RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is poised to emerge as a prominent regional and global hub for green minerals processing, the Kingdom’s vice minister of Industry and Mineral Resources for Mining Affairs has insisted.
Speaking at Middle East and North Africa Climate Week 2023, Khalid bin Saleh Al-Mudaifer outlined Saudi Arabia’s strategy for becoming a powerhouse in the sector, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
He emphasized that by leveraging the Kingdom’s strategic location, advanced infrastructure, and strong local demand, the government is charting a path towards securing the minerals necessary for its national industrial transformation.
These efforts are aligned with a global vision for a more sustainable and environmentally friendly future, as reported by SPA.
Al-Mudaifer said: “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is committed to the transition to green energy, as demonstrated by the development of a mining and mineral industries strategy designed to address critical challenges.”
He added that these involve discovering and developing new resources, which can be two to 10 times the current production capacities.
“The challenges include stimulating financing for early-stage exploration, ensuring the availability and reliability of geological data, promoting innovation and technology to enhance sustainability and productivity, and ensuring timely production of metals,” he continued.
To expedite progress in this direction, the minister stressed the need to streamline the issuance of new mine permits while ensuring that activities associated with the industry have minimal adverse impacts on local communities and the environment.
The Kingdom has pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2060, and in order to hit this target it has undertaken $1 billion of climate change initiatives, including working towards a regional carbon capture and storage center, an early storm warning hub, and cloud seeding programs.
Saudi Arabia has set the bar high in its efforts to cut emissions, announcing a carbon-capture target of 44 million tons a year by 2035.
MENA Climate Week 2023 is taking place in Riyadh from Oct. 8-12. The event is hosted by the government of Saudi Arabia and organized by the Ministry of Energy and the Secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
