RIYADH – The Saudi Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources announced Sunday the completion of the modified mineral investment system, which opens the path for investors and the private sector to benefit from promising investment opportunities in this vital sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said Sunday.

On this occasion, Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Engineer Khalid Al-Falih, stressed the importance of mineral resources as one of the most important activities to achieve the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, which includes promising future opportunities that contribute to diversifying sources of income and enhancing the national economy, in addition to supporting the development of local industry by providing basic local crude materials that form the basis of any advanced industrial economy.

The Minister also said "the value of the geological inventory of minerals in the Kingdom exceeds SR4.9 trillion, which is one of the Kingdom's rich resources in various raw materials such as phosphates, iron ore, bauxite, gold, zinc, copper and industrial minerals."

The minister added that this strategy seeks to increase the production of basic metals and precious metals, to reach 10 times the current production rate, and for the mining sector to become the third pillar of the Saudi industry along with oil, gas and petrochemical industries. – SPA