MENA-EX 2009

Jeddah, January 19, SPA -- The number of sites allocated to the
mineral activities of the Department of the mineral Resources in
various regions of the Kingdom amounted to more than / 254 / sites
with a total area of more than 53,000 square kilometers at the end of
last year, said Dr. Sultan Jamal Shawli, the Undersecretary of the
Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources for mineral resources in
a statement to the Saudi Press Agency on the launching of the Second
International Exhibition and Forum for Mineral Resources
Exploration and Development MENA-EX 2009 currently held in Jeddah

The ministry has issued more than 1408 licenses for about 700
investors from companies, institutions and individuals adding that
the ministry granted certificates to investors for the export of
local raw materials of about 4.7 million tons of minerals and /
306,000 / cubic meters of ornamental stones, he added

The number of permits for mining and quarry is estimated at about 57
licenses in an area of 1207sq km, 22 licenses are for the
exploitation of cement, / 21 / licenses for the exploitation of
various industrial raw materials and / 14 / licenses for the
exploitation of precious metals, base metals, iron, topaz, phosphate
and bauxite ores, adding that the number of licenses for small-scale
mines reached / 58 / licenses granted to a number of companies and
institutions in various industrial raw materials .
--SPA