Mine-to-energy industrial park set for Mash West

GOVERNMENT plans to establish a mine-to-energy industrial park in Mapinga, Mashonaland West province, as it seeks to value add and beneficiate lithium.

During post-Cabinet briefing yesterday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services minister Jenfan Muswere said Cabinet was briefed by Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga on the establishment of the mine-toenergy industrial park in Mapinga.

Chiwenga chairs the inter-ministerial committee overseeing the multi-million-dollar project.

Muswere said the lithium value addition and beneficiation project would result in the construction of a coking plant with capacities of 1,2 million and 130 000 metric tonnes of coke and lithium salt per annum, respectively. The project will also result in the construction of two 300-megawatt power stations, a graphite processing plant, a nickel chromium alloy smelter and a nickel sulphate plant, together with supportive power supply and logistics.

“The industrial park will span over an area of 500 hectares and will be implemented on a phased basis, with phase 1 set to begin in June 2024. Government will have a shareholding in the project,” Muswere said.

Zimbabwe is Africa’s largest lithium producer and in 2022 it banned the exportation of lithium ore to derive more benefits from the mineral.

Last year, government gave lithium producers up to last month to submit plans for local production of battery-grade lithium. It could not be ascertained whether the producers had submitted plans. Analysts said the latest government move showed the seriousness of its plans to derive more from Zimbabwe’s vast mineral resources.