Saudi Arabia heads to Brazil, Chile in pursuit of mineral wealth

Saudi Arabia’s determination to develop an electric vehicle industry and expand its role in the international mining industry is taking its leaders to South America. 

Bandar Alkhorayaf, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, will visit Brazil and Chile over the coming two weeks as the world’s leading oil exporter seeks to expand its international presence in mining.

In Brazil, talks will cover mining, food processing and aviation, while in Chile the focus is on lithium, needed for electric vehicle batteries. 

Alkhorayaf will land in Brazil today and leave for Chile, the world’s second largest producer of lithium, next Sunday. In Brazil, he will meet with executives from mining company Vale.

In Chile, Alkhorayaf will meet Mining Minister Aurora Williams, as well as mining companies Antofagasta and Codelco, a state-run company tasked with bringing the Chilean government into the lithium industry.

Back home for the minister, troves of minerals lie beneath Saudi Arabia that are critical to powering the energy transition such as gold, phosphate, bauxite, copper, zinc and nickel.

The Public Investment Fund’s Ma’aden mining company is tasked with tapping the resources, last valued at $2.5 trillion, making it one of the most significant potential contributors to the kingdom’s economic transformation ambitions.

Saudi Arabia’s EV campaign on show at Riyadh conference

Saudi Arabia’s drive to establish an electric vehicle industry in the kingdom – clinching deals over the past year with the U.S., China and Europe – will be on display this week during the Global EV and Mobility Technology Forum in Riyadh.

The two-day conference, which gets underway tomorrow at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center, will bring together senior government officials, financiers and car company executives – led by Faisal Sultan, Managing Director and Vice President of Lucid, the California EV-maker backed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

Others scheduled to speak at the conference include Rusty Russell, Executive Director of Mobility at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Global; Shavaye Govender, Head of Business Development, Middle East, Africa and Pakistan at Uber; Fathi Tlatli, President of Global Sector Auto-Mobility for DHL; and Alex Gilbert, Head of Energy and Electrification and Commercial Development at Transport for London.

Lucid shares jumped 4% in Nasdaq trading on Monday after the company reported that second-quarter car deliveries grew 70% from the same period in 2023.

The PIF, which has a 60% stake in Lucid, opened a factory in the kingdom last year and has poured billions into the U.S. company as it looks to become a significant regional manufacturer.