Saudi Arabia Announces 6 Mining Opportunities as Firms Eye $2.5tn Mineral Wealth
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has announced six new mining opportunities for local and international investors.
These opportunities are part of the fifth round of mining competitions for exploration licenses and encompass gold, copper, zinc, lead, and silver ores in various regions of the Kingdom, covering a total area of over 940sq km.
Investment opportunities for exploration licenses include the “Al-Halahila” site in the Najran region, estimated to be more than 34sq km in size and containing copper, zinc, and gold minerals.
Saudi mining opportunities
Additionally, the “Jabal Qaran” site in the Najran region, covering an area exceeding 57sq km, contains copper, gold, zinc, silver, and lead deposits.
The Ministry explained that other sites include the “Makman Hijab” in the Riyadh region, covering more than 118sq km and containing gold and silver ore deposits, as well as the “An-Nimas” site in the Asir region, spanning over 222sq km and containing copper, zinc, silver, and gold.
Furthermore, the “Al-Mihah” site in the Makkah region, with an area exceeding 234sq km, includes deposits of copper, zinc, lead, silver, and gold, and the “Al-Hajirah” site in the Asir region, covering an area exceeding 274sq km and containing deposits of silver, copper, zinc, lead, and gold.
The Ministry has set the beginning of May 2024 as the deadline for submitting technical offers to compete for exploration licenses in the proposed sites.
The Ministry has made available the information platform that includes geological and technical data for the sites. The winners are expected to be announced in the bidding stage for the fifth round at the end of June 2024.
The Ministry has designed the competition to facilitate the participation of local and foreign companies with experience in the mining exploration sector.
During the submission stage, the applicant companies’ technical competence and financial capacity will be evaluated, and the sites will be awarded based on the submitted technical work programs, social and environmental impact plans, and investment plans.
