RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s industry and mining system provides over 120 enablers and incentives for investors in the sectors, enabling them to exploit promising opportunities, according to a top official.

Speaking during a meeting with investors at the Najran Chamber, Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef explained that those catalysts also contribute to addressing challenges facing their investment journey, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

In his speech, Alkhorayef said the ministry’s Industrial Fund is focused on helping the Najran region in particular as it is one of the promising peripheral regions, with the financing rate reaching 75 percent of the project size.

This is in line with Saudi Arabia’s ambition to transform mining into a foundational industrial pillar of the country’s economy, with mineral wealth in the Kingdom estimated to be SR9.4 trillion ($2.5 trillion), as of April 2024.

In the meeting, the minister acknowledged the role played by the Saudi Export-Import Bank in enabling the Kingdom’s exports and enhancing their access to world markets.   

The comparative advantages of the national product and its high quality indicate that the nationwide industrial strategy targets 12 sub-industrial sectors; part of these divisions depend on the regional natural resources present, which provide attractive opportunities for investors.

During Alkhorayef’s tour in the region, he visited the industrial city in Najran, where he went to several factories and learned about the latest manufacturing technologies. He also met with investors who own facilities and discussed the enablers and incentives provided by the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones to develop their projects.

Located northeast of Najran, the industrial city is currently witnessing qualitative development plans exceeding the SR100 million barrier in infrastructure and services undertakings. 

This includes the implementation of the medium voltage network project and energy enhancement to meet industrial demands, as well as the development project of the second phase of road networks and rainwater drainage with an area of ​​3.1 million sq. meters. 

This comes in addition to main road planning projects and the installation of an air quality inspection station alongside a number of other development projects.

In a statement earlier this week, the official spokesman for the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources Jarrah bin Muhammad Al-Jarrah, said that the industrial city in the Najran region had a total area of ​​6.5 million sq. meters, containing 11 factories for non-metallic minerals, five plants for rubber and plastic stock, and four facilities for food goods, in addition to a factory for pharmaceuticals and paper products.

Al-Jarrah further added at the time that the size of the workforce in the industrial sector currently stands at 6,256 employees, including 1,855 Saudi workers.