Manganese Ore
Ferroalloy feed by Mn content, Mn/Fe ratio & phosphorus
Manganese ore is priced per dry metric tonne unit of contained manganese — one dmtu is 10 kg of Mn — so the first number in any offer is the Mn grade and everything else is a penalty or a premium on top of it. High-grade ore (44–48% Mn, Gabon, Brazil, Australia) sells at a premium per dmtu; medium grade (36–44%, South Africa's Kalahari, some Ghanaian lots) forms the bulk of the seaborne trade; and low-grade carbonate ore (28–32% Mn) is a separate market that prices on volume and blend value. The Mn/Fe ratio (≥ 5:1 for silicomanganese, ≥ 7:1 for high-carbon ferromanganese) decides which alloy you can make from it, phosphorus (≤ 0.10–0.15%, and Ghanaian carbonate ore is prized for its very low P) transfers into the alloy and then into the steel, SiO₂ (≤ 8–12%) sets slag volume, and Al₂O₃ and alkalis affect furnace resistivity. Sizing (lump 10–75 mm against fines −10 mm) is a price step in its own right, because fines need sintering before they can go into a submerged-arc furnace. On the trade, UN Comtrade 2025 export declarations show Ghana at 5.49 million MT at USD 48/MT, all of it to China, Brazil 1.10 million MT at USD 100, Cote d'Ivoire 0.90 million MT at USD 73 and Malaysia 226,000 MT; South Africa, the world's largest exporter, reported USD 3.29 billion of manganese ore exports for 2025 but no tonnage, and Gabon does not report, so those two must be read from the importer side.
Essentially all of this ore goes into silicomanganese and ferromanganese, and through them into steel — manganese is the deoxidiser and desulphuriser in almost every steel grade, and the seaborne trade is dominated by Chinese, Indian, Malaysian and Korean ferroalloy plants buying against furnace mix. A ferroalloy buyer therefore blends: a high-grade Gabonese lump against a low-P Ghanaian carbonate and a cheap high-iron ore to hit a target Mn/Fe and phosphorus in the furnace burden, and that is the enquiry we work rather than a single-origin sheet. CBIL is a commodity brokerage company and brokers manganese ore from Ghanaian, Gabonese, Ivorian, South African and Brazilian sources, connecting mine and trader allocations with ferroalloy plants and traders against SGS or Bureau Veritas certification of Mn, Fe, P, SiO₂, Al₂O₃, moisture and size distribution on a dry basis. Supply is structured in Handysize and Supramax parcels on FOB and CFR terms — the Owendo, Takoradi and Port Elizabeth lanes to China and India are ones our chartering desk, LaycanDesk, already quotes, so freight is priced alongside the cargo. Send your target Mn/Fe ratio, phosphorus ceiling and the alloy you are producing and we will work a blend to it.
Need the ship as well? Our chartering desk prices bulk ore freight on LaycanDesk.
Indicative reference
$48–210 USD / MT
as at September 2026
Reference level only — not an offer, and reviewed quarterly. Levels shown are as at September 2026. Firm pricing is quoted per RFQ, subject to volume, terms and inspection.
Typical Specification
Specifications are indicative and adjusted to the agreed contract and destination requirements. Final spec confirmed on COA / SGS.
Available Grades
Applications
- Silicomanganese production
- High-carbon ferromanganese
- Electrolytic manganese metal & EMD
- Sinter feed for submerged-arc furnaces
- Steel deoxidation & desulphurisation
Category
Metals & Recycled Scrap
Incoterms
FOB · CFR · CIF
Pricing basis
USD / MT
Inspection
SGS / Intertek at load port
Manganese Ore — buyer questions
What is a dmtu and why is manganese ore priced on it?
A dry metric tonne unit is 1% of a dry tonne, so 10 kg of contained manganese. A 44% Mn ore holds 44 dmtu per dry tonne; at USD 4.50/dmtu that is USD 198 per dry tonne before moisture is deducted. Pricing on dmtu lets a 32% carbonate ore and a 46% lump be compared on the metal they carry, and the per-tonne figures you see — UN Comtrade 2025 shows Ghana's exports clearing at USD 48/MT against Brazil's at USD 100 — are mostly a grade difference rather than a market difference.
Why does the Mn/Fe ratio matter as much as the Mn grade?
Because iron in the ore reports to the alloy and dilutes it. Silicomanganese needs a burden Mn/Fe of roughly 5:1 or better and high-carbon ferromanganese about 7:1, otherwise the furnace makes an off-spec alloy no matter how high the Mn grade. That is why ferroalloy plants blend a high-grade ore with a low-iron carbonate rather than buying one origin. Give us your target ratio and phosphorus ceiling and we will work the blend.
Is Ghanaian carbonate ore worth buying at 28–32% Mn?
Yes, for the right furnace. Its value is very low phosphorus and a favourable Mn/Fe ratio, which lets a plant use it to bring a high-P, high-grade ore into specification, and the carbonate reacts well in sintering. It moves in volume — 5.49 million MT in 2025 by UN Comtrade export declarations, all to China — at USD 48/MT, so it is bought as a blend component and priced accordingly, not as a substitute for 44% lump.
What parcel size do you work and which load ports?
Handysize and Supramax, 25,000–60,000 MT, from Takoradi (Ghana), Owendo (Gabon), San Pedro or Abidjan (Cote d'Ivoire), Port Elizabeth and Saldanha (South Africa) and Brazilian northern ports to China, India and Malaysia. Fines and lump ship as separate parcels or split holds. Our chartering desk quotes the voyage alongside the cargo so a FOB offer becomes a CFR number on the same enquiry; trial lots of 500–2,000 MT can move containerised where a lane exists.
Ready to source Manganese Ore?
Send your quantity, specification, preferred Incoterms and destination port. We'll verify supply and respond with a workable offer — usually within one business day.
Have Manganese Ore to sell? Submit an offer — we'll match it against live buyer demand.
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