Zimbabwe to Become Top Lithium Producing Country

07 February 2018

Ferro-Alloys.com : Zimbabwe has the potential to be a leading producer of lithium, which has so attracted more interest than any other of its minerals, Zimbabwe's new Minister of Mines and Mining Development Winston Chitando said on Tuesday at the Mining Conference in Cape town.

More he said he had last week reached a deal with a small listed company, which was expected to generate revenue of $ 1.4 billion over eight years from a lithium project.

Chitando took office after Emmerson  Mnangagwa  became president in November 2017 when the military took charge and Robert Mugabe resigned after 37 years in office.

To lure foreign investment into a mining sector that he says is under-capitalized and under-explored, Chitando has announced changes to mining laws, limiting indigenisation rules that mandate majority ownership for the state to just diamonds and platinum.

"Most of the enquiries have been about lithium," he said on the sidelines of a mining conference in Cape Town. He added could not give details of the deal signed last week until an official stock market announcement was made.

Lithium is in demand as a battery metal needed for the shift to electric vehicles and renewable power, although some photographers say the market could became oversupplied as the pipeline of projects builds up.

• [Editor:mab]