Arab Finance: Riyadh-based precious metals company Saudi Gold Refinery Co. has applied for gold exploration licenses in Egypt’s Eastern Desert and aims to begin production before 2030, Chairman Suliman Saleh Al-Othaim told Asharq Business.
Al-Othaim said the company intends to secure a mining license after obtaining exploration rights. It is seeking to develop mines in Egypt comparable to the Sukari gold mine in terms of size and production.
Saudi Gold Refinery has the technical and financial capacity to fund and execute the full project cycle using its own resources, he added. This would encompass exploration, mine development, and production.
The applications follow Egypt’s offering of 260 areas for gold and associated mineral exploration in the Eastern Desert under an open-block system administered by the Mineral Resources and Mining Industries Authority (MRMIA).
The system permits companies to submit offers without waiting for a single bid-round deadline and applies the internationally recognized royalty and tax model.
Saudi Gold Refinery is also seeking to secure more than five areas through the offering, an unnamed Egyptian government official revealed to Asharq Business.
The company is concentrating on areas near Al-Baramiya, south of Marsa Alam in the Red Sea governorate, where geological studies indicate high gold concentrations, according to the official.
The focus on Al-Baramiya follows earlier negotiations between Saudi Gold Refinery and Egyptian state-owned mining company Shalateen Mineral Resources Company over a potential gold exploration partnership in the area.
Those talks stalled because the two sides disagreed over the contractual framework. Saudi Gold Refinery sought to apply the royalty and tax model, while Shalateen maintained that any agreement should follow the production-sharing system stipulated in its bylaws.
Established in 2008, Saudi Gold Refinery operates across the exploration, prospecting, and extraction of precious metals, including gold and silver. The company has activities at more than 150 locations in Saudi Arabia and holds approximately 25 exploration licenses.
