Saudi Arabia has invested 100 billion dollars in the mining industry

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia is moving to put itself on the global critical minerals map, announcing a series of deals, investment plans and discoveries at the annual Future Minerals Forum in the capital, Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Mines, Khalid al-Mudaifer, announced on Wednesday that a new $100 billion mineral investment project is under development, of which $20 billion is already in the final engineering or construction phase.

Although the deputy minister did not provide further details, Saudi officials have discussed plans to significantly expand the country’s exploration for lithium, as well as other critical minerals and rare earths, including copper, gold, zinc, phosphate and nickel.

In early 2024, the kingdom’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources will release an estimate of the value of its untapped mineral resources. $1.3 trillion to $2.5 trillionreinforced by the discovery of the aforementioned elements and metals. The Saudi government at the Future Minerals Forum in January 2024 Established a $182 million incentive program for mineral exploration.

The kingdom’s state oil giant Aramco announced on Wednesday that it will form a joint venture with Saudi state mining company Maaden to explore and produce energy transition minerals.

Speaking on stage, Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman told the participants of the minerals forum that Aramco has identified “prospective” lithium concentrations of more than 400 parts per million in the areas where it operates.

“We were saying… there is no business for Aramco,” bin Salman told attendees. “Aramco can be a multifaceted company and its mandate has no limits.”

The minister highlighted Manara, a recently formed venture between Maaden and the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, or PIF. Manara was created to invest in mining assets around the world and develop more sustainable global supply chains.

“We don’t claim to have all the resources or capabilities, so we created Manara to make sure we have access to the resources we need,” bin Salman said. “We have to do it as fast and furious as possible.”

The minister added that with the help of possible collaborations, lithium production in the kingdom could start in 2027.

Lithium, a key element in batteries for appliances and electric vehicles, is a commodity in high demand, especially for the energy transition and advanced technologies, as Saudi Arabia seeks to diversify its economy away from oil.

The kingdom is also seeking to become a hub for processing these critical minerals as it seeks to build supply chains that are more resilient to global disruptions. About two-thirds of the lithium refining market is currently controlled by China.

Saudi Arabia in December announced the successful extraction of lithium From brine samples at Aramco oilfields. Cooperation with Ma’aden, Aramco and local mining startup Lithium Infinity is underway to launch a commercial pilot program for direct mining soon, al-Mudaifer said at the time.