According to the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ), lithium export revenues fell 11% between January and September 2025, despite a 27% increase in production volumes — a trend attributed to global market oversupply, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Ryan Chigoche
During the period under review, lithium exports generated US$386.9 million, marking an 11% annual decline from last year. MMCZ says the drop in export earnings stems from prolonged price weakness, even as export volumes rose sharply over the same period.
“Despite the increase in tonnage, the value of exports decreased by 11%, from US$432.4 million in 2024 to US$386.9 million in 2025, mainly due to a fall in international spodumene prices,” MMCZ says.
The downturn comes amid a sustained glut in the China-dominated lithium supply chain, which has kept prices depressed for more than a year.
Global lithium prices shed 80% between March 2023 and 2024 and have yet to show meaningful signs of recovery, worsening the revenue squeeze for exporting countries like Zimbabwe.
For local producers, the earnings slump adds pressure at a time when companies have been pleading with the government to defer tax on lithium concentrates until the end of 2026.
Producers argue that the extension is necessary to allow them to raise capital for processing plants, which are required to meet beneficiation targets.
Currently, Zimbabwe levies a 5% VAT on lithium concentrates unless they are beneficiated to a specified level. Given depressed global prices, miners contend that a temporary tax moratorium would ease financial strain and give them room to invest in downstream capacity.
The government, however, has already announced plans to ban lithium concentrate exports from 2027, a policy designed to force companies to build in-country processing operations.
Despite the earnings decline, investor interest in Zimbabwe’s lithium sector remains strong. Kuvimba Mining House, for example, is advancing plans to develop a new mine at Sandawana by 2027, while Chinese-led investments continue to dominate the sector. The surge in investment, however, is unfolding against a backdrop of persistently low prices that continue to weigh on export revenues.
Zimbabwe has also solidified its position as a crucial supplier of lithium concentrate to Chinese refineries, following billions of dollars in investments by companies such as Chengxin Lithium Group and Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt.
Bikita Minerals, owned by Sinomine Resources Group, and Arcadia Lithium are both establishing processing facilities to produce higher-value lithium sulphate, marking a shift toward deeper beneficiation.
Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency (IEA) notes that the world will require roughly 55 additional lithium mines by 2035 to meet demand linked to the energy transition, underscoring the long-term importance of the battery mineral despite current market turbulence.
