Zimbabwe's Bikita Mining company, owned by China's Sinomine Resource Group, said on Monday it had halted production for a week after authorities raised unspecified administrative concerns, Reuters reported.
China Minerals last year paid $180 million for Bikita Mining, which was then Zimbabwe's only lithium mine and one of Africa's oldest.
"This notice is intended to inform our stakeholders and partners that we have suspended operations for seven days to resolve administrative issues raised by the authorities at our plant," Bikita Mines said in a statement.
The company did not specify what the problem was, but said it was working closely with all relevant authorities to ensure it was resolved.
"As a law-abiding company, we remain committed to full compliance with all requirements of the law and expect to resume operations when all outstanding issues are resolved," the statement said.
Zimbabwe hopes its vast lithium reserves will help it gain an economic boost as the world moves to battery-powered energy.
Sinomine has also invested US $200 million to expand Bikita's existing operations, including the construction of two lithium processing plants to produce 250,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate and 480,000 tonnes of feldspar per year.
Spodumene is another key battery mineral, while feldspar is a lithium mineral used in the glass and ceramic industries.
The two lithium plants are scheduled to open in July. Bikita Mines employs 860 people.
Zimbabwe has some of the world's largest deposits of hard rock lithium and has recently attracted more than $700 million in investment from Chinese companies including Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Chengxin Lithium Group.
