Zimbabwean mining companies are considering upgrading their local nickel refineries to produce battery grade lithium

A Zimbabwe mining company is considering upgrading its local nickel refinery to produce battery grade lithium or building a new lithium carbonate plant at a cost of up to $150 million, its general manager said on Monday.

Lithium is needed globally as a battery metal for the transition to electric vehicles and renewable energy, and Zimbabwe has said it could supply 20 of the world's lithium.

It is one of the top 10 producers of lithium, but currently produces only a small fraction of the global total.

John McTaggart, managing director of Kamativi Tailings, told Parliament that his company was negotiating with the Zimbabwean-listed miner RioZim to upgrade the Queen's Nickel refinery, located 120 km(75 miles) west of the capital, to produce lithium carbonate.

But if it fails, Qiamadidi may consider setting up a lithium carbonate plant in Zimbabwe, at a cost of $100 million to $150 million, McTaggart said.

Kamativi is a joint venture between privately owned Jimubala and the National mining company Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation, which is disposing of tailings piles in Western Zimbabwe.

During the mining and processing of tin-containing minerals, tailings were dumped and accumulated between 1936 and 1994.

"We believe that we have the amount of concentrated liquid in the country to guarantee the lithium carbonate factory. ` Africa certainly needs an ongoing electric car revolution, 'Mr. McTaggart said.

McTaggart will not provide further details when he later contacted Reuters for comments.

McTaggart said a refinery that would produce up to 19,000 tonnes of lithium pyroxene concentrate should be completed by December at a cost of $25M.

McTaggart said Canadian-listed Qimata has the right to buy Kamativi.

Zimbabwe's mining minister, Wensidunqitan, said in February that the Southern African country would generate $1.4 billion in revenue within eight years of the Kamativi lithium project. However, McTaggart said that this figure is purely speculative.

The page contains the contents of the machine translation.