Manganese: Criticality

Why the EU and US call it critical

What this tab covers How exposed economies are to a supply disruption: the EU, US and India listings, the concentration score, and a quantified exposure for the US, EU, India, China, Japan, Latin America, the Middle East and Australia. Where the EU scored it, a chart of supply risk against economic importance, with import reliance, recycling input and substitutes.

Exposure by region

Region	Exposure	Share of world output	Share of world imports	Share of world exports	Net trade (US$)	On own critical list	Position
US	High	0.0%	4.2%	0.3%	−$316.2 m	Yes	No mine output and 100% import reliance (ore mainly from Gabon, 64% in 2021-24); manganese is on the 2025 US critical list (USGS MCS 2026).
EU	High	0.0%	7.1%	4.4%	−$345.1 m	Yes	Critical and strategic raw material with 96% import reliance for ore, sourced from South Africa (41%) and Gabon (39%) (EU CRM 2023).
India	Medium	6.0%	14.2%	10.9%	−$585.5 m	No	Fifth-largest miner (790 kt Mn, 2025e, USGS) but the second-largest ore importer (6.05 Mt, $1.1 billion, 2024) and the largest ferromanganese exporter; not on India's 2023 critical list.
China	High	4.6%	56.5%	1.5%	−$4.34 bn	No	Largest consumer: 65.3% of world ore imports by value (29.3 Mt, $4.4 billion, 2024, UN Comtrade) against mine output of only 700 kt Mn (USGS); dominant in electrolytic and battery-grade products.
Japan	High	0.0%	3.5%	0.0%	−$271.1 m	Yes	Importer of ore (0.89 Mt, $219 million, 2024, UN Comtrade) and ferroalloys for its steel industry; no mine output.
Latin America	Low	4.7%	0.4%	2.1%	+$68.3 m	no list	Brazil is a mid-sized producer (800 kt Mn, 2025e) with 300,000 kt of reserves (USGS); Mexico supplied 12% of US ore imports in 2021-24.
Middle East	Low	0.5%	0.6%	0.0%	−$48.1 m	no list	No significant mining; small ore imports (Saudi Arabia $36 million in 2024, UN Comtrade).
Australia	Low	8.0%	0.5%	0.0%	−$37.0 m	Yes	Fourth-largest miner (1,600 kt Mn, 2025e) with the largest reported reserves (580,000 kt, of which 110,000 kt JORC); the GEMCO mine restarted in May 2025 after a 2024 cyclone (USGS).

Exposure rating: High when the region is a net importer whose import share is at least three times its share of world output (or, for farm goods, it produces under 70% of what it consumes); Medium for other net importers (or 70-95% self-sufficiency), raised to High when world supply is highly concentrated in another country; Low for net exporters or self-sufficient regions. Net importer status uses tonnage where reported, otherwise value. Output: World Mining Data, 2024. Trade: UN Comtrade 2024 (EU = sum of member states, including intra-EU trade). Critical lists: US 2025, EU 2024/1252, India 2023, China 2016 strategic minerals, Japan METI, Australia 2024.

Manganese is on the EU list as critical and strategic, and on the US 2025 list, but not on India's 2023 list. The EU scores supply risk at 1.2 and economic importance at 6.9, with 96% import reliance for ore. USGS says manganese has no satisfactory substitute in its major uses. The risks are concentration in South Africa and Gabon, long rail and port chains, and Chinese dominance of refined battery-grade products. The US National Research Council placed manganese in its most critical zone (Humphreys).

EU 2023 Critical also a strategic raw material US 2025 list Yes India 2023 list No Production HHI 2,221 moderately concentrated

EU 2023 assessment

Chart: EU 2023 criticality: supply risk against economic importance

Each dot is a material assessed by the EU in 2023. The shaded corner is the critical zone (supply risk ≥ 1.0, economic importance ≥ 2.8). Manganese: supply risk 1.2, economic importance 6.9. EU import reliance, extraction 96% EU import reliance, processing 66% EU recycling input rate 9% US net import reliance, 2025 100% share of apparent consumption

Substitutes

No satisfactory substitute in its major applications