Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has revealed the successful bidders for its inaugural mineralised belts licensing round, covering the Jabal Sayid and Al-Hajjar sites.
The winners include Noring Ajlan & Brothers Mining Company for the Southern Al-Hijjar site, and a consortium of ARTAR, Gold and Minerals Ltd, and Jacaranda for the Northern Al-Hajar site, as announced by the ministry on LinkedIn.
India’s Vedanta secured the first exploration license for the Jabal Sayid belt, while a consortium of Ajlan & Brothers and China’s Zijin Mining Group Ltd won the second exploration license for the same belt.
Seventeen companies, including consortiums, were pre-qualified for the round, according to a November 2024 report by Zawya Projects.
In July 2024, the ministry called on local and international exploration and mining companies to bid for the first mineral belts, covering a total area of 4,788 square kilometers.
Additionally, the ministry announced plans to offer 50,000 square kilometers of mineralised belts containing gold, copper, and zinc during the fourth edition of the Future Minerals Forum in January.