Zimbabwe bans raw mineral exports

The move is part of an effort to boost local processing and improve efficiency in the mining sector, a minister has said

Zimbabwe has suspended exports of all raw minerals and lithium concentrates with immediate effect, in a sweeping policy shift aimed at promoting local processing and tightening oversight of the southern African country’s mining sector.

Mines Minister Polite Kambamura told reporters on Wednesday that the ban, which even applies to shipments currently in transit, will remain “in place until further notice.”

He said the measure was taken in the “national interest” and cited “widespread malpractices and export leakages” in the trade of raw minerals.

“These measures are being implemented… to enhance local mineral value addition and beneficiation and to enhance human accountability, promote local beneficiary, and maximize value retention within the country,” Kambamura stated.

Zimbabwe is Africa’s largest producer of lithium, a key component in electric vehicle batteries and renewable energy storage systems. In 2025, the country exported more than 1.1 million metric tons of lithium-bearing spodumene concentrate, most of it to China, Reuters reported.

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The new directive expands on earlier government plans to restrict exports of unprocessed lithium as the authorities push mining companies to build processing plants locally.

China’s lithium prices surged following the announcement. The most-traded lithium carbonate contract on the Guangzhou Futures Exchange rose more than 6% on Thursday, according to Reuters. Chinese companies, including Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Sinomine – major investors in Zimbabwe’s lithium projects – have previously committed to constructing local processing plants.

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The Mines Ministry said the export curb will only be lifted if miners comply with the government’s requirements.

Harare’s move follows similar restrictions by other neighbors. Malawi banned exports of unprocessed minerals last October in a bid to spur investment in local processing capacity, while Namibia prohibited bulk exports of unprocessed ores in 2023 in order to encourage domestic beneficiation.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, one of the continent’s most vocal critics of raw material exports, has repeatedly urged African governments to expand domestic processing capacity rather than ship unrefined resources abroad. Speaking after an African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on February 15, he said it was time for the continent to “no longer export rock, soil and dust” without benefiting from downstream refining and manufacturing.