Zinc recovery process.

A process for the recovery of zinc metal from a zinc mineral includes the steps of leaching the zinc mineral in a solution including a halide species formed from two or more different halides, to leach the zinc into the solution. The zinc-bearing solution is then electrolysed to yield zinc metal and to generate the halide species. The electrolysed solution including the halide species is then returned to the leaching step. A portion of the electrolysed solution can be removed as a bleed stream from a cathode compartment of an electrolytic cell of the electrolysis process and processed to remove manganese as manganese dioxide precipitate by adding thereto limestone, and the halide species from an anode compartment of the electrolysis process. In this regard, the pH and Eh of the solution can be regulated in a manner that favours the formation of the manganese dioxide precipitate over the formation of a precipitate of zinc.