Kodal says Mali lithium exports blocked due to permit delays
Regulatory hurdles in Mali have left British miner Kodal Minerals unable to export more than 20,000 metric tons of lithium concentrate, its chief executive Bernard Aylward told Reuters.
Kodal's blocked shipments come as global lithium production is already expected to drop this year — potentially by 228,000 tons — as miners curtail operations due to plummeting prices for the metal, used in electric vehicle batteries.
Kodal, which launched production in February, has agreed to sell its entire output to China's Hainan Mining, Aylward said.
"We're spending money to produce a product that we want to sell ... Our buyer actually wants to buy it, we can't export," he said.
Spokespeople for Mali's mining and trade ministries did not respond to requests for comment.
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