Empress Nickel generates $381 million in 2021
RioZim base metals refinery, Empress Nickel Refinery (ENR) generated a total revenue of ZW$381 million in 2021 as the operations were under care and maintenance throughout the year.
Rudairo Mapuranga
ENR has been RioZim’s best performer, contributing an average of 77 percent of the group’s revenue with RioZim confident that it will increase the refinery’s capacity.
According to RioZim through its Financial Report for the year ended 31 December 2021 the Kadoma based refinery’s revenue for the year was partially used to fund the care and maintenance costs. The company also said that it was engaging various stakeholders to identify sources of raw material to feed the Refinery to normal production capacity.
During the year, the refinery produced 210 tonnes of matte, 78 tonnes of PGMs and 21 tonnes of copper.
“The Refinery operated under care and maintenance throughout the period 210 tons of matte, 78 tons of PGMs and 21 tons of copper were produced. Revenue of ZW$381 million was generated during the year from the projects at the Refinery which partially funded the care and maintenance costs. The Company continues to engage various stakeholders to identify sources of raw material to feed the Refinery to normal production capacity and our stakeholders will be kept appraised,” the company said in a statement.
The Zimbabwe stock Exchange listed diversified mining company has been exploring various ways to upgrade ENR as the plant is a strategic asset with potential to contribute significantly to the economy.
The company has been exploring various methods of upgrading the refinery so that it is also able to beneficiate lithium concentrate in light of the huge investor appetite to exploit lithium in the country.
Lithium has become a much-sought after mineral not only in Zimbabwe, but also across the globe as the automotive industry moves towards electric cars, which, among other things, use lithium batteries.
According to energy experts, global supplies of lithium used to make EV batteries will fall short of projections for demand to more than triple by 2025 if prices do not rebound to fund expansions. Value addition is therefore important as it will bring more investment into lithium mining and exploration.
Lithium’s vital role in electric-vehicle batteries means automakers, miners and investors are racing to figure out how much supply the world will need in the coming years and also how much it’s going to get.