WASHINGTON — Saudi Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef embarked on Monday an official four-day visit to the United States, leading a high-level delegation from the industrial and mining sectors. A key agenda of Alkhorayef's visit aims to advance collaboration in the mining and critical minerals sector, an area of increasing global demand. The visit is expected to further enhance strategic economic relations and broaden collaborative efforts within industrial and mining fields, while identifying joint venture opportunities in high-priority sectors marked for localization, such as downstream industries, mining, automotive, aerospace, medical devices, and food industries. Alkhorayef is scheduled to conduct high-level dialogues with senior US government representatives and chief executives of major American firms specializing in mining, advanced industrial production, automotive engineering, and food processing. Key engagements will feature meetings with US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and North Carolina's Secretary of Commerce Lee Lilley, alongside leadership from enterprises including General Mills, Lilac Solutions, RTX, IBM Quantum Innovation Center, International Flavor & Fragrances, CAMAL, Carrier, and Guardian Industries. The United States remains Saudi Arabia's largest economic partner in the Middle East, with non-oil trade reaching $18.59 billion in 2024. Last year, the Kingdom exported $5.42 billion in goods to the US, led by plastics, aluminum, and chemicals, and imported $13.17 billion worth of machinery, vehicles, electrical equipment, and pharmaceuticals. Currently, more than 1,300 US companies are operating in Saudi Arabia, with over 200 establishing regional headquarters in Riyadh, underscoring growing investor confidence in the Kingdom's industrial ecosystem. Major US companies, including Caterpillar, John Deere, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Nestlé, and Lucid Motors, have established operations in the Kingdom, while partnerships such as Dussur's joint venture with Baker Hughes, valued at $141 million, demonstrate the growing scale of US investments in Saudi Arabia's industrial sector. Furthermore, the Public Investment Fund allocates approximately 40 percent of its global portfolio to the US market, with Saudi investments in the United States totaling an estimated $770 billion. During the latest Saudi-US Investment Forum, it was revealed that bilateral agreements have exceeded $600 billion, spanning mining, energy, defense, and advanced technologies. In May 2025, the Kingdom signed a memorandum of cooperation with the US Department of Energy on the sidelines of the Saudi-US Investment Forum to secure global supply chains for critical minerals. Similarly, an agreement between the Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) and US-based MP Materials is already enabling the development of rare earth supply chains to support the global energy transition. Advanced technology is also expected to generate significant discussion with US officials, as Alkhorayef aims to highlight opportunities for collaboration in advanced manufacturing and innovation. Saudi Arabia is currently embracing Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies such as AI, automation, and robotics, with initiatives including the Future Factories Program, modernizing factories to enhance efficiency across manufacturing and supply chain operations. While in the United States, the minister will highlight the generous financial incentives available to potential investors in the Kingdom, including the Standard Incentives program that offers up to 35 percent capital investment costs, capped at SR50 million. Saudi Arabia's position as a global industrial and mining hub, coupled with the United States' longstanding reputation as a global powerhouse, reflects a shared commitment to generating economic growth and enabling industrial transformation while fostering a long-term strategic partnership.
