MUST-READS

• Saudi Arabia welcomes ceasefire agreement in Gaza

  Saudi authorities welcomed the announcement of a Gaza ceasefire agreement on Wednesday and expressed the Kingdom’s appreciation for the efforts of mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the US. The Kingdom stressed the need for adherence to the deal, an end to Israel’s aggression against Gaza, and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory and all other occupied Palestinian and Arab lands. It also highlighted the importance of building on the agreement by addressing the underlying reasons for the conflict and enabling the Palestinian people to secure their rights, the foremost of which is the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

• Saudi Arabia to scale up lithium expansion as it diversifies from oil

  Saudi Arabia has announced a new joint venture (JV) between Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, and state-owned mining company Ma’aden, marking a significant step in its push to dominate critical minerals. The partnership aims to extract lithium— an essential component in electric vehicle (EV) and electronic devices — from high-concentration deposits while exploring cost-effective direct extraction technologies. Commercial lithium production is expected to commence by 2027, the companies said. Demand for transition minerals such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel is surging globally. Aramco forecasts a 20-fold increase in domestic lithium demand between 2024 and 2030, sufficient to support 500,000 EV batteries and 110 gigawatts of renewable energy sources.

• The future of grain supply and food security in Saudi Arabia

  Anis Alam, a key player in Saudi Arabia’s grain supply sector, gives an exclusive interview to Miller Magazine, outlining the country’s changing food security strategies. In this in-depth conversation, he discusses the challenges and opportunities facing the grain industry, how Saudi Arabia is adapting to global trends, and the critical steps being taken to ensure sustainable supply chains for the future. Saudi Arabia plays a pivotal role in the grain markets of the Middle East due to its strategic position as a key importer and distributor of essential agricultural commodities. With its growing population and limited arable land and water resources, the country is heavily reliant on grain imports to meet its food and feed needs. As a result, grain trade has become a central element of Saudi Arabia’s food security strategy.

• The United States and Saudi Arabia Strengthen Musical Ties with Milestone Visit of Music Icon Herbie Hancock

  The Saudi Music Commission, one of 11 sector specific commissions under the Ministry of Culture, and the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh announce the very first visit to Saudi Arabia of jazz legend, Herbie Hancock, the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz Performance Ensemble at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), and acclaimed jazz vocalist Janis Siegel.  Their tour celebrates U.S.-Saudi cultural ties, arts education, and the universal power of music. It is sponsored by the Arts Envoy Program of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA).  The group’s agenda includes a performance at the King Fahad Cultural Center, with the participation of Saudi jazz vocalist Nourah Alammary; a masterclass for Saudi music students at the Saudi Music Hub, Riyadh; a roundtable on women in the arts with Saudi women artists and musicians; and an event with Saudi traditional musicians at the studio of Saudi visual artist Ahmed Mater.  U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Michael Ratney welcomed the visit, saying “Saudi Arabia’s cultural scene is evolving at an incredible pace, and hosting a legend like Herbie Hancock is a huge milestone. His music has inspired generations and having him here is a testament to the Kingdom’s remarkable cultural scene.” 

• KAUST’s lithium-extraction breakthrough could propel Saudi Arabia’s battery industry

  Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have developed a groundbreaking technology that could place Saudi Arabia at the forefront of global lithium production. The new method, detailed in the journal Science, enables the direct extraction of lithium from oilfield brine and seawater – a game-changer for an industry reliant on costly and resource-intensive mining. Lithium is essential for the batteries used in electric vehicles, laptops, and smartphones, but extracting it from low-concentration sources like brine has been economically unfeasible until now. The KAUST method was tested on a pilot scale 100,000 times larger than typical lab experiments and proved cost-competitive with traditional mining techniques. The implications for global supply are vast. Brine and seawater contain over 10,000 times more lithium than conventional reserves. By tapping into these sources, global lithium resources could surge from 22 million tons to more than 230 billion tons.

• Saudi Arabia and Italy Sign Energy Cooperation Deal

  Italy and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday signed a cooperation agreement in the energy sector, with an emphasis on renewable energy, hydrogen, and carbon capture, Italian Energy and Environment Minister, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, said while on a visit to Riyadh. Italy’s minister signed the agreement with Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz Bin Salman Al Saud on the sidelines of the Future Minerals Forum in Riyadh. The five-year cooperation agreement includes boosting bilateral cooperation in hydrogen production, renewables, and carbon capture and storage (CCS). The new cooperation deal will focus on clean energy and clean tech, including low-carbon hydrogen and green ammonia, according to the Italian government.

• Saudi Arabia grants exploratory rights to six mining sites

  The Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has allocated mineral exploration rights for six mining sites with a combined size of 890 sq km, according to the Saudi Press Agency. The combined cost of the concessions was SAR126 million ($33.6 million), and companies are obliged to spend an additional SAR9 million to develop communities near the sites. The largest concession, Jabal Baydan (244 sq km), which is in the Hijaz Mountains and thought to contain copper, gold, zinc, silver and lead, was granted to the Canadian company Power Nickel.

• Saudi Arabia, Japan Discuss 2026 Asian Games, Para Games in Nagoya

  Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SOPC) chief executive and secretary-general Abdulaziz bin Ahmed Baeshen met with Japan’s Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Matsumoto Hisashi in Riyadh on Monday. The meeting, held at SOPC headquarters, discussed developments in Japan's preparations for hosting the 20th Asian Games and the 5th Asian Para Games in Nagoya city in 2026. The officials also conferred about ways to facilitate the participation of the Saudi sports delegation in the games. Saudi-Japanese sports collaboration has intensified following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between SOPC and the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) on the sidelines of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics last August.

• Saudi Arabia signs mining deals with 6 countries

  The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources signed a series of memoranda of understanding (MoUs) and cooperation agreements with six countries during the fourth Ministerial Roundtable, the flagship opening meeting of the Future Minerals Forum. This meeting marked a significant step in advancing international partnerships and fostering the development of the Kingdom's mining and minerals sector. On behalf of Saudi Arabia, the agreements were signed by Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef, and Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources for Mining Affairs Eng. Khalid Al-Mudaifer. The counterpart signatories included the minister of energy and natural resources from Djibouti, the minister of energy and mineral resources from Jordan, the secretary of state for business and trade from the United Kingdom, and the minister of mines and mineral development from Zambia. Additional agreements were signed with the Ministry of Finance of Austria and the Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty of France.

• Saudi Arabia to enrich and sell uranium, energy minister says

  Saudi Arabia plans to monetise all minerals, including by selling uranium, Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman said today according to Reuters. “We will enrich it and we will sell it and we will do a ‘yellowcake’,” Prince Abdulaziz told a conference in Dhahran, referring to a powdered concentrate of the mineral used to prepare uranium fuel for nuclear reactors. It requires safe handling although it poses few radiation risks. Saudi Arabia has a nascent nuclear programme that it wants to expand to eventually include uranium enrichment, a sensitive area given its role in nuclear weapons. Riyadh has said it wants to use nuclear power to diversify its energy mix.

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