Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman speaks during the Future Investment Initiative (FII) annual conference in Riyadh on October 29, 2024.
Fayez Nureldine | AFP | Getty Images
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia is pushing forward to put itself on the global critical minerals map, announcing a series of deals, investment plans and discoveries at its annual Future Minerals Forum in the capital, Riyadh.
Saudi Deputy Minister of Mines Khalid al-Mudaifer announced on Wednesday the development of a new mineral investment project estimated at $100 billion, of which $20 billion is already in the final engineering stage or under construction.
While the deputy minister did not provide further details, Saudi officials discussed plans to significantly expand the country’s exploration for lithium, as well as other critical minerals and rare earth elements including copper, gold, zinc, phosphate and nickel.
In early 2024, the King’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources increased its estimate of the value of its untapped mineral resources from $1.3 trillion to $2.5 trillioninspired by the discovery of the aforementioned elements and metals. At the Future Minerals Forum in January 2024, the Saudi Govt established a $182 million incentive program for mineral research.
The kingdom’s state oil giant, Aramco, announced on Wednesday a joint venture with Saudi state-owned mining company Ma’aden to explore and produce minerals for the energy transition.
Speaking on stage, Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman told attendees at a minerals forum that Aramco had identified “promising” concentrations of lithium exceeding 400 parts per million in areas where it operates.
“We used to say… Aramco has nothing to do,” bin Salman told those present at the event. “Aramco can be a diversified company and its mandate has no limits.”
The minister highlighted Manara, a recently established venture between Saudi Arabia’s state-owned mining company Ma’aden and the kingdom’s public investment fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF). Manara was founded to invest in mining assets around the world and develop more resilient global supply chains.
“We don’t claim to have all the resources or capabilities, so we created Manara to make sure we can tap into the resources we need,” bin Salman said. “We have to do it as fast and hard as possible.”
Ras Tanura oil refinery and Saudi Aramco oil terminal
Ahmed Jadallah | Reuters
Lithium production in the kingdom could start as early as 2027 with the help of possible cooperation, the minister added.
A key element in batteries for appliances and electric vehicles, lithium is a commodity in high demand, especially for the energy transition and advanced technologies and as Saudi Arabia works to diversify its economy away from oil.
The kingdom is also striving to become a hub for the processing of these critical minerals, as it seeks to build supply chains that are more resilient to global disruptions. About two-thirds of the lithium refining market is currently controlled by China.
Saudi Arabia in December announced the successful extraction of lithium from brine samples in Aramco’s oil fields. Collaboration is underway with Ma’aden, Aramco and local extraction startup Lithium Infinity to launch a commercial direct extraction pilot program soon, al-Mudaifer said at the time.
