American Manganese Granted Korean Patent for Lithium-ion Battery Cathode Recycling Process

SURREY, May 18, 2021 - American Manganese Inc. (TSXV:AMY)(OTCQB:AMYZF)(FSE:2AM) ("AMY" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Korean Intellectual Property Office ("KIPO") has granted Patent No. 10-2246670 for the Company's lithium-ion battery cathode recycling process (RecycLiCo™), further strengthening American Manganese's international Intellectual Property position as a company with an advanced recycling process. South Korea is well-respected for its innovation and development in all aspects of the lithium-ion battery industry, such as the production of batteries, cathode materials, anode materials, electrolytes, and separators.

"We are extremely excited to have been granted a Korean patent, as I believe it offers significant recognition of our research and development strategies," said Larry Reaugh, President and CEO of American Manganese. "We continue to lead in recycling innovation and benchmark the extraction efficiency and quality potential of our hydrometallurgical process."

The granting of the Korean patent confirms that American Manganese's recycling research is both novel and inventive, which includes key aspects such as:

• Treatment of several cathode chemistries such as lithium cobalt oxide (LCO), lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), and lithium nickel cobalt aluminum oxide (NCA).
• Methods for achieving 100% extraction of cobalt, nickel, manganese, aluminum for all cathode chemistries tested.
• Method for achieving 100% lithium extraction by a novel locked cycle process.

The rapid growth in demand for lithium-ion batteries, particularly for electric vehicles, is coupled with an increasing concern for lithium-ion battery waste and the critical material supply chain. Existing recycling processes depend on complex and costly processing steps that can produce harmful emissions, wastewater, and poor material recoveries that require further third-party processing and refining before they can be processed into lithium-ion battery cathodes. The RecycLiCo™ patented process is designed with the goal of establishing a fully circular battery supply chain by recycling up to 100% of cathode material, and to regenerating new cathode materials that could be directly integrated into the re-manufacturing of battery cathodes - all using minimal processing steps.

The granted KIPO patent, U.S. Patent No. 10246343, U.S. Patent No. 10308523, and National Phase Patent Applications filed for in China, Japan, Europe, Australia, India, and Canada significantly strengthen American Manganese's patent portfolio in relation to lithium-ion battery cathode recycling. In addition, AMY holds patents in the U.S., South Africa, China, and Canada in relation to manganese processing.

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About American Manganese Inc.

American Manganese Inc. is a critical metals company focused on the recycling of lithium-ion batteries with the RecycLiCo™ patented process. The RecycLiCo™ patented process was developed to offer a closed-loop and environmentally friendly solution for the recycling of cathode materials used in lithium-ion batteries. The recycling process provides high extraction and purity of cathode metals, such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese, and aluminum. The RecycLiCo™ process was designed with the goal to produce recycled battery products that could be seamlessly and directly integrated into the re-manufacturing of battery cathodes using minimal processing steps.

On behalf of Management

American Manganese Inc.
Larry W. Reaugh
President and Chief Executive Officer
Telephone: 778 574 4444
Email: lreaugh@amymn.com

www.americanmanganeseinc.com
www.recyclico.com

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SOURCE: American Manganese Inc.