Oil is no longer an energy security challenge, the Saudi minister said

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia’s energy minister – the Gulf kingdom whose wealth and power is disproportionately based on vast oil reserves – believes that oil is no longer a challenge to energy security.

Instead, he said, the coming war will be for an entirely different material buried underground: critical minerals.

“Oil is no longer an energy security challenge – gas, electricity, mainly minerals,” Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman told attendees at the annual Future Minerals Forum in Riyadh.

“Today, some of these countries own as much as 50% of these essential minerals and critical minerals… Countries are scrambling to find critical minerals and protect their own supply chains. Resources ultimately lead to higher emissions, higher metal costs and higher energy prices.”

The energy minister was referring to minerals that are critical to the energy transition and advanced technologies – lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, manganese and other critical soil elements such as electric vehicles, batteries, renewable energy technologies, computers and home appliances. .

China currently controls 60% of the world’s rare earth minerals and materials. According to a recent report Public Policy at Rice University’s Baker Institute. Many countries, especially those in the West, are concerned that these resources will become more important to national security and economic stability.

“More AI (artificial intelligence) and data centers means more energy,” said Bin Salman. “AI, data centers, mining, cryptomining … Can you imagine what will happen to the demand for energy? Can you imagine the competition between mining to create energy and mining and the growth of these economies?” asked the energy minister.

“I don’t like the idea of ​​being the minister of energy at that time.”

Demand for electricity is increasing worldwide, fueling demand for AI, factories, electric vehicles and data centers to power hot and long winters. A recent Energy Department memo predicted in several press reports that the U.S. power grid could see up to 25 gigawatts of new data center demand by 2030.

Critical minerals and rare earth metals are essential for renewable technologies such as solar panels and wind turbines, which are central to many countries’ efforts to transition away from fossil fuels. China refines 95 percent of the world’s manganese. – a chemical substance used in batteries and steel production – although less than 10% of the global supply is mined.

Saudi Arabia announced on Wednesday that it is working on a $100 billion mining investment in a bid to become a global center for mining and mineral extraction and processing. The kingdom plans to greatly expand the exploration of lithium and other vital minerals within its borders.

Developing the mining sector and investing in the domestic supply chain is part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 mission to move its economy away from oil.