The Saudi mining sector is the fastest globally attractive for investment

Beth agency:

The kingdom has registered significant progress in the global assessment of investment risks in the mining sector issued by MineHutte in cooperation with Mining Journal, achieving the fastest global growth in the development of the regulatory and basic environment attractive to investments over the past five years (2018-2023), since the launch of the transformation program in the sector, starting with the development of the legislative structure and regulatory regulations of the sector, until the kingdom became a "preferred destination" for investment in the mining sector.
The ratings received by the evaluation included the improvement of the kingdom's assessment in the mining licenses index, where it came as the second best country in the licensing environment in the world, in addition to a significant development in the kingdom's assessment of the financial policies index, making it one of the top 10 countries in this index globally.

The kingdom has made significant progress in the indicator of legislative structure and regulatory regulations to become one of the best mining countries in the world in terms of legislative and regulatory frameworks, thus making the kingdom a model to follow in improving the investment environment and developing the mining sector in neighboring countries.
The global assessment of investment risks in the mining sector highlighted the kingdom's efforts in developing the mining sector, starting with the launch of the comprehensive strategy for mining and metallurgical industries in 2018 to maximize the value achieved from natural resources, supported by the development of the mining investment system, which forms the legislative and regulatory structure of the sector, and provides a clear, transparent and accessible environment for investors in the mining sector, in addition to comprehensive reforms and incentives for investors in the sector.

His Excellency the deputy minister of industry and mineral resources for Mining Affairs, Eng.Khalid bin Saleh Al-Mudaifer, stressed that this ranking is the highest in the world; it comes as a result of the efforts exerted to develop the mining sector over the past five years, as the kingdom has embarked since the launch of the kingdom's Vision 2030 under the leadership of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and prime minister, to take serious steps to diversify the sources of its economy besides oil and gas, and on this basis programs and initiatives have been developed within the transformation plan to develop the mining sector; to become the third pillar of the national industry.
He pointed out that in light of this transformation, the new mining investment system and its executive regulations have been issued, the launch of the largest-of-its-kind Geological Survey of the Arabian Shield region globally, the accelerated exploration initiative, and dozens of initiatives aimed at developing and transforming the sector, adding that these results motivate investors to invest opportunities in the kingdom, as it has become a leader in the mining and metals industry globally.

For her part, Emma Beatty, chief operating officer and research manager at MineHutte, praised in the report the great and positive transformation witnessed by the Kingdom, and said: "the transformation in the mining sector in the kingdom is the most prominent at the regional and international levels over the past five years, and that the reforms witnessed by the sector at the regulatory, legislative and infrastructure levels are the main reason behind its great progress in the International Classification of the report and its leadership in the classification of risks in the report, and it is impressive and stimulating that these major transformations contribute to attracting foreign investments and achieving the economic vision set by the kingdom for its mining sector.".
The risk analysis report, published by MineHutte in collaboration with Mining Journal, is a reliable source for mining companies and investors around the world to determine investment destinations based on five criteria: (legislative framework, governance, infrastructure, investment incentives, and social criteria).

The kingdom seeks to attract foreign investments to the minerals sector, taking advantage of the growth of the economy of its mineral wealth, which has recently doubled to reach more than 9.3 trillion riyals, as a result of the development of infrastructure, legislation, continuous exploration operations, local demand and its strategic location, as well as work to promote the mining industries.the kingdom's mineral wealth includes gold, phosphates, copper, zinc and rare earth elements.
The mining investment system constitutes the formal infrastructure of the sector, achieves sector governance and provides incentives to investors, which contributes to enhancing transparency and sustainability principles, increasing investor confidence in the sector, in addition to working on the digital transformation of the sector through the launch of a mining platform for granting mining licenses, and the development of the national geological database, which includes the outcome of 80 years of geological data and exploration information for the kingdom, especially the Arabian Shield region.

The Ministry of industry and mineral resources, in cooperation with the Ministry of investment, has also announced an incentive package that includes financial facilities for companies and investors wishing to invest in mineral resources exploration activities in the kingdom, with the aim of supporting companies with disclosure licenses valid for less than 5 years with a maximum value of 7.5 million riyals per license, and the Saudi Industrial Development Fund provides up to 75% of the costs of eligible exploration and mining projects.

It is noteworthy that the Ministry of industry and Mineral Resources is organizing the international mining conference, which in its previous three editions witnessed the participation of more than 75 countries in the International Ministerial Meeting, and 14 thousand participants and visitors from leading international speakers to discuss the future of the mining and metals industry, attracting investments to the major mining area stretching from Africa to West and Central Asia, and turning the outputs of the dialogue into work applicable on the ground, in addition to contributing to solving a set of challenges faced by the mining and metals sector, especially in light of the growing demand for strategic minerals necessary to achieve the transition to clean energy and meet the targets of carbon neutrality.