Online Reporter
Rutendo Nyeve [email protected]
GOVERNMENT’s decision to ban the export of raw minerals, particularly lithium concentrates, has triggered a major private sector investment drive into electricity generation, with mining companies expected to produce nearly 1 000 megawatts of power to support beneficiation and industrialisation projects.
The policy shift, which forms part of the Second Republic’s broader value-addition and industrialisation agenda, is compelling mining firms to establish local processing plants while simultaneously investing in captive power generation to meet growing energy demands.
The move aligns with President Mnangagwa’s vision that Zimbabwe’s God-given mineral wealth must benefit citizens through industrial growth, job creation and economic transformation rather than the continued export of unprocessed raw materials.
The policy also seeks to curb mineral leakages and accelerate local value addition in line with Vision 2030.
Speaking at a high-level energy conference in Cape Town recently, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Power Development, Engineer Gloria Magombo, said the industrialisation thrust was rapidly reshaping Zimbabwe’s energy landscape.
“Zimbabwe is traditionally a very agricultural country, but the other area where we have seen tremendous growth is the mining industry. We were an exporter of raw materials and we have changed policy. We are now looking at beneficiation of minerals,” said Eng Magombo.
“We have come up with a law which is clear that you cannot export any raw materials. And we know that comes with a huge demand on the electricity side.”
Zimbabwe has emerged as one of Africa’s key lithium producers amid rising global demand for battery minerals used in electric vehicles and renewable energy storage technologies.
Eng Magombo said the country now wants to move beyond exporting lithium ore and concentrates towards producing higher-value products such as lithium carbonate and lithium sulphate.
She said the policy was already attracting significant private sector interest in power generation and infrastructure investment.
“No lithium shall be exported from the country without minimum beneficiation and moving up the value chain to even make lithium carbonate or sulphate. We are doing the same with all other minerals,” said Eng Magombo.
“There’s an expected huge demand coming through, and it presents a huge opportunity for the private sector to come in and invest both in mining and value addition, which leads to industrialisation.”
Eng Magombo revealed that several mining companies were already constructing their own electricity generation plants under captive power arrangements.
“We have seen lots of mines building new capacity. We expect almost 1 000 megawatts to come from the private sector, especially the mining sector, with the biggest power plant being upgraded from 35 to 85 megawatts. We will see more of the 200 and 100 megawatts solar plants coming up,” said Eng Magombo.
Mining has become a cornerstone of Zimbabwe’s economy under the Second Republic, with the sector recording unprecedented growth since 2017. Mineral export earnings have risen from approximately US$2,7 billion to over US$5,6 billion, with some reports indicating revenues reached US$9,77 billion by 2023.
The sector contributes about 12 to 13,3 percent of Gross Domestic Product and accounts for over 80 percent of the country’s export receipts, underscoring its critical role in driving the nation towards an upper-middle-income economy by 2030.
The growing demand for electricity from mining and industrial projects comes as the Government intensifies reforms within the energy sector to improve generation capacity, attract investment and expand access to electricity.
Eng Magombo said Zimbabwe’s national power utility had now gone for more than 150 days without load shedding, reflecting improvements brought about by ongoing reforms.
“We would like to copy your ability to go 365 days without any load shedding. I would like to say that our utility has gone 150 days. So we are also copying,” she said.
Zimbabwe’s electricity access rate stands at 62 percent, with Government targeting universal access by 2030 under the National Energy Compact.
The country is also reviewing its 2012 energy policy while implementing renewable energy and energy efficiency frameworks designed to modernise the sector.
To improve investor confidence, the Government is also restructuring the national power utility through smart metering systems, prepaid metering and financial reforms aimed at making the utility a credible off-taker for independent power producers.
“We believe that having a viable utility allows them to be the off-taker of first choice. With the mechanisms we are putting in place, it will allow them to have access to more financing and be a credible partner,” said Eng Magombo.
In rural communities, Government is targeting the rollout of more than 1 200 solar home systems as part of efforts to improve electricity access in remote areas.
Zimbabwe is also positioning itself as a regional electricity transmission hub through ongoing interconnection projects linking the country to Zambia and Mozambique.
The latest developments underline how Zimbabwe’s mineral beneficiation policy is increasingly becoming a catalyst not only for industrialisation, but also for energy infrastructure expansion and broader economic transformation.
