| Project Detail |
Project Description
Equity investment into Euro Manganese (the "Company" or "EMG") via a private placement of CAD 8.5 million in exchange for a minority stake in the Company. The proceeds of the EBRDs investment will be passed on to EMGs subsidiary in the Czech Republic for the purpose of completing a Feasibility Study and building / operating a demonstration plant for the reprocessing of historic mine tailings at the Chvaletice deposit (the "Project").
Project Objectives
The Project is a flagship project that will meet some of the rapidly increasing demand for high-purity manganese in Europe and offer a local and reliable supply to European battery manufacturers.
From a socioeconomic and environmental perspective, as well as a health impact perspective, the Project will have a positive effect as it will remediate a polluted site through the implementation of high environmental standards and engineering practices. In addition, it is expected to support regional economic development following the significant slowdown in the Czech economy caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The transaction is fully aligned with the Country Strategy for the Czech Republic approved by the Board on 15 September 2021, which highlights the need to focus on supporting a green recovery and diversifying financing resources, including by providing equity to private companies. Green investments are a priority both for the Czech Republic government and under the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility and next Multiannual Financial Framework. The transaction is also aligned with the Mining Operations Policy dated 13 December 2017, which highlights the need to "support environmentally responsible mine remediation and remediation of contaminated sites". In addition, the Project is in line with the Strategy for the Promotion of Gender Equality, which promotes gender mainstreaming into EBRD operations, especially in male-dominated sectors.
Transition Impact
ETI score: 60
Competitive:
Greater competition: The Project will help facilitate the competitiveness of electric vehicles and energy storage and provide more competition between the critical raw materials used in different batteries with a focus on using safer, more environmentally friendly, abundant and inexpensive minerals, such as manganese, where appropriate. The Project will also support the development of a secondary market for critical raw materials by using the tailings as a feedstock and processing it into high-purity manganese.
New processes / innovation: This is the first such project in the Czech Republic and in Europe, with potential for replication in other old mining tailings in the EBRDs COOs, where processing will prove to be economically viable with current technology.
Green:
Significant innovation in green products:
(a) The manganese produced by this Project will be aligned with the EU Circular Economy Classification: "Category 3.b i Recovery of materials from waste in preparation for circular value retention and recovery strategies". Furthermore, the Project will be subject to European ESG standards and will help remediate the current tailings storage issues.
(b) This is an innovative project which will introduce a recycling process of old mining tailings to produce high-purity manganese, with the innovation of the process stemming from the feedstock sourced. This is the first such project in Europe. |
