Saudi Arabia has discovered a major deposit containing uranium and rare-earth minerals in the Jabal Sayid area near Medina, the kingdom’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman has announced.
Preliminary exploration and geological studies indicate that the site contains at least 110 million tonnes of ore containing uranium and rare-earth elements, according to the minister.
Prince Abdulaziz said the findings from exploration activities in the Jabal Sayid area showed significant concentrations of rare-earth elements, along with promising levels of uranium.
Information on the newly identified deposit has also been submitted to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the findings were discussed during the agency’s 70th General Conference, according to the Saudi announcement.
The discovery comes amid expanding US-Saudi cooperation in civilian nuclear energy. On July 22, Prince Abdulaziz signed a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with US Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
Although the Saudi minister announced the mineral discovery only on Monday, the deposit is believed to have been identified before the agreement with Washington was signed.
The US Department of Energy said the agreement provides a legal framework for a decades-long, multibillion-dollar partnership and creates greater opportunities for US companies to participate in Saudi Arabia’s civilian nuclear energy programme.
The discovery could potentially strengthen Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to develop domestic mineral resources and expand its civilian nuclear sector.
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