Global price of manganese ore 2016-2022
A critical material
An essential agent in steelmaking, manganese is most commonly used to improve either the strength or ductility of steel. In order to produce steel, the United States imports approximately 700,000 metric tons of metals, ferroalloys, and selected chemicals containing manganese every year. In 2018, 100 percent of the manganese used in the United States was imported from other countries. The commodity is thus listed as a critical material by the U.S. Geological Survey. Australia, South Africa, Brazil, China, and Gabon are among the main producers of manganese ore.
Other uses
However, metallurgy is not the only application where this critical material is used: battery making is the most important other application involving manganese, which is used in some lithium-ion and alkaline batteries.