manganese becomes a more valuable ore

Somebody posted this on the BHP thread.

Manganese shot from sixth to fourth place behind the platinum family, coal and gold as South Africa’s most valuable mining product in April.

Manganese ore sales rocketed 145% from R830-million in March to more than R2-billion in April, Statistics South Africa reported yesterday. Manganese sales this April were nine times the R235-million recorded in April last year.

This rapid rise carried manganese past iron ore, whose month- on-month sales rose 15 percent to R1.8-billion. Manganese also overtook “other non-metallic minerals”, their sales slumping 33 percent to R1.6-billion.

Manganese has been boosted by its price rocketing from 7.25 a ton at the start of the year to 17 a ton in July. Also, BHP Billiton and Assmang have ramped up production while Kumba’s iron production has slipped. Platinum coming off a near $2 250/oz peak in March to about 2000 dragged total mining sales down nearly 2 percent to R25-billion. Platinum contributed nearly a third of the country’s mining sales, coal slightly more than a fifth, gold 15 percent, manganese 8 percent and iron ore 7 percent.


Robert Laing Published:Jul 11, 2008