Zimbabwe lithium export ban triggers crackdown, concerns

A month after banning raw lithium exports, Zimbabwe was tightening its regulations and ramping up its crackdown on mineral smuggling in a major shake-up.

Zimbabwe had already flagged in June that raw exports would be banned from January 2027 to force local processing and industrialization. With no local testing or controls of exports in Zimbabwe, secondary minerals like tantalum, beryl and tin were being shipped out undetected and untaxed. Mining Minister Polite Kambamura said that the government was working on a critical mineral policy and planning a new survey to map and quantify its rare earth mineral resources.