HARARE
–
Zhejiang
Huayou
Cobalt
has
shipped
Africa’s
first
consignment
of
lithium
sulphate
from
its
Zimbabwe
mine,
two
months
after
the
country
halted
exports
of
lithium
concentrates,
alleging
malpractice
and
leakages.
“This
inaugural
shipment
represents
the
first
lithium
salt
ever
produced
in
Zimbabwe
and
across
Africa,
marking
a
major
step
forward
in
regional
mineral
beneficiation
and
industrialisation,”
Huayou’s
Zimbabwe
unit
said
in
a
statement
posted
on
X
late
on
Monday.
The
company
did
not
disclose
the
size
of
the
consignment.
Huayou
completed
the
$400
million
plant
in
October
2025.
It
has
the
capacity
to
produce
50,000
metric
tons
annually
of
lithium
sulphate,
an
intermediate
product
that
can
be
refined
into
materials
such
as
lithium
hydroxide
or
lithium
carbonate
used
in
battery
manufacturing.
Zimbabwe,
Africa’s
top
lithium
producer,
has
been
pressing
miners
operating
in
the
country
to
process
more
of
the
battery
metal
locally
as
it
seeks
to
extract
more
economic
benefit
from
the
mineral.
It
has
recently
imposed
a
10
percent
tax
on
lithium
concentrate
exports.
The
export
tax
does
not
apply
to
lithium
sulphate.
Zimbabwe
will
ban
lithium
concentrate
exports
altogether
from
January
2027,
but
froze
all
exports
of
the
concentrated
mineral
on
February
25,
saying
it
had
noted
“malpractices
during
the
exportation
of
minerals”.
Zimbabwe
introduced
lithium
concentrate
export
quotas
in
April
and
set
conditions
for
the
resumption
of
exports,
including
the
mandatory
publication
of
mines’
annual
financial
statements
as
well
as
labour,
safety
and
environmental
standards.
To
date,
Sichuan
Yahua,
Chengxin
Lithium
and
Sinomine
have
been
allocated
lithium
concentrate
export
quotas
by
the
mines
ministry.
Huayou
has
not
disclosed
whether
it
had
been
granted
a
quota.
The
company
was
not
immediately
available
to
comment.
Chinese
firms
dominate
Zimbabwe’s
lithium
mining
sector,
consolidating
the
Asian
giant’s
dominance
of
the
global
battery
metal
supply
chain.
In
2025,
Zimbabwe
exported
1.13
million
metric
tons
of
lithium-bearing
spodumene
concentrate
to
China,
accounting
for
about
15
percent
of
its
lithium
concentrate
imports
for
the
year.
–
Reuters