Minnesota’s Massive Manganese Deposits- More Wealth Under Our Feet

Did you know that Minnesota has one of the largest deposits of manganese in North America? In total, there are between two and ten billion pounds of manganese located near Emily, Minnesota.

Well, you already knew this if you read our mining report, Unearthing Prosperity, where American Experiment describes Minnesota’s vast mineral wealth. In the report, we discuss how developing Minnesota’s copper, nickel, platinum, and titanium deposits would generate $3.7 billion for Minnesota’s economy every year and create 8,500 jobs.

These number’s don’t even include the economic benefits of mining manganese in our state.

The manganese deposits are owned by Cooperative Mineral Resources, an offshoot of Crow Wing Power. According to an article in the Duluth News Tribune, mining these deposits in Minnesota would make us less dependent on foreign countries for our manganese:

“A mine there could provide the first domestic manganese supply for electric car batteries and other consumer electronics — a swiftly growing market — but as for now the price of the mineral is still too low to cover the cost of getting it out of the ground.”

Manganese is an essential ingredient in many everyday products, including steel, aluminum, glass, paint and gasoline, and it is becoming an even more important commodity because manganese is a key ingredient in lithium batteries.

For now, Cooperative Mineral Resources is waiting for manganese prices to rise, and for a mining company to partner with the co-op so it can bring these resources to market.

When they do, it will be another slam dunk for all Minnesotans, as Kevin McHale would say.