The Big Picture: Al Masane Al Kobra Mining Company (AMAK) has confirmed a massive mineral discovery at its Jabal Qarn project in Najran, Saudi Arabia. Consequently, Australian geology firm Cube Consulting Pty Ltd validated 11.3 million tonnes of classified mineral resources under the JORC 2012 standard. This technical report solidifies the Kingdom’s growing status as a global mining leader. Moreover, this geological achievement highlights the company’s commitment to delivering sustained shareholder value.
Why It Matters: Saudi Arabia treats mining as the third pillar of its national economy alongside oil and petrochemicals. Therefore, the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources actively promotes exploration through modern laws and competitive licensing rounds. Currently, official estimates value the Kingdom’s underground mineral wealth at SAR 9.375 trillion ($2.5 trillion). Furthermore, this sector development supports Saudi Vision 2030 by expanding non-oil revenues.
Unlocking Jabal Qarn’s Potential
The technical report reaffirms preliminary estimates from November 2025. Furthermore, complete geological data from extensive diamond drilling through July 31, 2026, supports these findings.
Specifically, the project contains two distinct mineralization styles. The site holds 9.7 million tonnes of polymetallic ore with an average copper equivalent grade of 1.38 percent. Meanwhile, gold-rich mineralization accounts for 1.5 million tonnes with an average grade of 1.10 grams per tonne of gold.
In addition, geologists identified 2.7 million tonnes of unclassified mineralized material inside the open pit and subsurface workings. Consequently, AMAK views these unclassified volumes as a promising opportunity to expand future mine reserves through planned infill drilling programs.
Smart Operational Strategy
The Jabal Qarn project spans exploration license 1446216, covering 57.7 square kilometers in Najran. It lies just 60 kilometers south-southwest of AMAK’s Al Masane and Guyan operating complexes. Notably, AMAK secured this exploration license in September 2024 through competitive ministry bidding.
Moreover, technical processing tests confirm that AMAK can process all extracted ore through existing operational facilities without investing new capital expenditure:
- Gold ore: AMAK will transport gold ore directly to the Guyan plant for Carbon-in-Pulp processing.
- Polymetallic ore: AMAK will route polymetallic ore to flotation plants at Al Masane and Moyeath complexes.
This strategic approach preserves capital while optimizing efficiency. AMAK confirmed that this technical announcement creates no direct immediate financial impact. However, the company will intensify exploration drilling and complete detailed economic feasibility studies to commercialize the project.
Saudi Arabia’s Mining Progress
Saudi Arabia continues to build a world-class mining ecosystem under Vision 2030. To incentivize exploration, the government introduced a SAR 682.5 million ($182 million) exploration enablement program. As a result, updated laws like the Mining Investment Law have lowered corporate income taxes to 20 percent. Additionally, the Saudi Geological Survey launched comprehensive mapping projects across the mineral-rich Arabian Shield. Consequently, global mining conglomerates expand operations locally.
By the numbers: Here is the technical breakdown of mineral reserves at Jabal Qarn and national benchmarks:
- 3 million tonnes: Total classified mineral resources confirmed at the Jabal Qarn project site.
- 1 million tonnes: Indicated resources with high geological confidence, representing 63 percent of total resources.
- 1 million tonnes: Inferred resources with preliminary geological confidence requiring future exploratory drilling.
- 34,000 tonnes: Total copper content contained across the entire Jabal Qarn deposit.
- 118,000 tonnes: Total zinc content identified in the independent Australian technical report.
- 281,000 ounces: Total gold wealth contained within the multi-metal project site.
- 739 million ounces: Total silver reserves confirmed across the Jabal Qarn exploration block.
- SAR 9.375 trillion ($2.5 trillion): Estimated total value of Saudi Arabia’s national mineral resources portfolio.
- SAR 682.5 million ($182 million): Government exploration incentive fund supporting mining projects nationwide.
What’s next: The government backs this growth with co-financing worth up to 75% of exploration costs, a dedicated exploration fund, and a new Mining Investment Law meant to attract global operators. For Gulf investors, AMAK’s Najran discovery offers a concrete signal that the strategy is translating geological potential into measurable reserves, copper, zinc, gold and silver now confirmed and ready for the next stage of development.
