Join our daily newsletter At The Bell to receive exclusive market insights
- Alara Resources (AUQ) is chosen by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources (MIMR) to participate in the final round of a process to award an exploration license for over 353 square kilometres of ground
- Ground area for exploration includes the company’s former Khnaiguiyah zinc-copper project which contains substantial zinc-copper mineralisation in the form of sphalerite and chalcopyrite
- The first two rounds have put the company as one of the only eight bidders entitled to participate in the third and final round of the license auction process
- If Alara’s bid is successful, it will engage with MIMR to put forward the best possible offer to develop the licenced area
- AUQ shares are down 6.15 per cent, trading at 6.1 cents
Alara Resources (AUQ) has been selected by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources (MIMR) to participate in the final round of a process to award an exploration license for over 353 square kilometres of ground.
Ground area for exploration includes the company’s former Khnaiguiyah zinc-copper project, west of the Saudi capital Riyadh, which contains substantial zinc-copper mineralisation in the form of sphalerite and chalcopyrite.
The MIMR recently unveiled a new vision to engender rapid growth in the Saudi mining sector through its new mineral development strategy, which involves unlocking the Kingdom’s vast mineral resources by fast-tracking exploration and development activity.
Alara has now successfully progressed through the first two of three rounds of the selection process, including the submission of a detailed pre-qualification application.
The first two rounds have put the company as one of only eight bidders entitled to participate in the third and final round of the license auction process, which MIMR will shortly further instructions to the eight bidders.
Alara believes that it has a clear advantage over its rivals because of its in-depth knowledge of the geology and mineralisation of the exploration area and the engineering required to develop the project, from its previous completion of a Definitive Feasibility Study over the former Khnaiguiyah project area.
“[The final stage of the selection process] takes Alara a step closer to being a key player in the Kingdom’s efforts to deliver a new vision for its mining sector,” Managing Director Atmavireshwar Sthapak said.
“We look forward to providing further updates to investors in the coming months on both developments in this bidding process, and mining activities at our Al Wash-hi–Majaza copper-gold project in Oman, which is now in the ramp-up phase.”
If Alara’s bid is successful, it will engage with MIMR to put forward the best possible offer to develop the licenced area.
The company said it may consider forming a joint venture to bid for the exploration license, if the Alara Board determines it would be in shareholders’ best interests.
AUQ shares were down 6.15 per cent, trading at 6.1 cents as of 10:20 am AEST.
