ZIDA to take cue from Indonesia
Zimbabwe plans to ramp up processing of lithium and other strategic minerals, learning lessons from Indonesia.
Indonesia has developed its mineral value chain, creating interconnected industries that capture more value domestically.
Zimbabwe has announced a ban on lithium concentrate exports, and plans to develop industrial parks to process mined ores, with infrastructure cited as a critical enabler of industrialization.
Zimbabwe said it’s learning lessons from Indonesia as it plans to ramp up processing of lithium and other strategic minerals, part of a campaign to reap more value from its rich natural resources.
“Rather than exporting raw minerals, Indonesia has developed its mineral value chain creating interconnected industries,” the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA) said after officials visited the Southeast Asian country.
“That allows it to “capture more value domestically.”
Indonesia is the world’s biggest producer of nickel, and has attracted a surge in investment from predominantly Chinese companies in the wake of a ban on exports of raw nickel ores. Zimbabwe has recently followed suit, announcing a ban on lithium concentrate exports that’s slated to take effect next year.
The southern African country, which has also seen a wave of investment from Chinese entities, plans to develop a clutch of industrial parks to process mined ores. It has studied the success of Indonesia’s Morowali Industrial Park, or IMIP, in turning the nation into the epicenter of global nickel production.
A “major takeaway was that infrastructure is a critical enabler of industrialization,” ZIDA said, citing IMIP’s heavy spending on power generation, ports, airports, roads and water systems.
“Large anchor investors can play a central role in mobilizing infrastructure investment.”
Chinese investors in Zimbabwe’s lithium sector include Sinomine Resource Group, Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co., Chengxin Lithium Group and Sichuan Yahua Industrial Group Co.
The country’s ban on lithium concentrate exports is due to start in January, but miners have pushed for a delay until next June, saying they need more time to complete the processing plants required by the government.
Mines Minister Polite Kambamura has said not every mining operation needs its own plant and some could send their concentrate to facilities owned by other firms.-Bloomberg
