The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has said that the estimated value of its mineral resources is around 9.375 trillion Saudi Riyals (Rs 20,75,46,07,82,81,250).
This is due to the discoveries of rare earth elements and transition metals such as phosphate ore, zinc, and gold.
The announcement was made on Wednesday, January 10, by the Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Bandar Alkhorayef, during the opening of third Future Minerals Forum (FMF) in Riyadh. The forum is being held under the patronage of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman.
Alkhorayef said that the mineral wealth increased by 90 percent from the 2016 estimate of 5 trillion Saudi Riyals (Rs 11,06,98,45,14,50,000).
He added that 30 percent of the geological survey work in the Arabian Shield region has been completed, with the results set to be made available in the national geological database.
The General Program for the Geological Survey Initiative aims to improve data quality and map accuracy, facilitating mineral resource exploration in Saudi Arabia, he noted.
