Online Reporter
Martin Kadzere
Zimbabwe’s gold revenue registered a more-than-double year-on-year surge during the first four months of 2026, driven by a combination of resilient industrial capacity and strong global prices.
According to the latest data from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, gold revenue inflows for the first four months of 2026 totalled US$1,2 billion, from about US$579 million realised in the same period last year.
In January 2025, the country recorded US$123,1 million, which climbed to US$290 million in January 2026.
February revenue was US$278,5 million in February 2026 from US$117 million in 2025, yielding a 138 percent increase year-on-year.
March 2026 sales totalled US$274,7 million from US$155,3 million in the same period last year, representing a 76,9 percent increase.
About US$374 million was realised in April 2026, up from US$183,3 million in the same month last year.
The sector’s upward momentum follows a robust 2025 performance where national output surged 28,1 percent to a record 46,7 tonnes, realising US$4,61 billion on foreign currency earnings.
Despite a brief, weather-induced slowdown in January 2026 caused by heavy rains across key gold belts, monthly output rebounded aggressively by May to hit 3,95 tonnes.
This month-on-month jump was primarily driven by a near 30 percent surge in artisanal deliveries, which continue to anchor the industry by contributing roughly 70 percent to 75 percent of total national output.
On the corporate front, major mining houses are aggressively scaling up infrastructure to capitalise on a highly favourable global price environment.
Caledonia Mining Corporation is actively boosting operations at its Gwanda-based Blanket Mine after production during the first quarter of 2026 dipped 20,9 percent year-on-year to 14,767 ounces due to deep-level sequencing challenges and equipment availability issues.
To restore access to high-grade ore zones and fulfil its full-year guidance of 72 000 to 76 500 ounces, Caledonia has commissioned an additional ball mill, hired a specialised contractor to accelerate underground development, and is transitioning the operation to a seven-day working week.
Furthermore, the company reported that recent 2026 exploration at its adjacent Motapa property has confirmed significant high-grade gold intersections, which will offer massive infrastructure synergies for its nearby mega-projects.
Concurrently, Padenga Holdings has emerged as one of the most valuable firms on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX), raising its 2026 capital expenditure to target an attributable gold output of 90 000 to 95 000 ounces through its mining arm, Dallaglio Investments.
Padenga’s flagship open-pit asset, the Eureka Mine in Guruve, continues to maintain robust production levels with a projected lifespan extending to 2039.
In recent weeks, Eureka has pushed forward its energy self-sufficiency goals by achieving “first power” on its new 5MW solar project, while executing a gravity circuit upgrade to maximise processing efficiencies and advancing feasibility studies to transition into an underground operation.
The long-term crown jewel of Zimbabwe’s gold pipeline remains Caledonia’s 100 percent-owned Bilboes Gold Project in Matabeleland North, which is on track to become the country’s largest single gold mine with a steady-state projection of 200 000 ounces annually.
Caledonia has advanced a structured, four-part funding strategy for the US$584 million project, successfully raising US$150 million via an oversubscribed convertible notes offering and appointing Stanbic Bank and CBZ Bank as co-lead arrangers for a US$150 million interim facility.
Backed by gold price put options that guarantee a floor price of US$3 500 per ounce through 2028, long-lead equipment procurement for Bilboes is scheduled to commence in the third quarter of 2026, targeting first gold production by late 2028.
