Khaled Al-Mudaifer, Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources for Mining Affairs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, said that iron in the Kingdom is witnessing a very large increase in demand due to the major projects the Kingdom is witnessing with a value of more than 5 trillion riyals, indicating that the demand for iron will double to two and a half times. About current production.
In a meeting with Arqaam on the sidelines of the mining press conference, Al-Mudaifer explained that there are major projects worth more than $12 billion to produce iron and provide iron ores in the Kingdom.
He added that there are projects in the Ras Al-Khair region and in other regions, as the Kingdom has allocated 120 billion riyals for mineral investments only and not for mines.
He stated that the Kingdom has the largest mining resources, including phosphate, which constitutes 25% of mining resources, and it has worked on it with large investments of more than 120 billion riyals as public investments.
Al-Mudaifer explained that the third project, which was supported by the partner program in the past, Phosphate 3, will make the Kingdom the third largest producer of phosphate during the next ten years, since the beginning of the industry in the Kingdom, and this is a major achievement.
He stated that work is still ongoing on Phosphate Projects 4 and 5, making the Kingdom the second largest country in producing phosphate fertilizers and providing food to the world.
He added that the mining sector in the Kingdom is an essential nascent sector that Vision 2030 worked on to be the third pillar of the national industry in the future.
He explained that the existing projects are very large and the Kingdom has worked on them with distinguished infrastructure at international standards, indicating that the North-South Ras Al-Khair railway, the city of Waad Al-Shamal, and the international port of Ras Al-Khair have all enabled this industry to supply the world with the fertilizers it needs, as the Kingdom provides approximately a quarter of the world’s consumption of fertilizers. Phosphate fertilizers.
