- Lithium is expected to trade at US$83 959.41/t by the end of this quarter
- How miners from Mberengwa are going to be beneficiaries of the lithium mining tribute
- Cartels were buying Lithium at paltry amounts
In an effort to see communities benefiting from minerals found in their areas, the Mberengwa community has welcomed Kuvimba’s initiative to tribute Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) members to mine at its Sandawana mineral-rich Mwezha range.
On Thursday the Mberengwa/ Zvishavane local leadership comprising of four chiefs namely Chief Mahlebadza, Chief Mudavanhu, Chief Chingoma and Chief Mposi met at Mberengwa Rural District Council Offices to map the way forward on responsible mining in Mberengwa.
The meeting came after the Joint Operation Command (JOC) led by Hon Larry Mavhima visited Sandawana’s claims on the eve of the ZMF tribute to access the situation on the ground. JOC was informed that operations will commence once the registration of miners has been done and toilets constructed.
The meeting was called at the behest of the District Development Coordinator (DDC) for Mberengwa Mr Hlabati to map a way forward as to how miners from Mberengwa were going to be beneficiaries of the mining tribute. In attendance was the ZMF leadership led by President Henrietta Rushwaya and Midlands Provincial Chairman Mr Makumba Nyenje. Mberengwa Ward 29 Councillor Mr Tawina Shumba, District JOC and representatives of various interest groups including women, youths, people living with disabilities and war veterans also attended the meeting.
The Chiefs thanked ZMF for considering the plight of the locals and welcomed the ZMF engagement efforts and promised to work closely with the mining body.
The meeting also looked into developmental issues and of note was the issue of the state of the roads, bridges and other developmental issues which are making Mberengwa lag behind as a district. It was resolved that while communities were benefiting from mining the lithium in their area, part of the proceeds were going to be used for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) issues as a way of making sure that the whole of Mberengwa benefits.
The chiefs were happy that ZMF was considering empowering their people in the process ensuring that they solely have access to mining areas in the tribute. The Chiefs also made a clarion call for ZMF to put their people first when it comes to employment and developmental issues.
ZMF President commended the local leadership for welcoming her organization into their district and promised to work in accordance with the country’s mining legislation, ensuring that issues of responsible sourcing are well adhered to. The ZMF President also advised the gathering that the area designated for small-scale mining tribute by Kuvimba was outside Mining Lease 3. It was also made clear by ZMF that all the miners needed to get access cards to enter the mining areas.
Mberengwa DDC commended the mining body for managing the situation and bringing sanity to the Mberengwa mining area. A representative of the war veterans who were present at the meeting thanked ZMF for also ensuring that the liberation war heroes were included in issues of national development and emphasized the issue of ensuring that Zimbabwe as a country benefits from its God-given resources and the issue of value addition and beneficiation was of paramount importance towards economic revival.
There was a lithium rush by illegal miners in Mberengwa’s Sandawana area (which Kuvimba has mining rights) with more than 5000 illegal miners from across the country flooding to plunder the lithium resource.
Following the invasion, cartels emerged and were buying the resource at paltry amounts ranging from US$100 to US$150 per tonne.
Singling out Mberengwa as a smuggling hotspot President Mnangagwa said the government will gazette a law to ban exports of raw minerals and concentrates to enable the country to fully benefit from its mineral wealth.
Lithium Sales
Despite the unprecedented global disruption precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 and H1 2021 saw a revival in market sentiment for lithium with allied rebound in demand and prices.
In H1 2021, lithium product prices continued their upward trajectory, by June 2021 prices continued to be strong with lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide both at US$13,500 and US$15,000 per tonne respectively. This trend has continued into Q3 2021, with Fastmarkets reporting prices of US$14,000 and US$15,500 per tonne respectively in July 2021.
Lithium is expected to trade at US$83 959.41/t by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations and is estimated to trade at US$87 143.65 in the next 12 months.