"Middle East is looking to diversify and has a war chest."
Interesting article from the FT on the new kids on the Mining block.
#Zambia's Mopani #Copper deal with #UAE's International Resources Holding IRH, part of the $240bn business empire of powerful Abu Dhabi royal Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan, finalized at the end of March marks a new force sweeping through the global mining sector.
"Gulf nations, hungry to diversify their economies beyond fossil fuels, are redirecting petrodollars to secure copper, nickel and other minerals used in power transmission lines, electric cars and renewable power."
"Washington has welcomed the Gulf's expanding role in mining for helping to break Beijing's monopoly over processing critical minerals. The US has been actively brokering Saudi, Emirati and Qatari investment in riskier jurisdictions, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, where western companies struggle to enter, in order to keep China out, according to executives from mining companies and trading houses, as well as a senior US government official."
For international mining groups also seeking to navigate US-China tensions over natural resources, the Middle East offers a neutral venue for minerals processing, capital and corporate headquarters. SRG Mining, a graphite miner caught in a political firestorm in Canada over a failed plan to collaborate with China's C-One, announced in February that it would move to the UAE.
"[The Gulf states] trade openly with the US and Chinese. Its cards face up," says Mark Cutifani, chair of Vale Base Metals, a copper and nickel producer that Saudi Arabia bought a 10 per cent stake in last year for $2.6bn. "We're a Brazilian company run out of Canada joint venturing in Indonesia with the Chinese and the Saudis have 10 per cent in us. Welcome to the next stage of the political complexity of the world we live in."
Under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's "Vision 2030" to modernise Saudi Arabia's economy, mining and minerals processing are earmarked to become the third industrial "pillar" next to oil and gas and petrochemicals. "Nation building" is the main driver behind Saudi's push, says Tim Keating, a former head of mining for the Oman Investment Authority.
The kingdom hopes to position itself at the centre of a "super region" spanning Africa, central Asia and south Asia. In January, Saudi signed deals to explore mining projects with Egypt, Russia, Morocco and the DRC. By wielding its cheap, abundant energy, it can process the raw materials from resource-rich nations starved of finance to manufacture products such as steel or electric cars for rapidly growing consumer markets in India, for example.
See the full article here:
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