Zimbabwe lithium companies jointly request postponement of the concentrate export ban, currently only Huayou Cobalt has completed a lithium sulfate production line

According to Zimbabwean media reports, Innocent Rukweza, Chairman of the Lithium Producers Association, publicly stated at the Zimbabwe Chamber of Mines annual conference held in Victoria Falls City on June 18 local time that the association has submitted petitions to regulatory authorities such as the Minister of Mines, the Permanent Secretary, and the Zimbabwe Minerals Marketing Corporation—requesting a bit more leeway for the industry by postponing the effective date of the ore beneficiation ban by about five months from January 2027. "We are not seeking to evade beneficiation obligations, but sincerely ask to be allowed to complete the ongoing projects," Rukweza said. He emphasized that the industry has already committed approximately $1.45 billion to the construction of localized processing facilities, "with only one goal—to comply with government policy and complete beneficiation."