How Zimbabwe got China to pour in a billion dollars into value-added lithium investments

These investments have primarily come from Chinese investors operating lithium mines in Zimbabwe.

A clear example of this was when Sichuan Yahua Industrial Group Co. announced the construction of a lithium plant in Zimbabwe, the third such project in the country.

Yahua, which operates the Kamativi lithium mine in a joint venture with Zimbabwe, announced on a Shenzhen Exchange platform that it has commenced construction on a plant to produce lithium sulfate.

In February, reports showed that Zimbabwe planned to construct its first lithium plant, spearheaded by the largest lithium producer in Zimbabwe, Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe (PLZ), and financed by Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co, a Chinese high-tech enterprise.

At the time of the announcement, the plant had already reached its equipment commissioning phase.

By April, Zimbabwe had exported its first shipment of lithium sulphate from the Arcadia mine near Harare, marking a significant step in the country’s move into higher-value lithium processing.

The inaugural consignment came from the Arcadia lithium mine near Harare, owned by Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe, a unit of China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt.

Additionally, Zimbabwe’s mineral sector delivered a strong first-quarter performance, with total mineral sales coming close to the $1 billion mark as lithium and Platinum Group Metals (PGMs) surged following the government’s export ban on unbeneficiated minerals.

According to data from the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ), total mineral sales reached 1,288,761 tonnes valued at $983.85 million in the first quarter of 2026.

This represents a 27% increase in volume and a 79% jump in value compared to the same period last year.

Lithium emerged as one of the top performers, boosted by increased worldwide demand for battery materials.

Sales totalled 240,826 tonnes worth $178.64 million, representing a 2% rise in volume and a 106% increase in value year over year.

According to a Ministry of Mines and Mining Development position document seen by The Independent, China-based Huayou’s Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe and Sinomine’s Bikita Minerals have committed approximately US$700 million and US$500 million, respectively, toward the establishment of lithium sulphate processing facilities.

The report indicates that these capital commitments are part of broader obligations undertaken by six of Zimbabwe’s primary lithium producers to develop beneficiation infrastructure.

These facilities are scheduled for completion before January 2027, the date by which the government intends to implement a comprehensive prohibition on the export of lithium concentrate.

“The major investors — in particular our Chinese partners, who dominate the lithium sub-sector — have responded by committing very substantial capital to in-country processing,” the paper reads.

“Huayou (Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe) has invested approximately US$400 million in the Arcadia lithium sulphate plant, in addition to an earlier concentrator investment of around US$300 million.

Sinomine (Bikita Minerals) has built a lithium sulphate plant valued at approximately US$500 million, with a fresh capital-raising programme announced in May 2026 to fund this and related projects.”

The paper adds, “Taken together, this represents close to US$1 billion in domestic lithium-processing infrastructure,” the paper says.

Miners did, understandably, raise legitimate concerns in the early stages around the high capital cost of processing plants, electricity supply, water requirements, and broader infrastructure constraints, and some requested more time before the introduction of the concentrate export levy.

Government engaged constructively on these matters, but maintained the strategic line through export controls, producer-specific quotas, fiscal measures, and, ultimately, a binding legal compliance regime. The investment now on the ground is proof that the policy is working.”

Zimbabwe cited government malpractice and leakages as the rationale for the audacious decision to ban the export of lithium concentrates, and so far, the decision has yielded very encouraging results.