Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma’aden) has signed a contract with Jac Rijk Al-Rushaid Contracting & Services Co to provide operational mining services at the Mansourah & Massarah gold mines, which at an investment value of $880 million is Ma’aden’s largest and most ambitious gold project to date. Jac Rijk Al-Rushaid will operate drilling, scaling, loading, hauling, re-handling, ore control, dewatering, crusher feed, and all related activities at the mines to safely meet Ma’aden’s production targets.

Jac Rijk Al-Rushaid is a leading player in the local mining infrastructure industry in Saudi Arabia, and the statement said “a reliable and experienced partner to Ma’aden” at the existing Ad Duwayhi and As Suq gold mines. Once the Mansourah & Massarah site reaches full production capacity, which is on track for delivery by 2023, it is it expected to contribute one quarter of gold production towards Ma’aden’s strategic target of 1 Moz per year by 2025.

Construction is progressing at the Mansourah & Massarah site, which is the latest of six mines under operation by Ma’aden Gold and Base Metals Company and key to leveraging the tremendous mineral wealth of Saudi Arabia in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. “This investment represents Ma’aden’s commitment to maximising the mining industry’s contribution to the development of local content. In 2020, 74% of Ma’aden’s supply chain was placed with local suppliers, and we are now pushing beyond that number.”

Ma’aden’s gold portfolio currently makes up ~20% of the company’s revenue. The countercyclical commodity was an important factor in Ma’aden’s stable performance throughout the pandemic and will remain central to its operations in the future.

The project consists of the Mansourah and Massarah resources, which are being developed as conventional open pit mines. The plant will employ Carbon-In-Leach and Pressure Oxidation Processes technology for gold production.