Riyadh | B | بث
Dhul Hijjah 07, 1447 AH — May 24, 2026

Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources issued around 80 new mining licenses during March 2026, as part of the Kingdom’s efforts to accelerate the development of the mining sector and strengthen its contribution to economic diversification.

The Brief

The new licenses included:
49 exploration licenses,
20 construction material quarry licenses,
8 mining exploitation and small mine licenses,
2 reconnaissance licenses,
and one surplus mineral materials license.

According to ministry data, the total number of active mining licenses by the end of February reached:
3,017 licenses,
led by:
construction material quarry licenses,
followed by exploration licenses,
then mining exploitation and small mine licenses.

The ministry stated that the mining investment system defines six categories of licenses covering:
reconnaissance,
exploration,
exploitation,
small mines,
quarries,
and surplus mineral materials,
within a regulatory framework aimed at improving investment efficiency and sector sustainability.

B Analysis

What is happening in Saudi Arabia’s mining sector is no longer merely:
an expansion in license issuance.

It is part of:
a broader reshaping of the Kingdom’s economic landscape.

Saudi Arabia is clearly moving toward building:
a multi-engine economy,
one that does not rely solely on oil,
but also on:
industry,
logistics,
technology,
and mining.

What stands out is that the accelerating pace of new licenses reflects the sector’s transition from:
a phase of limited exploration,
to:
the construction of a broad and organized mining industry.

The figures also reveal the scale of Saudi Arabia’s strategic bet on mineral wealth as:
one of the pillars of the future economy,
particularly amid rising global demand for:
rare minerals,
construction materials,
and minerals linked to technology and energy industries.

In recent years,
the Kingdom has increasingly approached mining as:
a matter of economic sovereignty,
rather than merely a traditional extraction activity.

Especially given its growing connection to:
manufacturing industries,
supply chains,
local industrialization,
and major energy and technology projects.

The diversity of license types also reflects an effort to build:
a fully integrated mining ecosystem,
beginning with:
reconnaissance,
and exploration,
before moving toward development and exploitation,
within a long-term economic cycle.

The key question moving forward will no longer be:
How many minerals does Saudi Arabia possess?

But rather:
To what extent can the Kingdom transform itself into one of the world’s leading centers for mining and mineral industries over the coming decades?