Materials and methods for recovering metals from ore

A leaching process for recovering nickel, manganese, and/or cobalt from an oxide ore, the process comprising:

• (a) combining (i) one or more microorganisms, (ii) a substrate mixture, (iii) the oxide ore, (iv) a ligand, (v) an optional electron shuttle, and (vi) an aqueous phase to form a mixture;
• (b) maintaining the mixture of step a) for a pre-determined period of time under conditions sufficient to at least partially reduce an amount of ferric iron in the ore to ferrous iron, wherein the ferrous iron, nickel, cobalt, and manganese are solubilized in the aqueous phase;
• and
• (c) isolating the aqueous phase as a leach solution comprising the ferrous iron and an amount of dissolved nickel, manganese, and/or cobalt, from the mixture.