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China accelerates partnership with Namibia to take the country beyond raw material export, support internal processing of uranium, lithium, and cobalt, and strengthen a strategy that combines nuclear energy, critical minerals, local industrialization, and geoeconomic advancement in Africa
The China has reinforced its support for Namibia to advance in the local processing of critical minerals and uranium, leaving behind the model based solely on the export of raw resources. The move was confirmed in a joint statement following talks in Beijing between China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, and Namibia’s Minister of International Relations and Trade, Selma Ashipala-Musavyi. The idea is to transform natural resources into higher value-added products through cooperation in the value chain and new Chinese investments.
The initiative draws attention because it involves a strategic raw material for nuclear energy and the new global mineral economy. Namibia, which already exports uranium in raw form and is the third-largest producer of the mineral worldwide, now seeks to expand its industrialization and reach the production of nuclear fuel rods. For Beijing, this advancement fits into a broader strategy to secure supply for its growing fleet of reactors, expand presence in sectors such as new energies, green hydrogen, oil and gas, mining and infrastructure, and consolidate influence over a more valuable stage of the African chain.
What China wants by supporting local processing of uranium in Namibia
The China is supporting Namibia’s attempt to abandon its historical dependence on the export of unprocessed minerals. Instead of just selling raw materials, the African country seeks to attract Chinese companies to locally process uranium, lithium, and cobalt, adding value before export.
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This support was formalized in a joint statement released after the talks in Beijing. In it, China promised to help transform Namibia’s natural resources into higher value-added products through domestic processing and cooperation in the value chain. In practice, this brings the two countries closer to a model in which Namibia tries to climb the industrial scale while Beijing strengthens its access to strategic minerals.
Why Namibian uranium has gained such significance in this strategy
Uranium holds a central position because it is an essential fuel for nuclear reactors. Namibia is the third-largest producer of the mineral worldwide and already hosts two major Chinese-owned mines, Husab and Rossing, which provide a significant portion of China’s needs.
The goal now is to go beyond the export of yellowcake, the raw and powdered form of uranium oxide. With Chinese support, Namibia aims to evolve to a more advanced stage of the chain, with potential production of nuclear fuel rods. This completely changes the economic and strategic value of what currently leaves the country only as raw input.
The numbers that explain China’s advance on Namibia’s mineral chain
Some data helps to measure the size of this movement. In February, CNNC Overseas Limited, the Chinese arm of the sector, signed a US$ 321.5 million agreement with the Australian Bannerman Energy to acquire a 45% stake in the Etango project, one of the largest unexplored uranium deposits in the world.
Under the agreement, the Chinese company also secured the right to purchase 60% of the production throughout the mine’s lifespan, in exchange for providing debt-free financing for construction. At the same time, the Husab mine, predominantly controlled by China General Nuclear Power Group, is the largest producer in Namibia and has an annual projected capacity of 6,000 tons. Meanwhile, the Rossing mine, controlled by China National Uranium Corporation, has had its lifespan extended until 2036.
What changes in practice for Namibia when exiting raw material export
Namibia is trying to rebalance a trade relationship that, according to Minister Selma Ashipala-Musavyi, still carries a classic asymmetry. The country exports raw materials and receives finished products. The new plan seeks to reverse part of this logic by bringing more stages of refining, processing, and manufacturing closer to the source of the resources.
In practice, this means seeking more industrialization, greater local processing capacity, and increased integration into the global value chain. The ambition goes beyond uranium and also reaches sectors such as new energies, green hydrogen, oil and gas, mining, and infrastructure. The bet is that value will no longer be captured only outside the country and will also be built within it.
Why China expands investments while offering zero tariff
The offensive by China is not limited to mineral investment. During the talks in Beijing, Wang Yi stated that he intends to align Chinese investments with Vision 2030 and Namibia’s Sixth National Development Plan. As part of this movement, Beijing confirmed that Namibia will benefit from its new zero tariff policy for African imports, set to start on May 1st.
This gesture increases the weight of the partnership. On one hand, China deepens its presence in strategic projects. On the other, it opens commercial space for African products. This reinforces Chinese influence not only over extraction but also over trade, industrialization, and long-term economic planning.
The visit to Shenzhen shows that the dispute has already entered the industrial phase
During her week-long trip to China, Selma Ashipala-Musavyi presented investment opportunities to business leaders in Shenzhen, China’s main technology hub. The gesture shows that Namibia is not just seeking buyers for raw materials but partners to build industrial capacity.
The minister advocated for a relationship more focused on local processing and industrialization. In her speech, she made it clear that she intends to attract factories, refining, and processing into the country. This movement gives the partnership a more ambitious profile, as it shifts the conversation from simple resource trade to establishing productive operations.
What China gains by getting even closer to Namibia
For China, the rapprochement with Namibia reinforces supply security at a time of expansion of its nuclear reactor fleet and growing demand for minerals linked to the energy transition. In addition to uranium, Namibia is also rich in graphite, copper, and rare earth elements, all strategic for high-value industrial supply chains.
With this, Beijing strengthens its position on multiple levels at once. It ensures access to critical resources, expands business presence, deepens diplomatic influence, and inserts itself into more profitable stages of the African production chain. It is not just a relationship of buying and selling ore but a long-term strategy to better control the decisive links of this production.
Why this partnership draws so much attention on the global stage
The case stands out because it shows a more sophisticated competition for strategic resources. Instead of acting merely as a buyer of ore, China appears to be supporting local industrialization and proposing a partnership that combines investment, value chain, trade, and economic planning.
This model has been pointed out by analysts as a more sustainable form of relationship, precisely because it transforms both sides into participants in the processing business.
At a time when critical minerals, nuclear energy, and energy transition have gained global significance, the partnership between China and Namibia is being viewed as a relevant move for the future of mineral geopolitics.
The next steps for Namibia to leave yellowcake behind
The progress towards the production of nuclear fuel rods still depends on the expansion of local processing capacity and the arrival of new investments. But the political direction has already been set by Windhoek and Beijing: less raw export and more value addition within Namibia.
The strategy also connects to previous movements by the country, such as the 2023 decision to ban the export of unprocessed lithium and other critical elements. Now, with Chinese support, Namibia is trying to apply this logic more broadly and transform mineral resources into a real basis for industrialization and economic power.
In your opinion, does the partnership between China and Namibia represent a more balanced industrialization for Africa or a new chapter in the global competition for control of strategic minerals?
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