Vice Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources for Mining Affairs Eng. Khalid Al-Mudaifer delivered a speech in the Investing in Africa Mining (INDABA), which is held in Cape Town between May 9 and 12, 2022, during which he reviewed qualitative opportunities that await investors and mining companies in the Kingdom that, he stressed, enjoys a vital fast-developing investment climate. The vice minister noted that, under the Saudi Vision 2030, several perceptions and programs were prepared to develop the mining sector to become the third pillar of the Saudi industry, in addition to endorsing the comprehensive strategy for mining and mineral industries. He added that the successes witnessed by the sector rely on a diversified set of advantages that were specially prepared for potential investors, such as the local demand increase on mineral resource, the geographical location of the Kingdom near global economic markets, and its location that is in the center of the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Europe. Eng. Al-Mudaifer noted that the value of untapped minerals in the Arab Shield area alone is estimated at USD 1.3 trillion, noting that the Kingdom is rich in various kinds of minerals, including those used in manufacturing essential technologies to build a sustainable future, noting that the national geological database that was launched recently provides access through the internet to almost 80 years of geological, geophysical and geochemical data, including thousands of detailed reports on the goals and aspects of mining. The vice minister also shed light on some examples of the success of steps that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has made to develop the mining sector, which achieved record revenues in 2021 that reached SAR 727 million (USD 194 million), and the success in attracting investments worth more than SAR 30 billion (USD 8 billion), in addition to stimulating additional investments with a value of SAR 120 billion (USD 32 billion) in several projects who are pending the completion of studies, noting that the ministry has received 930 exploration applications, including 145 applications from 100% foreign companies.
