Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe (Pvt) Ltd.

Current position

Assessment

Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe operates the only lithium sulphate plant in production in Zimbabwe as at 17 July 2026. The US$400 million facility at Arcadia, wholly owned by Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt since it acquired the remaining minority stake in 2025, was commissioned in late 2025 and began exporting lithium sulphate in April 2026. Nameplate capacity is 50,000 tonnes per annum; Mines and Mining Development Minister Dr Polite Kambamura observed the plant running at 60 per cent of that level during a technical visit on 17 July 2026. Beneficiation capacity is therefore in place and producing ahead of the 1 January 2027 prohibition. Two qualifications apply to this position. First, the assessment is against the beneficiation requirement only: Kambamura used the same visit to follow up on commitments PLZ gave after the February 2026 suspension of raw mineral and concentrate exports, covering laboratory development, skills and knowledge transfer, training of local personnel and the placement of Zimbabweans in senior management, and stated that some had been delivered and some remained in progress. Those obligations are outstanding and are not assessed here. Second, PLZ's stated plan to produce crude lithium carbonate by end-2026, targeting a 50/50 split with sulphate, is an intention requiring further equipment and is not capacity in place. A figure of 80,000 tonnes per annum for the plant appears in some reporting; 50,000 tonnes is used here, being the figure given independently in both sources cited.

Facility

Stage

Operating

Production

Producing

Sources

1. Zimbabwe commends PLZ's Lithium Sulphate Plant, Minister urges full compliance with Government commitments
   Mining Zimbabwe17 July 2026
2. Arcadia Mine Targets Crude Lithium Carbonate Production by End of 2026
   Mining Zimbabwe11 June 2026