While many Western critical minerals hopefuls scramble to decouple from China, Firebird Metals is doing the opposite — and for good reason. The ASX-listed junior (ASX:FRB) is embracing China’s industrial might to fast-track its emergence as a low-cost, vertically integrated supplier of battery-grade manganese sulphate and cathode materials.
At the RIU Sydney Resources Round-up, Firebird Metals executive director Peter Allen laid out the company’s strategy in a compelling presentation that highlighted not only Firebird’s technological edge but its pragmatic approach to capturing the swelling demand for manganese in lithium-ion batteries.
“Where the rest of the world is kind of looking to diversify away from China, we’re looking to go back into China,” said Allen. “And that gives us a number of advantages.”
Peter Allen
Those advantages include government support, rapid permitting, and access to a ready-made industrial ecosystem that Allen described as a “circular economy” — where chemical reagents, energy inputs, and residue consumers co-locate within the same industrial zone.
Firebird is advancing a dual development strategy comprising a battery-grade manganese sulphate (MnSO₄) processing plant in Jinshi, Hunan Province, and the Oakover Manganese Project in Western Australia’s Pilbara region. The China plant will be fed initially by third-party ore but eventually transition to Oakover concentrate as the mine is developed.
Manganese Rises in the Battery Cathode Mix
Manganese has long played a supporting role in battery chemistries, but that’s rapidly changing. With nickel and cobalt facing cost and supply pressures, battery makers are shifting to manganese-rich alternatives — particularly LMFP (lithium manganese iron phosphate), a next-gen evolution of LFP chemistry that offers improved thermal stability, higher energy density, and lower cost.
“Wherever you look in batteries in the future, manganese has a very key role to play,” Allen said. “We see that and we want to leverage that demand.”
According to Firebird’s presentation, LMFP use is expected to grow sharply, with projections suggesting it could replace 50 percent of LFP cathodes by 2030. McKinsey forecasts L(M)FP batteries will capture 44 percent of the global EV battery market by 2025, up from just 11 percent in 2020.
In Allen’s words:
“We get really excited about LMFP. In China specifically, LFP-style batteries have really taken over from nickel-based batteries. Now LFP is being improved by adding manganese, and LMFP is not future tech — it’s already here.”
China Plant: Speed, Scale, and Subsidy
The company’s battery-grade MnSO₄ plant is being developed in the Jinshi High-Tech Chemical Industrial Park, where construction of a pilot plant began in November and commissioning was completed by January. The facility is already producing small volumes of battery-grade manganese sulphate and manganese tetroxide.
“We’ve done this in record time,” Allen noted. “It was eye-opening for our financiers and our shareholders what you can do in China when you have the right support — and we have the right support.”
The full-scale plant will produce 50,000 tonnes of MnSO₄ and 10,000 tonnes of Mn₃O₄ annually, with a total build cost of US$83.5 million plus US$10.7 million working capital — a fraction of the cost of similar Western projects. According to Allen, Firebird’s capital intensity is “approximately a quarter to 30 percent of Western manganese sulphate projects.”
And it’s not just cheap — it’s green.
The plant’s zero-waste design ensures all by-products are repurposed, with residues sent to nearby cement plants. The park’s location on the Lixia River (linked to the Yangtze) also enables low-cost river transport, further boosting competitiveness.
A Technological Edge: Patents and Energy Efficiency
What sets Firebird apart is its technological know-how, driven by R&D partnerships with China’s Central South University and a technical team described by Allen as “the best manganese battery chemical experts in China.”
A standout innovation is Firebird’s 5th-generation crystallisation reactor, which uses just 8 percent of the energy of first-gen systems and one-third of fourth-gen systems, making it the most energy-efficient manganese reduction roasting kiln in the world.
“Traditional manganese calcining requires 300 kilowatt-hours per tonne,” Allen explained. “Ours is operating at 80 to 100 kilowatt-hours. That’s a 70 percent energy saving — and it's patent-protected.”
Another innovation is Firebird’s decision to bypass the crystallisation process altogether when integrating manganese into LMFP precursor cathode material. This cuts energy use and operating cost, with OPEX estimated at US$609 per tonne, well below the China industry average.
Firebird Metals’ proprietary energy-efficient roasting kiln in action at its pilot plant in China — delivering up to 70% energy savings by recycling internal heat.
Oakover: The Long Game
While the near-term focus is on downstream production, Firebird’s Oakover project will play a critical role in supplying raw material as the business scales.
Located 85 km east of Newman, Oakover is a near-surface, low-strip manganese deposit hosting 176.7 Mt at 9.9 percent Mn. Testwork has confirmed a 30–32 percent Mn concentrate is achievable, and hydrometallurgy has validated its suitability for battery-grade MnSO₄ conversion.
Firebird’s 2023 scoping study outlined an 18-year mine life producing 1.2 million tonnes per annum, delivering a pre-tax NPV of A$741 million and an IRR of 73.1 percent, with CAPEX of A$123 million.
“People say it’s low-grade,” Allen acknowledged, “but the key is that it’s 40 percent silica — and that silica is easily washed out. So mechanical beneficiation brings it to saleable grade.”
First-Mover Status in LMFP Supply Chain
Firebird is carving out a unique position as the only Western company combining low-cost MnSO₄ production and LMFP cathode integration. With growing interest from European OEMs and cathode manufacturers, and pilot volumes now rolling out, Firebird is well-positioned to scale.
“We find ourselves in a position to make a financial investment decision by Q4 this year and could be in production by the end of next year,” Allen said.
With backing from China Chemical, early permits in place, and patented IP advantages, Firebird’s contrarian China-first strategy could soon pay dividends — both for the company and for the decarbonising energy transition it aims to serve.
