Saudi Arabia sets out to secure lithium for EV ambitions

A senior minister stated in an interview that Saudi Arabia aims to produce batteries for EVs and invest in the electric vehicle field, and is working on lithium procurement from overseas, and pointed out that attempts to secure domestic supply are in the early stages.

Saudi Arabia has relied on oil for decades, and has invested billions of dollars to turn the country into an EV manufacturing center as part of economic diversification by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is the de facto ruler.

“Lithium is a very important mineral and happens to be included in a very important part of the supply chain, particularly batteries,” Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Al-Khoraf told Reuters in an interview on Sunday.

On the sidelines of a special session of the World Economic Forum held in Riyadh, he said, “It is unthinkable that we cannot live without it.”

Saudi Arabia, in cooperation with Aramco, has begun considering extracting lithium from seawater and salt emissions from the Kingdom's oil fields, but it remains to be seen whether these efforts will succeed.

Al-Khoraf said, “There are some bright signs, but we need to do more.”

“To make something economically feasible, we need to focus on two things: deposit size and concentration. There's not enough evidence to say there are appropriately sized deposits and concentrations.”

Last year, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is a Saudi Arabian government fund, and the main mining company Maaden established a joint venture called Manara Minerals to invest in overseas mining assets.

In response to questions about international lithium investments, Al-Kholayev said, “I am confident that Saudi Arabia's demand for natural resources will be met in some way.” “Through domestic products or through imports from Manara Investments and other partners.”

The Saudi Arabian Embassy in Santiago has approached the Chilean Ministry of Mines about accepting a delegation from Middle Eastern countries later this year in order to discuss possible investment in Chile's mining sector, Rodrigo Urquiza, the department's director of international affairs, revealed last week.

Chile's Minister of Mining Aurora Williams declined to be more specific on Thursday about which metals could be of interest to Saudi Arabia.

Alholaev said he was unaware of any discussions with Chile regarding lithium licenses.