Riyadh: The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources announced today the launch of its multi-round auction for mineral exploration licenses covering three identified mineralized belts with a total area of 24,423 square kilometers.
According to Saudi Press Agency, live online bidding is running from September 1 to September 12 and will be broadcast on the ministry's official YouTube channel to ensure transparency.
The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources official spokesperson Jarrah bin Mohammed Al-Jarrah stated that this round of the auction has attracted unprecedented international participation, with 61 companies applying. Following the pre-qualification phase, 31 bids from 23 individual companies and eight international and local consortia advanced to the competition stage.
The release added that the three mineral belts included in this round are located in Riyadh and Madinah regions: the Al-Naqrah Belt and the Sukhaybarat (Al-Safra) Belt in Madinah, and the Al-Duwaihi (Nabitah) Belt in Riyadh. These belts contain various base and precious metals, including gold, copper, silver, zinc, and nickel.
Al-Jarrah explained that the auction process consists of three structured stages, including pre-qualification, site selection through the Ta'adeen digital platform, and a public multi-round auction for sites selected by more than one qualified bidder.
The first phase of the live multi-round auction has commenced for the Al-Duwaihi (Nabitah) belt, where qualified bidders are competing for licenses through open bidding based on exploration spend commitments. This phase is being streamed live until its conclusion. Auctions for the Al-Naqrah and Sukhaybarat (Al-Safra) belts will begin in the coming days.
The ministry has confirmed that a new round of the exploration licensing tender will be launched in Q4 2025, offering additional mineral-rich sites to both local and international investors.