Saudi Arabia plans to offer 3 mining licenses to investors in 2022, tenders to start by Q1 2022: Alkhorayef

Bandar Alkhorayef, Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Bandar Alkhorayef, said there is a plan to issue three mining licenses to investors in 2022, including Khnaiguiyah.

On the sidelines of the Future Minerals Forum in Riyadh, Alkhorayef told Reuters that licenses will be introduced in accordance with the new Mining Investment Law launched last year.

The tender process for licenses will take place from the end of Q1 2022 and the beginning of Q2. However, the process of bidding and qualification for companies may take six months.

The Kingdom aims to accelerate foreign investment in the mining sector as part of efforts to diversify the Saudi economy, Alkhorayef added.

The Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources recently launched the “accelerated exploration” initiative and announced that licenses for minerals exploration in Khnaiguiyah will be offered in a tender, according to data compiled by Argaam.