RIYADH: Bandar Alkhorayaf, Saudi Arabia's minister of mining and industry, will visit Brazil and Chile this week, the ministry said on Sunday.
In Brazil, he will hold meetings with officials to discuss expanding the kingdom's mining capacity, food processing and aviation, while in Chile he will explore the production of lithium needed for electric vehicle batteries.
“This is in line with the Kingdom's direction to expand EV production,” the Saudi government said in a statement.
Alkhorayaf will land in Brazil on Monday and fly to Chile, the world's second-largest lithium producer, next Sunday.
On the first leg of the tour in Brazil, Alkhorayaf will meet agricultural and industrial groups including Minerva Foods, JBS and BRF SA, as well as the Brazilian Mining Association and mining company Vale.
Brazilian Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira said last month that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund plans to invest $15 billion in Brazil in areas such as green hydrogen, infrastructure and renewable energy.
In Chile, the minister will meet with his counterpart, Aurora Williams, as well as Antofagasta mining companies and Codelco, the state-owned company tasked with bringing the Chilean government into the lithium industry.
Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund PIF and the kingdom's mining company, known as Ma'aden, which is 67 percent owned by PIF, have formed a joint venture called Manara Minerals to invest in mining assets abroad.
