Saudi mineral wealth could top $1.3 trillion amid Kingdom’s aggressive exploration plan
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia expects its mineral wealth to exceed earlier estimates of $1.3 trillion as the Kingdom plans to triple spending on the exploration of metals over the next three years, said the head of the organization responsible for assessing its geological potential.
Abdullah bin Muftar Al-Shamrani, CEO of the Saudi Geological Survey, said that this prior estimate was made a few years ago when prices of minerals were lower.
“Now we have seen that the price is increasing, it is expected that the forecast of […] prices is really going to be increased because of that demand of those material,” he said in an exclusive interview with Arab News.
The aim is now to almost triple exploration spending per square meter to SR220 ($58.7) within the next two to three years.
The increased expenditure will “expedite the mining sector targets” and would help in discovering more locations. Al-Shamrani said that the Kingdom is going “aggressive” on exploration.
He added that the number of mining sites in the Kingdom could exceed 5,500.
Supporting a greener future
The Kingdom wants to be part of the global supply chain for raw materials that will go into many viable products to support industries such as renewable energy, he said.
It’s now determined to develop all these resources with the help of international investors who will be in need for more data. The…
