Mining ZimbabweLatest Mining News, Policy and Industry Updates

Nasdaq-listed mining company Namib Minerals has announced a significant step forward in the resurgence of its Zimbabwean operations, confirming that dewatering activities have officially commenced at the Redwing Mine, Mining Zimbabwe can report.

By Rudairo Mapuranga

The process began on January 29, 2026, aligning precisely with the work plan outlined in the company’s November 2025 business update.

The dewatering phase is a critical enabling step in the company’s broader restart project. By removing water from the mine, Namib Minerals will gain essential access to conduct feasibility studies, assess underground conditions, and complete detailed engineering evaluations. These assessments will inform the next stages of the mine’s redevelopment.

Ibrahima Sory Tall, Chief Executive Officer of Namib Minerals, emphasised the strategic importance of the milestone.

“Dewatering at Redwing is progressing as planned and represents an important milestone in the restart process,” Tall said. “We are focused on building Namib Minerals into a mid-tier gold producer, targeting meaningful reserve growth, with Redwing’s future restart representing an important step toward that goal.”

The progress at Redwing is a cornerstone of a much larger US$300 million investment earmarked by the Nasdaq-listed miner to restore and expand its footprint in Zimbabwe. This capital injection is targeting the revival of not only Redwing but also Mazowe and the expansion of How Mine, signalling a major vote of confidence in the country’s gold sector.

This ambitious plan is backed by a hands-on approach to stakeholder engagement. Tall recently toured the Mazowe, Redwing, and How Mine sites to oversee preliminary redevelopment work. During the visit, he underscored the company’s commitment to aligning with national ambitions.

“By implementing our strategy, we will be developing world-class assets that directly support the Government of Zimbabwe’s Vision 2030, while also generating lasting value for our stakeholders,” Tall noted.

Navigating the Artisanal Mining Landscape

A crucial component of the investment’s success lies in how Namib Minerals manages its relationship with local communities and the pervasive artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector operating around its concessions. For years, mines like Mazowe and Redwing have been focal points for artisanal miners, a reality that presents both challenges and opportunities.

While ASM remains the backbone of Zimbabwe’s gold deliveries to Fidelity Gold Refinery, unregulated activity brings safety risks, environmental damage, and operational hurdles for large-scale miners.

As dewatering at Redwing paves the way for a return to formal production, Namib Minerals is positioning itself to set a new benchmark in Zimbabwe’s mining sector: proving that world-class assets and inclusive, responsible mining can go hand in hand.

The European Union has moved to ease its restrictive measures on Zimbabwe, signalling a renewed phase of engagement centred on expanding trade, investment, and economic cooperation, while maintaining its long-standing arms embargo, Mining Zimbabwe can report.

By Ryan Chigoche

The EU has had restrictive measures in place against Zimbabwe since February 2002, when the European Council, made up of the bloc’s member states, expressed grave concern over the situation in the country, particularly serious human rights violations under then-President Robert Mugabe’s government.

This development marks an important shift in relations between Harare and Brussels and comes at a time when Zimbabwe is increasingly positioning itself as a strategic player in the global race for critical minerals essential to the energy transition.

“The EU remains constructively engaged with Zimbabwe and looks forward to deepening bilateral relations across a broad range of areas of mutual interest, including trade and investment,” the European Union said following its latest review of measures on the country.

While the bloc extended its arms embargo on Zimbabwe by another year to February 2027, it confirmed that provisions relating to asset freezes and travel bans have been lifted, as no individuals or entities remain under sanctions.

The last remaining entity, Zimbabwe Defence Industries, was removed from the sanctions list in 2025, effectively ending targeted economic restrictions.

This development signals a gradual thaw in relations after decades of tension with Western powers, stemming from sanctions imposed in the early 2000s over governance and human rights concerns, as strategic economic interests begin to reshape long-standing diplomatic dynamics.

The easing of measures comes at a critical moment, with global powers intensifying efforts to secure key minerals for clean energy technologies, including lithium and rare earth elements.

Zimbabwe, home to some of the world’s largest hard-rock lithium deposits and significant platinum reserves, is increasingly viewed as a strategic supplier, attracting growing international interest in its mining sector.

Reinforcing this momentum, Diana Janse, Sweden’s Deputy Minister of Trade and Promotion, at the just concluded Mining Indaba, highlighted opportunities for deeper cooperation in mining modernisation, particularly in mechanisation, sustainable mining technologies, and environmentally responsible extraction.

“It is good to meet with the Minister here at this mining exhibition since we have a lot of Swedish companies that have a lot to offer to the mining industry,” she said. “In terms of equipment to conduct sustainable mining, sustainable from an environmental point of view but also from a social point of view.”

Janse said Sweden was keen to deepen partnerships with Zimbabwe’s mining sector.

“So, I discussed this with the minister, and we are happy to partner with Zimbabwe in the mining industry to develop that partnership,” she said.

She noted that Swedish companies are well-positioned to support Zimbabwe’s mining sector, reflecting growing European interest in the country’s mineral development trajectory.

As reported by Mining Zimbabwe, her remarks echoed similar sentiments from John Humprey, the United Kingdom’s Trade Commissioner for Africa, who highlighted ongoing discussions with Zimbabwe on skills development, technology transfer, and geological surveying.

The EU’s renewed emphasis on trade and investment is therefore seen as strategically significant for Zimbabwe’s mining industry, which is expected to play a central role in driving economic growth, mineral beneficiation, and integration into global green supply chains.

At the same time, while the United States continues to maintain targeted sanctions on Zimbabwean officials, including President Emmerson Mnangagwa under its Global Magnitsky framework, it signalled at the Mining Indaba 2026 a strong push for cooperation with Zimbabwe’s mining sector.

Washington’s focus is on securing critical minerals such as lithium, nickel, and rare earth elements, vital for electric vehicles, battery storage, and defence technologies.

The U.S. Embassy in Zimbabwe said discussions aim to strengthen strategic mineral reserves through investment partnerships that create jobs and benefit local communities while building resilient, transparent supply chains.

The engagement is intended as a platform for “win-win mineral supply transactions,” demonstrating the United States’ continued interest in Zimbabwe’s critical minerals despite ongoing sanctions.

For Zimbabwe, expanding ties with both the European Union and other Western partners offers opportunities to improve access to capital, technology, and export markets at a time when the country is seeking to leverage its vast mineral resource base to accelerate industrial development and solidify its role in the global critical minerals value chain.

Premier African Minerals Limited has set a $13.4 million interim budget for the six months to July 2026 to sustain critical operations at its Zulu lithium project near Bulawayo, as the company seeks to steady its finances after production setbacks and mounting debt strained its balance sheet, Mining Zimbabwe reports.

By Ryan Chigoche

The London-listed miner is operating from what it describes as a highly precarious financial position, marked by significant borrowings, pauses in operations, and continued reliance on shareholder, creditor, and partner support to remain a going concern. Management is pursuing a combination of equity fundraising, debt restructuring, and technical modifications to its processing plant in an effort to stabilise output and restore investor confidence.

The company’s largest liability, approximately $46 million, is owed to Canmax Technologies under a 2023 prepayment agreement that financed the construction and commissioning of the Zulu Lithium and Tantalum Project.

Premier failed to meet minimum production targets of 1,000 tonnes of lithium spodumene per month in November and December 2023, triggering a breach of its offtake agreement. Following the default, Canmax exercised its rights to increase the interest rate on the outstanding balance to 12% per annum.

Subsequent amendments to the agreement allow Canmax to receive between 25% and 50% of gross proceeds from lithium shipments, while accrued interest has been converted into equity, leaving the Chinese group with an approximately 13.38% stake in Premier.

In January 2026, the parties agreed to extend the long-stop date under the restated offtake and prepayment agreement to the earlier of June 30, 2026, or the signing of a binding sales agreement with a buyer acceptable to Canmax, alongside arrangements to settle or manage the prepayment and accrued interest.

Canmax also secured the right to participate in future fundraisings to maintain its 13.38% holding on a fully diluted basis. At its discretion, part of the interest owed may be repaid through the issuance of new shares, ensuring its ownership percentage is preserved following any capital raise.

Against this backdrop, Premier’s near-term funding requirement totals about $13.4 million, allocated to plant completion, commissioning, and optimisation ($0.8 million); operational suppliers and critical services ($4.4 million); staff costs and statutory obligations ($3.3 million); and legacy payables of roughly $4.9 million.

The budget assumes no operating revenue during the commissioning and optimisation phase and incorporates a test-run period, while certain supplier arrangements do not require immediate settlement of all outstanding amounts.

With limited cash resources, the company will seek shareholder approval at an upcoming annual general meeting to issue up to 35 billion ordinary shares and authorise directors to grant rights to subscribe for or convert securities into shares.

Conditional on that approval, Premier will also request authority to issue up to a further 5 billion shares, including those required to satisfy Canmax’s previously notified conversion rights.

The board cautioned that failure to pass the resolutions could compel the company to pursue alternative financing, potentially including a discounted open offer, though it said less dilutive options would be prioritised where feasible.

Operationally, Premier’s immediate focus is on installing and commissioning a new spodumene flotation circuit using equipment and process design from Xinhai Technology Processing, replacing reliance on the existing primary flotation configuration.

The company has entered into a procurement, installation, and commissioning contract with Thriving Engineering Private Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Xinhai, covering delivery of flotation equipment by the end of February 2026, on-site engineering support, and a process performance guarantee tied to achieving targeted concentrate grades and recoveries at a design throughput of 15 to 20 tonnes per hour, subject to feed material meeting agreed specifications.

Subject to logistics and site readiness, Premier expects the upgraded flotation circuit to be installed, commissioned, and producing spodumene concentrate in the second quarter of 2026. Managing Director Graham Hill said the contractual framework links elements of payment to defined performance criteria, aligning contractor incentives with the processing outcomes required and keeping the work programme within the extended long-stop timeline.

The Zulu project forms part of Zimbabwe’s broader push to strengthen its position in the electric vehicle battery supply chain. Mining remains the country’s largest foreign currency earner, contributing between 12% and 15% of gross domestic product, while lithium exports have positioned Zimbabwe as Africa’s top producer and a top-10 global supplier.

Beyond Zulu, Premier’s portfolio includes tungsten, rare earth elements, lithium, and tantalum assets in Zimbabwe, as well as lithium and gold projects in Mozambique, spanning brownfield developments with near-term production potential to early-stage exploration.