The Zimbabwe government has lifted the ban on chrome ore and chrome fines exports, the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe has said.
The move is intended to plug leakages, encourage value addition and to help miners re-equip through chrome pledges.
The lifting of the ban, it is expected, will run for one-and-a-half years before a further review.
"The Minerals Marketing Corporation wishes to advise that the ban on export of chrome ore and chrome fines has been lifted for an 18 months window with effect from of November 1, 2009," MMCZ said.
A senior official with the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development, who requested anonymity, said the Government had lifted the ban to enable local miners to mechanise their operations.
He said Government realised that most of its fledgling mining operations did not have resources to afford key but expensive machinery.
The source said it was Government understanding that miners could pledge their chrome for mining machinery, which is expensive to acquire.
High-grade chrome, which is found mostly in the Midlands province along the Great Dyke, is also found in Shurugwi, Mutorashanga, Lalapanzi and Guinea Fowl.
"Most of our people do not have resources and so lifting the ban will empower them as they would be able to marshal resources.
"They will be able to get external loans to buy machines," said the source.
The ban was temporarily lifted last year, but was restored as mining firms and individuals started abusing the waiver.
Local miners would accrue debts that they could not settle creating problems for Government as the guarantor of some of the deals.
Government first considered banning of raw chrome exports around 2007 in an attempt to encourage local value addition to the mineral.
Mines and Mining Development Minister Obert Mpofu, speaking on the sidelines of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa Summit in June this year, said the ban was effected as a loss control measure and to encourage value addition to the mineral.
Minister Mpofu said the ban was meant to plug one of the major holes through which the country had been losing a lot of revenue.
"We have already spoken to some producers and exporters on the issue.
"The country is losing a lot of revenue through the unregulated sale of such high value minerals resources as chrome and chromite products, which would generate huge revenues if sold through the right channels," Minister Mpofu was quoted as saying.
He said some producers, such as the Zimbabwe Mining and Smelting Company and Zimbabwe Alloys, were already smelting raw chrome into such semi-finished products as ferrochrome.
Zimbabwe still has abundant buyers for its chrome products, mainly in South Africa, China and Europe who are willing to buy stockpiles of the mineral.
Source: Zimbabwe Herald
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