Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, December 12, 2023: At a press conference today, the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources (MIM) announced details of the third edition of the Future Minerals Forum (FMF), to be held in Riyadh 9th-11th January at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center.
Speaking at the conference, H.E. the Vice Minister for Mining Affairs, Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, Khalid Al-Mudaifer, looked forward to further achievements delivered by the Ministerial Roundtable and FMF 2024. In previous editions, both platforms have seen participation from ministers and a leading group of international speakers to address issues and turn talk into action. This contributes to resolving the challenges faced by the mineral sector, which faces increasing demand for strategic minerals required for the energy transition.
The Vice Minister discussed the unique role of the FMF in hosting the only Ministerial Roundtable of its kind in the industry. He said: “We have succeeded in making this meeting a strategic and influential platform led by governments, providing a voice for many countries and official organizations. This builds international cooperation to realize the world’s aspirations to preserve the environment, achieve zero carbon targets, enhance international and regional investments to discover more strategic minerals that foster energy transition, and enforce sustainability performance in the sector.”
Over 70 countries will be represented by government ministers and high-ranking officials at the Ministerial Roundtable on January 9. This includes hosting the 10th consultative meeting of Arab ministers responsible for mineral resources. For the first time, a Geological Survey Leaders meeting will be held concurrently with the Roundtable, allowing institutions to discuss key mineral issues in the Super Region, and emphasizing the importance of geological data sharing in international and regional cooperation.
Following the Roundtable, 250 key speakers will participate in 75 sessions over the two-day Forum. Some 90% of them are CEOs of some of the largest companies in the sector.
“We created the FMF to support delivery of the world’s energy transition and create responsible, resilient minerals value chains in the super region of Africa, Western and Central Asia. Last week we attended COP and delivered a simple message: without minerals there cannot be an energy transition.” Al Mudaifer added.
The conference noted the Kingdom’s historical leadership in supplying the world with energy, and its current substantial role in supporting the development of flexible and secure value chains to deliver clean energy solutions. The Kingdom has the potential to become an international hub for the production and processing of green minerals. This is supported by the Manara Minerals Company – a joint venture between Ma’aden and the PIF – which invests in mining assets globally to help achieve flexibility in global supply chains and accelerate the pace of the energy transition.
“Saudi Arabia is ideally positioned, geographically, politically, and economically to be a catalyst for change, a center for mineral processing, and a driver for the development of the mining sector across the Super Region.” His Excellency added.
The Vice Minister concluded by affirming that the Kingdom’s aspirations and ambitions in the mining sector are not merely local but regional and global, and that the Kingdom stands as a reservoir of energy and minerals for the world.