meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Saudi Arabia transforms mining sector

23 February 2024

 

This month's Agenda also includes: Mergers soar in global mining sector

Saudi Arabia’s metals and mining industry is playing a pivotal role in the country’s non-oil growth trajectory. 

Commercial exploitation of the kingdom’s massive mineral resource base, most of which lies untapped, is a key component of Riyadh’s Vision 2030 socioeconomic transformation strategy.

The kingdom took the first step towards realising the commercial potential of its mineral resources when it enacted a new mining investment law in 2021. Since the law came into effect, the Ministry of Industry & Mineral Resources (MIMR) has awarded more than 2,000 mining permits to local and foreign firms under its accelerated exploration initiative.

Addressing the Future Minerals Forum (FMF) in Riyadh in early January, Bandar Alkhorayef, the kingdom’s industry and mineral resources minister, said Saudi Arabia’s natural resources are worth $2.5tn – an increase of more than 90% compared with the 2016 estimated level of mineral reserves.

This near-doubling of its deposits of natural resources – which excludes fossil fuels and includes phosphate, gold and rare earths – is set to act as a stimulus to the kingdom’s nascent mining industry.

Mineral exploration drive

The MIMR is leading efforts to boost investments in the Saudi metals and mining sector, and Riyadh is providing impetus to the mineral exploration incentive programme with a cash injection of $182m.

“This programme will de-risk investments in our exploration, to enable new commodities, greenfield projects and junior miners,” Alkhorayef told the FMF.

To tap into overseas mining experience, the ministry signed four memorandums of understanding at the FMF.

Deals involving cooperation in the field of mineral wealth were signed with Egypt’s Petroleum & Mineral Resources Ministry, Morocco’s Energy Transition & Sustainable Development Ministry and Congo’s Mines of the Democratic Republic Ministry. A separate agreement inked with Russia involves geology. 

Alkhorayef also announced the MIMR’s fifth and sixth mining concession licensing rounds at the conference in Riyadh. The rounds will offer local and international miners access to 33 exploration sites this year.

The ministry launched its last concession licensing round in August 2023, offering eight mining sites in the kingdom. Six of the sites are located in the Eastern Province – in Ghounan, Al Misnah, Al Samman, Ras Al Qaryah and the eastern and western zones of Salwa – and are understood to contain limestone ore, sand and other minerals.

The other two sites are in Riyadh Province, in Al Armah and Hofayrat Nesaah. These sites are estimated to hold gravel and sand deposits, among other minerals.

Prior to the August licensing round, the ministry announced in April that it had shortlisted 13 local and international companies for the exploration phase at the Muhaddad and Al Ridaniyah mining sites.

The Muhaddad exploration site, located in Bisha within the Asir geological terrane, covers 139 square kilometres and includes copper, zinc and lead ore deposits. The Al Ridaniyah exploration site is in the Riyadh region within the Al Dawadmi geological terrane. It covers more than 75 sq km and includes deposits of zinc and silver ore.

In January, the MIMR announced preferred bidders for another licensing round that it launched last April.

A consortium of local firm Ajlan & Bros Mining Company and Hong Kong-based Norin Mining Company is the preferred bidder for the Bir Umq exploration site. The site is located in the city of Mahd Ad Dhahab, in western Saudi Arabia. Covering about 187 sq km, the site contains deposits of copper and zinc.

As part of the licence awarded for this site, the winning consortium will invest over $29m in exploration activities. The consortium has also committed $4m for local community initiatives, including training and development programmes.

A consortium of UK-headquartered Royal Road and local entity MSB Holding Company has been picked as the preferred bidder for the Jabal Sahabiyah exploration site. 

The site is located in the Tathleeth region, in the south of the kingdom, and covers an area of 283 sq km. Jabal Sahabiyah holds mineral deposits of zinc, lead and copper. The selected consortium will invest more than $5m in exploration work and another $120,000 in community development.

A consortium of Saudi Arabia-based Sumou Holding and Canada’s Kuya Silver has been selected for the Umm Hadid site and will invest more than $22m in exploration activities and about $800,000 in community development. Umm Hadid is located in the Afif region in central Saudi Arabia. Covering an area of 246 sq km, the site contains mineral deposits of silver, lead, copper and zinc.

The near-doubling of its deposits of natural resources is set to act as a stimulus to the nascent mining industry

Maaden steps up

Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) is at the forefront of Riyadh’s campaign to develop and expand the kingdom’s metals and mining sector. By 2040, the company, which is majority owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), aims to build its upstream mining capabilities, gain exposure to future minerals and form partnerships with global mining companies.

Last January, Maaden signed a joint-venture agreement with the PIF to establish a new company to invest in mining assets globally. Maaden owns a 51% stake and the PIF holds the other 49% in the company, known as Manara Minerals, which will have a capital allocation of $50m.

Manara Minerals aims to invest in iron ore, copper, nickel and lithium projects as a non-operating partner, taking minority equity positions. The firm’s first overseas investment was a deal in July to become a 10% shareholder in Brazilian mining major Vale’s $26bn subsidiary, Vale Base Metals.

In terms of metals production, Maaden announced in mid-January that its subsidiary Maaden Gold & Base Metals Company (MGBM) had started commercial production of gold from the first phase of the Mansourah-Massarah gold project.

MGBM operates six gold mines, with the Mansourah-Massarah mine being one of its concession areas. In June 2021, the Maaden subsidiary awarded an estimated $880m contract for the first phase of the Mansourah-Massarah gold mine to a consortium of India’s Larsen & Toubro and Finland-based Metso Outotec. The award of that engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract represents the biggest investment in gold mining in Saudi Arabia to date.

In August last year, MGBM also awarded an EPC contract for the second phase of the Mansourah-Massarah gold mine project, worth $28m, to a consortium of Riyadh-based Darkstone and Australia-headquartered ATC Williams. The contract involves installing tailings storage facilities and wastewater management systems.

Maaden exploration push

On the mineral exploration front, Maaden signed an agreement with US-based Ivanhoe Electric in July 2023 to undertake exploration for high-demand minerals in the Arabian Shield zone in Saudi Arabia. As part of the $130m deal, the partners are to survey an area of 48,500 sq km in the Arabian Shield, starting in September.

About the size of Switzerland, the Arabian Shield region is understood to be rich in reserves of minerals such as copper, nickel, gold, silver and possibly lithium.

Maaden has had success in its exploration drive. In late December, it announced the discovery of significant gold resource potential extending along a 100km strike from its Mansourah-Massarah gold mine. This is the first find from the company’s exploration programme, which was launched in 2022 with the aim of building Maaden’s production pipeline.

Exploration around Mansourah-Massarah has focused on identifying potential deposits of a similar scale and with similar geology. Encouraging drill results from several sites on Uruq South, along a 100km stretch south of Mansourah-Massarah, uncovered similar geological characteristics and chemistry to the gold deposit. These results include high-grade drill intercepts found 400 metres away from and under Mansourah-Massarah, with several high-grade intercepts.

In addition, Maaden has continued the expansion of its exploration footprint at the Jabal Ghadarah and Bir Tawilah prospects located 25km north of Mansourah-Massarah, where the company is converting an inferred resource of 1.5 million ounces to indicated and measured status.

In combination, these positive drilling results have identified a 125km strike with significant potential to become a major gold belt in Saudi Arabia. The near-mine drilling results around Mansourah-Massarah indicate that the resource is open both at depth and along the strike, offering significant potential to expand resources at the mine and possibly to extend the mine life with underground development.

Mansourah-Massarah had stated gold resources of almost 7 million ounces as of the end of 2023, and a nameplate production capacity of 250,000 ounces a year.

Positive drilling results have identified a 125km strike with the potential to become a major gold belt in Saudi Arabia  

Maaden technology investments

To extend the role of technology in Saudi Arabia’s mining sector, Maaden signed a master agreement with Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Uhde at the FMF. The deal covers the development of engineering and licensing of a calcination plant for phosphogypsum processing.

The purpose of the proposed plant, which is to be located at Maaden’s Ras Al Khair site, is to recycle phosphogypsum and enable the capture of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The joint research and development will be carried out together with Thyssenkrupp Polysius and Metso Outotec.

Also at the FMF, Maaden and US firm GlassPoint announced plans to develop a solar steam technology. The first stage of project development will have the capacity to supply 9 tonnes of steam an hour to begin the decarbonisation of Maaden’s aluminium supply chain, in what is expected to be the world’s largest industrial solar thermal project.

The technology will combine the direct generation of heat and storage to provide a continuous base load of steam to Maaden’s alumina refinery at Ras Al Khair. The initial capacity will be about 1% of the larger project, which is slated to save more than 12 million British thermal units of energy annually and reduce CO2 emissions by 600,000 tonnes a year.

Maaden and digital reality firm Hexagon also partnered at the FMF to launch a "digital mine".

“Hexagon’s life-of-mine technology solutions are being successfully deployed at the Mansourah-Massarah mine, combining sensor, software and autonomous technologies to enhance efficiency, productivity, quality and safety across the mine’s operations,” the companies said.

Mergers soar in global mining sector

MEED's October 2023 special report on Saudi Arabia includes: 

> COMMENT: Riyadh reshapes its global role
> POLITICS: Saudi Arabia looks both east and west
> SPORT: Saudi Arabia’s football vision goes global
> ECONOMY: Riyadh prioritises stability over headline growth
> BANKS: Saudi banks track more modest growth path
> UPSTREAM: Aramco focuses on upstream capacity building
> DOWNSTREAM: Saudi chemical and downstream projects in motion
> POWER: Riyadh rides power projects surge
> WATER: Saudi water projects momentum holds steady
> GIGAPROJECTS: Gigaproject activity enters full swing
> TRANSPORT: Infrastructure projects support Riyadh’s logistics ambitions
> JEDDAH TOWER: Jeddah developer restarts world’s tallest tower

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/11456699/main.jpg
Indrajit Sen

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Oman’s growth forecast points upwards

    24 December 2025

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15306449/main.gif
    MEED Editorial
  • December 2025: Data drives regional projects

    23 December 2025

    Click here to download the PDF

    Includes: Top inward FDI locations by project volume | Brent spot price | Construction output

    MEED’s January 2026 report on Oman includes:

    > COMMENT: Oman steadies growth with strategic restraint
    > ECONOMY: Oman pursues diversification amid regional concerns
    > BANKING: Oman banks feel impact of stronger economy
    > OIL & GAS: LNG goals galvanise Oman’s oil and gas sector
    > POWER & WATER: Oman prepares for a wave of IPP awards
    > CONSTRUCTION: Momentum builds in construction sector

    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15306140/main.gif
    MEED Editorial
  • Local firm bids lowest for Kuwait substation deal

    22 December 2025

    The local Al-Ahleia Switchgear Company has submitted the lowest price of KD33.9m ($110.3m) for a contract to build a 400/132/11 kV substation at the South Surra township for Kuwait’s Public Authority for Housing Welfare (PAHW).

    The bid was marginally lower than the two other offers of KD35.1m and KD35.5m submitted respectively by Saudi Arabia’s National Contracting Company (NCC) and India’s Larsen & Toubro.

    PAHW is expected to take about three months to evaluate the prices before selecting the successful contractor.

    The project is one of several transmission and distribution projects either out to bid or recently awarded by Kuwait’s main affordable housing client.

    This year alone, it has awarded two contracts worth more than $100m for cable works at its 1Z, 2Z, 3Z and 4Z 400kV substations at Al-Istiqlal City, and two deals totalling just under $280m for the construction of seven 132/11kV substations in the same township.

    Most recently, it has tendered two contracts to build seven 132/11kV main substations at its affordable housing project, west of Kuwait City. The bid deadline for the two deals covering the MS-01 through to MS-08 substations is 8 January.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15305745/main.gif
    Edward James
  • Saudi-Dutch JV awards ‘supercentre’ metals reclamation project

    22 December 2025

    The local Advanced Circular Materials Company (ACMC), a joint venture of the Netherlands-based Shell & AMG Recycling BV (SARBV) and local firm United Company for Industry (UCI), has awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the first phase of its $500m-plus metals reclamation complex in Jubail.

    The contract, estimated to be worth in excess of $200m, was won by China TianChen Engineering Corporation (TCC), a subsidiary of China National Chemical Engineering Company (CNCEC), following the issue of the tender in July 2024.

    Under the terms of the deal, TCC will process gasification ash generated at Saudi Aramco’s Jizan refining complex on the Red Sea coast to produce battery-grade vanadium oxide and vanadium electrolyte for vanadium redox flow batteries. AMG will provide the licensed technology required for the production process.

    The works are the first of four planned phases at the catalyst and gasification ash recycling ‘Supercentre’, which is located at the PlasChem Park in Jubail Industrial City 2 alongside the Sadara integrated refining and petrochemical complex.

    Phase 2 will expand the facility to process spent catalysts from heavy oil upgrading facilities to produce ferrovanadium for the steel industry and/or additional battery-grade vanadium oxide.

    Phase 3 involves installing a manufacturing facility for residue-upgrading catalysts.

    In the fourth phase, a vanadium electrolyte production plant will be developed.

    The developers expect a total reduction of 3.6 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year when the four phases of the project are commissioned.

    SARBV first announced its intention to build a metal reclamation and catalyst manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia in November 2019. The kingdom’s Ministry of Investment, then known as the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (Sagia), supported the project.

    In July 2022, SARBV and UCI signed the agreement to formalise their joint venture and build the proposed facility.

    The project has received support from Saudi Aramco’s Namaat industrial investment programme. Aramco, at the time, also signed an agreement with the joint venture to offtake vanadium-bearing gasification ash from its Jizan refining complex.

    Photo credit: SARBV

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15305326/main.gif
    Edward James
  • QatarEnergy LNG awards $4bn gas project package

    22 December 2025

    QatarEnergy LNG, a subsidiary of state-owned QatarEnergy, has awarded the main engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contract for a major package for the second phase of its North Field Production Sustainability (NFPS) project.

    A consortium comprising the Italian contractor Saipem and state-owned China Offshore Oil Engineering Company (COOEC) has secured the EPCI contract for the COMP5 package. The contract value is $4bn, with Saipem declaring its share to be worth $3.1bn.

    Milan-headquartered Saipem said the contract will run for about five years. The scope of work comprises engineering, procurement, fabrication and installation of two compression complexes, each including a compression platform, a living quarters platform, a flare platform supporting the gas combustion system, and the related interconnecting bridges. Each complex will have a total weight of about 68,000 tonnes.

    Offshore installation operations will be carried out by Saipem’s De He construction vessel in 2029 and 2030.

    MEED previously reported that the following contractors submitted bids for the NFPS phase two COMP5 package:

    • Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India)
    • McDermott (US)
    • Saipem/China Offshore Oil Engineering Company (Italy/China)

    QatarEnergy LNG, formerly Qatargas, is said to have issued the tender for the NFPS phase two COMP5 package in the first quarter of the year.

    Contractors submitted technical bids for the COMP5 package in late June, while commercial bids were submitted by 8 October, as per sources.

    Based upon initial evaluation of bids by QatarEnergy LNG, L&TEH has emerged as the lowest bidder for the COMP5 package, followed by McDermott, with the consortium of Saipem and COOEC in third place, MEED reported in late October.

    In the weeks following that, the project operator is said to have engaged all bidders for a final round of negotiations, during which the consortium of Saipem and COOEC is believed to have “clinched the deal”, according to sources.

    The detailed scope of work on the COMP5 package covers the EPCI work on the following:

    • Two gas compression platforms, each weighing 30,000-35,000 tonnes, plus jacket
    • Two living quarters platforms, plus jacket
    • Two gas flare platforms, plus jacket
    • Brownfield modification work at two complexes
    NFPS scheme

    QatarEnergy’s North Field liquefied natural gas (LNG) expansion programme requires the state enterprise to pump large volumes of gas from the North Field offshore reserve to feed the three phases of the estimated $40bn-plus programme.

    QatarEnergy has already invested billions of dollars in engineering, procurement and construction works on the two phases of the NFPS project, which aims to maintain steady gas feedstock for the North Field LNG expansion phases.

    The second NFPS phase will mainly involve building gas compression facilities to sustain and gradually increase gas production from Qatar’s offshore North Field gas reserve over the long term.

    Saipem has been the most successful contractor on the second NFPS phase, securing work worth a total of $8.5bn.

    QatarEnergy LNG awarded Saipem a $4.5bn order in October 2022 to build and install gas compression facilities. The main scope of work on the package, which is known as EPCI 2, covers two large gas compression complexes that will comprise decks, jackets, topsides, interconnecting bridges, flare platforms, living quarters and interface modules.

    The gas compression complexes – CP65 and CP75 – will weigh 62,000 tonnes and 63,000 tonnes, respectively, and will be the largest fixed steel jacket compression platforms ever built.

    Following that, Saipem won combined packages COMP3A and COMP3B of the NFPS project’s second phase in September last year.

    The scope of work on the combined packages encompasses the EPCI of a total of six platforms, approximately 100 kilometres (km) of corrosion resistance alloy rigid subsea pipelines of 28-inches and 24-inches diameter, 100km of subsea composite cables, 150km of fibre optic cables and several other subsea units.

    Separately, QatarEnergy LNG awarded McDermott the contract for the NFPS second phase package known as EPCI 1, or COMP1, in July 2023. The scope of work on the estimated $1bn-plus contract is to install a subsea gas pipeline network at the North Field gas development.

    In March this year, India’s Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (LTEH) won the main contract for the combined 4A and 4B package, which is the fourth package of the second phase of the NFPS project and is estimated to be valued at $4bn-$5bn.

    The main scope of work on the package is the EPCI of two large gas compression systems that will be known as CP8S and CP4N, each weighing 25,000-35,000 tonnes. The contract scope also includes compression platforms, flare gas platforms and other associated structures.

    LTHE sub-contracted detailed engineering and design works on the combined 4A and 4B package to French contractor Technip Energies.

    NFPS first phase

    Saipem is also executing the EPCI works on the entire first phase of the NFPS project, which consists of two main packages.

    Through the first phase of the NFPS scheme, QatarEnergy LNG aims to increase the early gas field production capacity of the North Field offshore development to 110 million tonnes a year.

    QatarEnergy LNG awarded Saipem the contract for the EPCI package in February 2021. The package is the larger of the two NFPS phase one packages and has a value of $1.7bn.

    Saipem’s scope of work on the EPCI package encompasses building several offshore facilities for extracting and transporting natural gas, including platforms, supporting and connecting structures, subsea cables and anti-corrosion internally clad pipelines.

    The scope of work also includes decommissioning a pipeline and other significant modifications to existing offshore facilities.

    In addition, in April 2021, QatarEnergy LNG awarded Saipem two options for additional work within the EPCI package, worth about $350m.

    QatarEnergy LNG awarded Saipem the second package of the NFPS phase one project, estimated to be worth $1bn, in March 2021.

    Saipem’s scope of work on the package, which is known as EPCL, mainly covers installing three offshore export trunklines running almost 300km from their respective offshore platforms to the QatarEnergy LNG north and south plants located in Ras Laffan Industrial City.

    Saipem performed the front-end engineering and design work on the main production package of the first phase of the NFPS as part of a $20m contract that it was awarded in January 2019. This provided a competitive advantage to the Italian contractor in its bid to win the package.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15305330/main2239.jpg
    Indrajit Sen