Saudi Arabia is seeking applicants to explore mineral belts as it plans to exploit a $2.5tn resource opportunity. Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has opened pre-qualification applications for the ninth round of exploration licence competitions, covering three mineralised belts spanning 24,946sq km. This initiative is part of the ministry’s plan to offer exploration licences for mining sites across over 50,000sq km in 2025, as announced at the fourth Future Minerals Forum in January. Saudi mining industry The licensing round is part of a broader strategy to accelerate greenfield exploration and development in the Kingdom’s mining and mineral sector, maximise its mineral resources valued at $2.5tn and enhance value-added mineral supply chains. The ministry specified that the targeted belts include the Al Naqrah Belt and the Al Sukhaybirah “Al Safraa” Belt in the Madinah region, as well as the Al Duwaihi “Nabaitah” Belt in the Riyadh region. These sites contain a variety of precious and base metals, including: The ministry emphasised that this year’s exploration licence competitions are fully automated, transparent, and fair for investors. The process consists of three main stages. The first stage is the pre-qualification stage, which commenced at the Future Minerals Forum in January and will continue until […]