Kingdom unveils details of the 33 sites available for mineral exploration
Deals worth SAR 27bn ($7.2 billion) were signed on the first day of the two-day Future Minerals Forum 2024 (FMF), that concluded in Riyadh on 12 January.
As the first major event to be held in the kingdom in 2024, the first day of the two-day forum saw 20 agreements signed between government agencies, companies and private entities participating in FMF.
The deals focused on mining exploration, technology, and communications, as well as the application of sustainability standards, localisation, qualification, and industrialisation in the minerals sector.
Also unveiled at the forum were details of the 33 sites available for exploration this year, and the first mining belt to be made available for exploration in the region at Jabal Sayid, an area of 4,000sqkm.
Saudi’s Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef further stated that the kingdom has established a US$ 182mn mineral exploration incentive programme, in a push to expand its mining sector and tap reserves of phosphate, gold, copper and bauxite, according to a Reuters report.
