Unlocking Opportunities: India and Saudi Arabia Form Strategic Resource Alliance

by | 5. Feb 2025 - 10:26 | Politics

The subcontinent aims to diversify its resource sources for its growing economy, while the Gulf state possesses largely untapped mineral deposits.

India and Saudi Arabia are striving to become key players in the global resource sector, and now the two countries are planning to enhance cooperation in this field. The collaboration was announced on Tuesday, with specific goals including investment and technology partnerships, as well as strengthening supply chains. The announcement followed a meeting between India’s Minister of Coal and Mining, Shri G. Kishan Reddy, and Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Bandar Ibrahim Alkhorayef, in New Delhi.

According to India’s government, the plans align with the newly launched National Critical Minerals Mission, which aims to drive the exploration and processing of critical resources. By tapping into its own mineral reserves and investing in foreign resource projects, India hopes to reduce its dependency on imports from China, especially for its burgeoning high-tech sector. Additionally, these resources are expected to contribute to the expansion of renewable energy; the densely populated country has so far been largely reliant on fossil fuels. Saudi Arabia’s largely untapped mineral deposits, valued at $2.5 trillion, could play a crucial role in this transition (we reported). As the world’s largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia also aims to diversify its economy, expanding its resource sector to create a broader economic base.

Kabir Taneja, Deputy Director of India’s Observer Research Foundation, views critical minerals, alongside future technologies such as artificial intelligence, as the “proverbial new oil.” While resource policy has traditionally been dominated by national interests, he suggested in an interview with Arab News that countries like India and Saudi Arabia could collaborate to shape a multipolar future.