ZIMBABWE'S mineral production, except for platinum and palladium, has taken a dip in the last 15 years due to lack of investment in new mines and the expansion of existing ones.
Latest statistics from the Chamber of Mines show that in addition to weak pricing structures and a static foreign exchange rate, the above factors have been the biggest setback for mining activity here.
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They reveal further that gold production, which peaked at 29 tonnes in 1916, had fallen to about 16 tonnes in 1990.
By end of 1999 output had recovered somewhat to 27 tonnes before hitting fresh lows at 10,3 tonnes last year.
This year, gold production is expected to shrink by a further 19 percent to 8,3 tonnes, as a result of rampant smuggling within the industry amongst other factors.
In 1975, Zimbabwe produced 2,1 percent of the world's gold but now accounts for less than 0,5 percent of global output.
The country was also the number three gold producer in Africa after South Africa and Ghana but has since dropped out of the top five gold-producing nations in Africa.
Expansion in traditional mining countries, as well as continued growth in other African countries such as Mali, Guinea and Tanzania has also taken the glitter out of Zimbabwe's gold mining sector.
Chamber of Mines president Mr Jack Murehwa ruled out a quick recovery for gold, citing an unfavourable policy and legislative environment.
All other minerals -- nickel, coal, asbestos, iron ore, copper and ferrochrome -- with the exception of platinum and palladium have recorded slower or no growth in the past two decades.
Platinum, whose extraction started at Mimosa in 1951, saw output rising from a mere 7 kilogrammes in 1996 to over 4 700kg last year, thanks largely to massive foreign investments by South Africa's Impala Platinum.
Surprisingly, most SA mining firms have kept faith in the local mining industry despite a concerted onslaught by the Western media against the wisdom of investing in Zimbabwe.
Among the SA mining companies that have poured millions of US dollars into the country's mining sector are Mzi Khumalo's Metallon Gold and Central African Gold.
But platinum production trends show encouraging trends and analysts are very bullish over a continued upward trend in production here.
Major stakeholder Impala says it is targeting most of its future growth in Zimbabwe, despite holding vast platinum exploration rights in South Africa and elsewhere in the world.
Palladium production rose from below 10kg in 1996 to 4 000kg by end of last year. The metal is produced as part of the platinum group of metals that also include rhodium, gold and silver.
The Chamber of Mines says nickel production fell to 8 100 tonnes in 2006 from a period peak 14 000 tonnes in 1994.
There was a constant increase in output between 1990 and 1994 when production ranged between 10 000 tonnes and 12 000 tonnes.
The story is the same for coal, often dubbed Zimbabwe's "black gold". Over 5,5 million tonnes of coal were produced in 1990 before lack of foreign currency and shortage of critical spare parts combined to bring down output to a 15-year low of two million tonnes in 2006.
Asbestos has fared slightly better, notwithstanding the ownership problems at Shabanie Mashava Mines and growing opposition to its use by the anti-asbestos lobby.
In 1990, Zimbabwe produced 160 000 tonnes, peaking at 170 000 tonnes in 1995 before international markets started to shrink on international crusades against the use of harmless chrysotile asbestos, known also as white asbestos. Last year, only 110 000 of asbestos were produced.
At present, Zimbabwe has no copper industry to talk about. The country's biggest copper mine, Mhangura, has been mothballed. Only 2 200 tonnes of copper were produced in 2006 from an all-time high 14 000 tonnes at the start of the '90s era.
Source : allafrica.com
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