The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources issued 69 new mining licenses in December 2022, including 46 building materials and quarry licenses, 12 exploration licenses, four surplus mineral ore licenses and an exploitation licenses, according to the report of the National Industrial and Mining Information Center. The number of valid mining licenses in the sector reached 2,272 by the end of December 2022, the report says. Building material and quarry licenses took the lion share, at 1,383, followed by exploration licenses (635), exploitation licenses (178), reconnaissance licenses (43) and surplus mineral ore licenses (33). According to the report of the National Industrial and Mining Information Center, the Riyadh region accounted for the largest number of valid mining licenses, at 511, followed by Makkah region with 429, the Eastern Province with 378, Madinah region with 244, Asir region with 189, Tabuk region with 141, Qassim region with 103, Hail region with 73, Najran region with 49, Baha region with 38, Northern region with 25, and Al Jouf region with 23. The Mining Investment Law and its implementing regulations set six types of mining licenses as follows: reconnaissance licenses for all types of minerals, for two years, extendable; all mineral exploration licenses, for five years, which applies to minerals of categories A and B; license for minerals of category C, for a period of one year, a general-purpose license associated with a mining or a small mine license. The law identifies exploitation licenses, which include: mineral mining license for categories A and B, for a period of no more than 30 years, renewable or extendable; license for a small mineral mine of categories A and B, with a period of no more than 20 years; license for a building material quarry, with a period of up to 10 years, renewable; and license for "surplus mineral ores on project sites or privately owned lands". The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources seeks to protect and maximize the value of the mining sector, in accordance with the objectives of the Saudi Vision 2030 and the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NIDLP). It aims to transform mining into the third pillar of national industry and exploit the Kingdom's mineral wealth, which is spread across more than 5,300 sites and is valued at approximately SR5 trillion. — SPA
