President and CEO of Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) Khalid bin Saleh Al Mudaifer says his company plans to explore and extract 500,000 ounces of gold Kingdomwide, including the Madinah Region.

Addressing the Mining Investment Opportunities Forum in Madinah being held under the auspices of Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman, Al-Mudaifer stated that their major concern is to keep the highest standards of safety and security and expand the scope of operations in gold mining in Mahd-Al-Dhahab and the processing of magnesium at the industrial city of Madinah.

Mohamed Faraj Al-Khatrawi, head of Madinah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), said the forum comes to boost efforts aimed to activate economic activity in Madinah and how to bring the business sector into the development path extensively, notably in the Madinah region and the Kingdom at large.

Assistant President of Saudi Geological Survey Abdullah bin Muhasin Al-Attas gave a detailed presentation on the mining industry in the Kingdom.

He said the government of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has spent huge funds on the mining industry, which represented in the establishment of two mega mining complexes.

The government, further, built more than 600 km railways to transport minerals from the northern parts of the country to the industrial metals complex in the Gulf and, additionally, provided sufficient amount of gas and water to support the industry.

In addition to experts, the meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources and the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA).