The Western Australia Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration has approved the Mining Development and Closure Proposal (MDCP) for Global Lithium Resources' Manna lithium project, located ~110km east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, the company confirmed. Scope of approval. The MDCP permits early works and critical infrastructure development, including one main pit, two satellite pits, waste rock and dry stack tailings facilities, ore stockpiles, an accommodation village, a bore field, and topsoil stockpile areas. Timeline. The approval feeds into Global Lithium's final investment decision, targeted for Q4 2026. The company is fast-tracking toward first direct shipping ore (DSO) in Q2 2027, followed by first spodumene concentrate production (5.5% Li₂O grade) in mid-2027. MD Dr Dianmin Chen said the permit "accelerates our path to production," reiterating the company's ambition to become Australia's next lithium producer. SMM View: Outside core African coverage but relevant as a global supply-side data point Manna's targeted mid-2027 concentrate ramp adds to the broader spodumene supply pipeline against which African projects (Goulamina, Bikita) compete for market share and pricing. DSO-to concentrate timeline and grade (5.5% Li₂O) are company-stated targets pending FID confirmation; not yet production-verified.

Zimbabwe's first lithium sulfate plant, built by China-owned Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe at Goromonzi, reached full operational status in May 2026, mines minister Polite Kambamura confirmed last week. The $400 million facility is Africa's first lithium sulfate plant the first beneficiation announcement in Zimbabwe's sector to convert from construction to verified operating capacity. Carbonate unit still pre-commercial. PLZ's lithium carbonate refining facility is reported near completion but unconfirmed operational; more sulfate capacity is expected sector-wide ahead of Zimbabwe's full concentrate export ban, effective January 2027. Policy driver. Zimbabwe froze raw mineral exports in February 2026 ahead of the 2027 ban, forcing producers to build domestic processing capacity or lose export access. The restriction extends to 13 minerals beyond lithium, including cobalt, PGMs, and rare earths, from January 2027. Investment context. Over $1 billion in lithium sector investment has been logged since February 2026, per policy expert Tedious Ncube though the figure is undisaggregated by project and may blend processing and upstream mining capex. Battery manufacturing remains aspirational. Kambamura flagged domestic battery and solar panel production as a longer-term goal, with no capex, partner, or timeline attached. South Africa currently leads Africa's nascent battery-manufacturing capacity. SMM View: Goromonzi is the first verified beneficiation capacity milestone in Zimbabwe's lithium sector log as confirmed, distinct from carbonate and the $1bn aggregate unverified, project-level breakdown pending). Key watch point: whether sulfate or carbonate capacity build keeps pace with the January 2027 export cutoff or risks a supply disruption relevant to our Zimbabwe ban scenario model.

The Low-Carbon Ferrosilicon B and other projects have met the procurement conditions, and suppliers are now openly invited to participate in negotiation procurement activities. Project Overview 1.1 Project Name: Low-Carbon Ferrosilicon B and Other Projects 1.2 Client: Ansteel Co., Ltd. 1.3 Agency: Ansteel Tender Co., Ltd. 1.4 Project Funding Status: Self-raised 1.5 Project Overview: See the public attachments to the entrustment application 1.6 Platform and URL: Ansteel Smart Tendering and Bidding Platform (http://bid.ansteel.cn/TPBidder) Procurement Scope and Related Requirements 2.1 Procurement Scope: See the public attachments to the entrustment application 2.2 Delivery Date: September 20, 2026 2.3 Delivery Location: Anshan City, Liaoning Province: 2.4 Quality Standards or Main Technical Performance Indicators of Goods: None Supplier Qualification Requirements 3.1 Supplier Qualification Requirements: See the attachment Click to View Tender Details:

On August 7, Mirwais Azizi, founder and chairman of AZIZI DEVELOPMENTS L.L.C. (hereinafter referred to as "Azizi Developments"), a major real estate developer in Dubai, led a team to visit Shanghai Hengxi PV Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Hengxi PV"). The two sides held discussions on PV module supply and other topics, and officially signed a strategic cooperation memorandum for a 3 GW energy project, with the initial phase focusing on the supply of 2 GW of PV modules. Jawed Ludin, CEO of Energy Business at Azizi Developments, and Hu Jianbo, Executive Deputy General Manager of Hengxi PV, signed on behalf of the two parties.

The Northeast Regulatory Bureau of the National Energy Administration recently issued the《Implementation Plan for the Centralized Bidding Work for Centralized New Energy Power Generation Enterprises in the Northeast Region (Trial)》, establishing systematic rules for the market bidding behavior of centralized wind power and PV power generation enterprises in Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang provinces. The plan specifies that, in principle, only centralized bidding by new energy power generation enterprises within the same group (same parent company, same controlling shareholder, same actual controller, etc.) and within the same province is permitted, and cross-group and cross-province centralized bidding is prohibited. Operators with competitive relationships are prohibited from entering into monopoly agreements that fix or alter commodity relations.

The ferrosilicon and other project (BG2026080028) (second time) has met the procurement conditions, and suppliers are now publicly invited to participate in negotiated procurement activities. Project Introduction 1.1 Project Name: Ferrosilicon and other project (BG2026080028) (second time) 1.2 Principal: Bensteel Group 1.3 Agency: Ansteel Tendering Co., Ltd. Benxi Branch 1.4 Project fund implementation: self-raised 1.5 Project overview: See the public attachments of the commission application annex 1.6 Platform and website: Ansteel Intelligent Bidding Platform (http://bid.ansteel.cn/TPBidder) Procurement Scope and Related Requirements 2.1 Procurement scope: See the public attachments of the commission application annex 2.2 Delivery date: September 30, 2026 2.3 Delivery location: Benxi, etc. 2.4 Quality standards or main technical performance indicators of goods: See attachments Supplier Qualification Requirements 3.1 Supplier qualification requirements: See attachments Click to view tender details:

[Phosphorus Chemical: Egypt's $930 Million Integrated Phosphate Ore Project Officially Launched] On July 30, 2026, Egypt's Mineral Resources and Mining Industry Authority (MRMIA) signed a memorandum of understanding with Genesis Mining to launch an integrated phosphate ore entire industry chain project with a total investment of approximately $930 million in the New Valley Governorate, to be implemented in phases. The project is expected to reach an annual capacity of up to 20 million mt of phosphate ore, associated with a 4 million mt capacity of phosphate ore concentrates, and produce 500,000 mt of phosphoric acid and 500,000 mt of phosphorus chemical products per year. The project also carried out large-scale geological drilling to improve the mineral reserves database. Egypt holds the world's third-largest phosphate ore reserves, with proven reserves of approximately 2.8 billion mt. Several Chinese phosphorus chemical enterprises, including Chuan Jinnuo, Xingfa Group, and China State Construction, have already made early moves in the Egyptian market.

On August 6 local time, US President Trump signed an executive order under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to impose minimum import prices and additional tariffs on imported polysilicon and its derivative products, aiming to support the domestic polysilicon, semiconductor, and solar supply chains in the US. The minimum import price for polysilicon was set at $21 per kg, about 3.4 times the average price in China; polysilicon ingots and wafers at $100 per kg; and solar cells and modules at $0.22 per watt and $0.38 per watt, respectively. The measures will take effect on December 4, 2026. In response to the above news, a representative from Jinko Solar said that further assessment is needed for the new policies just introduced by the US, and communication can be made after the assessment is mature; reference can also be made to analyses by third-party institutions. On the same day, a representative from Trinasolar stated that the company mainly sells modules, and polysilicon is just a raw material for module production, one link in the industry chain. In addition, the company’s exports to North America are relatively small, and shipments are mainly conducted through partners, so the impact is temporarily limited. As of August 7, the board secretary office of JA Solar Technology did not answer the phone.

SMM August 10: Today, most market participants suggested keeping online prices stable. Mainstream spot order sources were offered at discounts of 25-50 yuan/mt to the SMM #1 lead average price, and shipments still faced pressure. Downstream purchases were based on demand, with limited willingness to proactively purchase, and overall trading performance was average. Today, the SMM secondary refined lead average price was reported at 15,550 yuan/mt, at a discount of 25 yuan/mt to the SMM #1 lead average price. The supplier selling sentiment was 1.07, and today's secondary refined lead purchasing sentiment was 1.21 (historical data can be accessed in the database).

On July 14, at the site of LONGi Green Energy 2026 PV+ESS Innovation Technology Launch Event, ACM technology was first released. After 20 days, module shipments equipped with ACM technology had exceeded 500 MW.