The parliamentary committee on Mining and Mining Development said the upcoming mining and mineral law should strictly regulate the beneficiation of lithium to ensure the country gets the maximum return from it, the Herald reported.
Zimbabwe is rich in minerals, but lithium is hot right now.
Statistics show that Zimbabwe produced 1,200 tonnes of lithium in 2021, making it the world's sixth largest lithium miner after Brazil (1,900 tonnes), Argentina (6,200 tonnes), China (14,000 tonnes), Chile (26,000 tonnes) and Australia (55,000 tonnes).
Being one of the top producers of lithium, however, does not automatically translate into the greatest financial rewards.
Local Zimbabweans, especially artisanal miners, are selling the commodity at very low prices compared to the profits they can make exporting concentrate or retail lithium products such as batteries.
On December 20, 2022, the government announced that lithium ores could only be exported on the basis of a written permit from the Minister of Minerals and Mining Development.
The ban on lithium exports is intended to encourage investment in local processing facilities.
To this end, Professor Mthuli Ncube, Minister of Finance and Economic Development, said in February that the government was prepared to offer US $20 million to partner investors willing to invest in lithium battery manufacturing projects in Zimbabwe.
Speaking at a consultative meeting, Edmond Mkaratigwa, chairman of the Parliamentary Mining and Mining Development Committee, said Zimbabwe should aim to get higher returns from the commodity given the global momentum of lithium.
He said the Mines and Minerals Bill currently being debated at the Shura seeks to repeal the existing mining law to adapt to the new changes in the mining industry both domestically and internationally over more than a decade, as well as the challenges affecting the sector and its entire value chain linkages.
Mkaratigwa said the law should ensure that mining revenues are fully incorporated into the Treasury, further indicating that the state must ensure that local communities benefit from the resources in their area.
Godfrey Manja, an expert in the mining industry, said that although laws were in place to curb the casual mining and trading of lithium, security measures should be tightened to limit activities still being carried out by unscrupulous buyers and dealers.
Manja said illegal lithium mining remained unnoticed in some parts of the country and that Zimbabwe still had artisanal miners involved in fighting law enforcement agencies.
"Illegal lithium mining is still going on by artisanal miners in areas like Goromonzi and the question is who are they selling to and where are they going next," he said.
According to Legal Instrument No. 213 of 2022 (Control of the Export of Essential Minerals containing Lithium ores without beneficiation), those who violate the law face a fine of twice the value of the minerals illegally exported (smuggled), or face up to two years in prison.
