Mutapa Energy Resources is advancing two major lithium processing projects at Sandawana Mine in the Midlands province with a combined estimated investment of US$700 million.
In a statement recently, Mutapa Energy Resources said the US$300 million concentrator is targeted for commissioning in November 2027 and will process locally mined lithium ore into concentrate.
“The first is a US$300 million lithium concentrator, targeted for commissioning in November 2027. The facility will process locally mined lithium ore into concentrate, providing the feedstock required for further downstream processing,” the company said.
Mutapa is also advancing plans for the second phase of the investment, involving an estimated US$400 million lithium sulphate plant aimed at producing a higher-value lithium chemical locally.
“The second is an estimated US$400 million lithium sulphate plant. Mutapa expects to have a financing plan in place by December 2026, marking another step towards producing higher-value lithium chemicals locally,” it said.
Mutapa said the planned investments would support Sandawana’s transition from raw lithium extraction to integrated beneficiation.
“Together, the US$300 million concentrator plus US$400 million sulphate plant represent Sandawana’s transition from raw lithium extraction towards an integrated beneficiation operation and support Zimbabwe’s policy of increasing domestic mineral processing,” the company said.
The development comes as Zimbabwe seeks to extract greater value from its mineral resources by encouraging investment in domestic processing rather than the export of largely unprocessed minerals.
