Chasing a $25 Billion Goal: Saudi Arabia’s Mining Investment Target 2030 Roadmap

Several levers are being used to make projects more investable and quicker to scale. Al-Falih said Saudi Arabia increased exploration spending fivefold between 2020 and 2024 and has shortened project timelines to reach production within eight to ten years. Arab News also points to updated regulations, digital licensing platforms, specialized mining services, and new transport and rail links to mining areas. Licensing activity has accelerated: S&P Global reports that in 2024 the number of drilling projects rose to 160 from 58 in 2023, and that the ninth licensing round awarded 172 mining sites across three mineral-rich belts with about SAR671 million ($179 million) in pledged investments. Arab News adds that the number of mining licenses issued exceeds 2,000.

Policy, Returns, and What “Scale” Means in Practice

Saudi Arabia’s policy reset is meant to change the risk-return profile for investors. S&P Global and Arab News report a new mining investment law that reduced the tax rate to 20% from 45%, a move positioned as aligning regulations with global standards and enhancing investor confidence. Al-Falih also described an investment environment designed to deliver average internal rates of return between 20% and 30%, alongside a plan to double foreign direct investment in the sector. In parallel, the Kingdom is highlighting enabling assets: Al-Falih cited integrated infrastructure—roads, railways, ports, and logistics networks—and referenced globally competitive value chains in aluminum and phosphate as part of the broader competitiveness story.

The roadmap is not only about extraction. Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef said the mining strategy is fundamentally based on localizing processing and manufacturing operations, and he framed this as stemming from the Kingdom’s integration of mineral resources, energy supplies, and strategic geographic location. S&P Global similarly describes a push to develop downstream processing capacity and secure feedstock for green industrial projects. It also notes Ma’aden’s central role through operations and joint ventures, including Jabal Sayid copper mine in Madina with Barrick Mining Corp., the Al Ba’itha bauxite mine in Al Qassim and the Ras Al Khair aluminum complex in the Eastern province with Alcoa Corp., and phosphate mining at the Wa’ad Al Shamal mine with The Mosaic Co. These examples underline how investment is being channeled into value chains, not just mines.

Saudi Arabia is also pairing domestic scale-up with large financial and survey initiatives that shape the long-term pipeline. Arab News says the Kingdom is undertaking what it calls the world’s largest geological survey, covering about 700,000 sq. km of the Arabian Shield for $1.5 billion. The same source values the Kingdom’s mineral wealth at $2.5 trillion and says that value is 90% higher than in 2016, when Vision 2030 was rolled out. Separately, a market research source says the Global Supply Chain Resilience Initiative has attracted $144 billion in foreign and joint industrial investments, including $10 billion in strategic mining-related projects supported by $2 billion in incentives. Taken together, these figures explain how the 2030 mining push is being backed by data generation, licensing throughput, and targeted industrial support.