RAS AL KHAIR – Leading Saudi organizations from Saudi Arabia’s public and private sectors have collaborated to create a world-class industrial city, working with international partners to capture integrated mine-to-end-product value chains for the mining and minerals processing sectors.
[caption id="attachment_101903" align="alignright" width="300"]
Ras Al Khair
[/caption]
Ras Al Khair, a $35 billion multi commodity minerals hub, is a key example of the Kingdom’s efforts to create powerful partnerships between the government departments and local and international companies that deliver key infrastructure projects to help the country reduce its dependence on oil-based income - a goal of Saudi Vision 2030. The city is also a key example of the Vision 2030’s aim to facilitate a diversified national economy and build entire industrial value chains locally.
“We are positioning Ras Al Khair as one of the jewels of Saudi industry due to its already significant contribution to the economy and role in helping the country move away from reliance on oil-based income. There is no doubt that the project’s success could not have been achieved without the crucial support of our many key partners and stakeholders. Ras Al Khair also demonstrates the importance of such partnerships between the private and public sectors in the ongoing development of the country,” said Saudi Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Khalid Al-Falih.
The city’s various key facilities will be formally inaugurated by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz tomorrow (Nov. 29) under the title: “The inauguration of Ras Al Khair, the center of Saudi mining”.
The partners behind the development of Ras Al Khair, including mining giant Ma’aden, envisaged the city being a leading employer of local talent and contributor to the national economy – it is set to generate 12,000 jobs directly and tens of thousands of indirect opportunities for the local workforce and contributes over $9 billion annually towards the Kingdom’s non-oil gross domestic product.
The city is managed by the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu because of its expertise in establishing and managing huge industrial cities. The Royal Commission has signed approximately $2.93 worth of infrastructure and planning contracts, the majority of which have been implemented. The project is being supervised and coordinated by the Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources.
The key projects and stakeholders at Ras Al Khair are as follows:
• A $5.6 billion integrated phosphate complex operated by Ma’aden in partnership with the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation that has generated 1,700 jobs for Saudis. It currently produces 3 million tons of phosphate fertilizer a year and features plants manufacturing phosphoric acid, sulphuric acid and ammonia.
• A $10.8 billion integrated aluminum complex operated by Ma’aden in partnership with Alcoa creating over 3,700 jobs. It features an alumina refinery (producing 1.8 million tons a year), smelter (740,000 tons), rolling mill (380,000 tons) and one of the region’s largest and advanced aluminum recycling facilities.
• A 1,400 km minerals line connecting Ras Al-Khair to mines in the Kingdom’s central and northern regions, forming part of the Saudi Railway Company’s integrated $6.67 billion North-South Rail project that offers 3,000 jobs.
• An $800 million ultra-modern and world-class port developed by the Saudi Ports Authority to act primarily as an export hub.
• One of the biggest dual-function water desalination and power plants in the world developed by the Saline Water Conversion Corporation. The $7.31 billion facility offers 1,700 jobs and produces up to 1.025 million m3 of water and 2,400MW of electricity a year.
Other key partners in the project include Saudi Aramco, the Public Investment Fund and the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture. Ras Al Khair also features a fully functioning village, with 2,500 housing units for workers.
The city’s first facility entered operations in 2011, but the city only recently completed development of its major facilities and infrastructure while still retaining scope for future expansion. — SG
