Mr. Larry Reaugh reports

AMERICAN MANGANESE'S EXTRACTION PROCESS FACILITATES MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY TAILING STORAGE

American Manganese Inc. is responding to inquiries regarding process tailing storage from the company's proposed manganese recovery process at Artillery Peak situated in northwestern Arizona. "The waste management approach we have taken for the Artillery Peak project minimizes the potential for the uncontrolled release of contaminants into the environment during all of the project stages, as well as minimizing the demand for fresh water for mineral processing," said Larry Reaugh. "Minimizing the environmental footprint of the proposed project makes good sense."

The company's patented manganese recovery process is a technical breakthrough as it enables the recovery of manganese from a low-grade resource with significantly less energy and environmental impact than conventional processing methods. The United States Bureau of Mines developed the framework of the process from the 1940s to 1980 but was never able to make it economically viable. Kemetco Research Inc. successfully completed the process to demonstrate it can compete with other electrolytic manganese metal, electrolytic manganese dioxide and chemical manganese dioxide producers in the lower-cost percentile. High-purity manganese dioxide is combined with lithium carbonate to form the cathode material used in the spinel-type high-tech lithium-ion rechargeable battery.

The hydrometallurgical process developed by the company is capable of producing high-purity electrolytic manganese dioxide and chemical manganese dioxide critical for improving performance and safety of high-tech lithium-ion batteries. The process tailing is subjected to eight stages of countercurrent washing prior to high-pressure filtration that yields a benign filter cake and reusable process water. The moisture content of the filter cake is expected to be in the order of 30 per cent, which makes it suitable for dry stacking and co-disposal with waste rock from the proposed open pit mine. The proposed open pit mine was designed and scheduled so as to provide continuing and final storage of the waste rock and process tailings within limits of the excavation.

Water coming in contact with the combined waste residue or within the excavation would be collected and used in the hydrometallurgical treatment process. Uncontaminated surface water would be diverted around the proposed mine workings and treatment facilities and discharged into the existing water courses.

We seek Safe Harbor.