Impala Platinum’s Zimbabwe unit eyes expansion into lithium
Impala Platinum Holding’s Zimbabwe unit is considering expanding into other metals, including lithium.
The Johannesburg-based platinum miner still sees a future in Zimbabwe and is on the lookout for opportunities to invest in other mining areas, according to Implats chairperson Thandi Orleyn. Its subsidiary, Zimplats Holdings, commissioned a key piece of processing equipment Wednesday as part of a $1.8-billion expansion programme announced in 2021.
“We are not going to rush into any untested areas,” Orleyn said in Ngezi, Zimbabwe, home to one of Southern Africa’s largest platinum deposits. “We are continuously looking at everything that is going to ensure that what we are part of is environmentally sustainable.”
Most of the lithium from Zimbabwe — which has one of Africa’s largest resources of the metal — is usually shipped to China or South Africa. But an expected surge in output from Zimbabwe over the next few years looks set to make the country a key cog in the global battery supply chain as nations rush to secure supplies of materials necessary for the transition from fossil fuels.
Zimbabwe has the world’s second-largest reserves of platinum, which occurs with base metals including nickel and copper. It also mines nickel, chrome, lithium and coal.
Comments
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation