HARARE, May 12 (Xinhua) -- The Zimbabwean government will review export quotas granted to six major lithium producers in the country next year once mining companies establish acceptable beneficiation capacity, a cabinet minister said on Tuesday.
Responding to Xinhua during a media briefing in Zimbabwe's capital of Harare, Mines and Mining Development Minister Polite Kambamura said the quotas were granted after companies made commitments to building lithium sulfate plants by January 2027.
Kambamura clarified that export quotas were not granted for raw minerals or materials, but were exclusively reserved for the six large-scale lithium producers that had received government approval to establish lithium concentrate facilities between 2020 and 2025.
The minister noted that the government would consider increasing these quotas next year, provided that producers have developed sufficient capacity for value-added lithium salts like lithium carbonate.
He said the export quotas, which he did not quantify, were introduced to monitor progress and ensure that the quantities approved by the government are commensurate with plant capacities at the mines.
The quotas will also ensure that there are no excess export consignments or export capacities that will be traded to unqualified players and middlemen, he said, adding that the export quotas are enough to see the producers roll on until they build processing plants.
"We also put those quotas as a monitoring mechanism, whereby we monitor progress with regard to conditions that were given by the government. Are they implementing those conditions, which include, but not limited to, setting up separating facilities of other economic materials or minerals within the lithium concentrates," Kambamura said.
Zimbabwe, Africa's top lithium producer, suspended the export of all raw minerals and lithium concentrates in February to promote local value addition and beneficiation of the minerals to maximize value retention. ■
