 million metric tons in 2024). The Groote Eylandt mine (a South32-Anglo American joint venture) was disrupted by Tropical Cyclone Meghan in 2024, damaging critical infrastructure. Repairs concluded by April 2025, with exports resuming in May.
Gabon, with 61 million metric tons of reserves, is the second-largest producer (4.6 million metric tons in 2024) and supplies 63% of US manganese imports. Eramet’s subsidiary COMILOG operates the high-grade Moanda mine, which temporarily paused production in late 2024 due to oversupply but has since resumed.
