in mining-technology.com: Saudi Arabia has signed nine significant investment agreements in the metals and mining sector, exceeding $9.3bn (SR34.88bn) in value, with major global companies such as Vedanta from India and China’s Zijin Group, Reuters reported. Vedanta is set to establish copper facilities at Ras Al-Khair with a capital expenditure of SR7.5bn, including a smelter, a refinery with a capacity of 400,000 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) and a 300,000mtpa copper rod plant. Zijin plans to invest between SR5bn and SR6bn, with the initial phase dedicated to constructing a zinc smelter capable of producing 100,000 tons per annum (tpa) of zinc ingots and 200,000tpa of sulphuric acid.
