RIYADH, 15 October — Government-owned Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) yesterday signed a financial consultancy agreement with Riyad Bank and the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group for a $3.2 billion mining project.
The two banks will oversee the detailed economic feasibility study for the Al-Zubirah bauxite project which involves establishing a smelter and refinery for aluminum and alumina in the Eastern Province.
Maaden chairman Abdullah Al-Dabbagh said the agreement will provide the company with accurate and specialized information about the financial and technical aspects of the Preliminary studies have shown that the area between Qasim and Hail in the north has bauxite deposits of more than 126 million tonnes, 57 percent of which is alumina, Dabbagh said.
The study is expected to be completed in mid-2004 as Maaden plans to extract 3.5 million tonnes of bauxite annually for the production of 620,000 tonnes of aluminum a year.
Maaden, wholly owned by the Petroleum Ministry, was set up in March 1997 with a capital of $ 1billion to utilize the rich mineral resources in Saudi Arabia. The government plans to privatize the company.
