Zimbabwe's sole lithium salt plant unable to process third-party metal

Zimbabwe's only operational lithium sulphate plant currently lacks the capacity to process concentrate from other producers, raising fresh concerns ahead of the government's planned ban on lithium concentrate exports from January 2027.

The facility, operated by Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe and owned by China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, is the country's only completed lithium sulphate processing plant, while several others remain under construction.

Mine manager Mthokozisi Goliath said the plant was designed to process only ore produced at its own Arcadia operation.

"We don't have the capacity to process other minerals from outside. Our concentrator plant produces around 400,000 tonnes per year, so we don't have space for other players," Goliath said during a visit by Mines and Mining Development Minister Dr Polite Kambamura.

"For now, this sulphate plant only has capacity that can manage what we produce at the concentrator plant," he added.

The disclosure comes as lithium producers continue to lobby the government to postpone the January 2027 ban on lithium concentrate exports, arguing that additional time is needed to complete beneficiation plants required under Zimbabwe's value-addition policy.

However, Kambamura reiterated that the government would not extend the deadline.

"The January 2027 deadline is still on. We cannot talk of extending right now. We would like to urge all producers to stick to that deadline," he said.

The export ban forms part of Zimbabwe's strategy to increase local mineral beneficiation by ensuring lithium is processed into higher-value products before export, with the aim of generating more export revenue and creating jobs.

Several major lithium producers are still constructing processing facilities. Sinomine Resource Group's Bikita Minerals and Kamativi Mining Company, the Zimbabwean subsidiary of China's Yahua Group, are both building lithium sulphate plants that are not expected to be operational before the January 2027 deadline.

Chinese companies have become dominant players in Zimbabwe's lithium industry after investing an estimated US$2 billion in mining and processing projects since 2021, strengthening China's position in the global battery metals supply chain.

The latest development highlights the practical challenges facing Zimbabwe's beneficiation drive, with producers warning that processing capacity remains insufficient even as the government insists the export ban will be implemented as scheduled.