Al-Khurayyif: Decision to Cancel the Financial Fee Enhances Competitiveness of National Industry and Supports Non-Oil Exports

Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar bin Ibrahim Al-Khurayyif confirmed that the Cabinet's approval, chaired by Crown Prince and Prime Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, of the decision to cancel the financial fee imposed on expatriate labor in industrial facilities licensed under an industrial license, is a continuation of the ongoing and unlimited support and empowerment that the industrial sector receives from the Crown Prince. This is based on the fact that industry is one of the fundamental pillars for diversifying the national economy according to the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030.

The Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, on his own behalf and on behalf of the ministry and its entire system, expressed sincere thanks, appreciation, and gratitude to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and to his trusted Crown Prince on the occasion of the issuance of this decision. The decision will enhance the competitiveness of Saudi industry globally and increase the reach and spread of non-oil exports in various global markets. He pointed out that the decision will also facilitate investment operations for existing and new industrial facilities, in addition to reducing their financial burdens, supporting the sustainable growth of the industrial sector.

This was stated during the hosting of the Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources at the government press conference held today (Wednesday) on the sidelines of the "Made in Saudi Arabia 2025" exhibition at the Riyadh Exhibition and Conference Center in Malham, in the presence of Minister of Media Salman bin Youssef Al-Dosari.

Minister Al-Khurayyif pointed to the qualitative leaps achieved by the industrial sector during the previous exemption periods from the financial fee, which extended from 2019 until the end of 2025. He explained that over the past five years, the number of industrial facilities increased from 8,822 facilities to more than 12,000 facilities, the industrial GDP rose from 322 billion riyals to 501 billion riyals, while the Saudization rate in the sector increased from 29% to 31%. The volume of industrial exports also recorded noticeable growth, rising from 187 billion riyals to 217 billion riyals.

Al-Khurayyif added that investments in the industrial sector during that period continued to rise, jumping from more than 908 billion riyals to over 1.2 trillion riyals. The number of jobs increased from more than 480,000 jobs to more than 840,000 jobs, an increase of over 360,000 jobs, with a growth rate of 74%, reflecting the direct impact of sector growth in supporting the labor market and empowering national cadres.

He discussed the latest developments in the work of the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones "MODON," explaining that the number of industrial cities in the Kingdom increased from 31 cities to 42 industrial cities. The authority added 65 million square meters of developed land areas, and the volume of investments in industrial cities rose by more than 100 billion riyals to reach 465 billion riyals. He pointed out that the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu contributed to developing more than 30,000 square kilometers of infrastructure and adding investments valued at more than 100 billion dollars.

Regarding financing in the industrial sector, Al-Khurayyif confirmed that the financing allocations of the Saudi Industrial Development Fund reached 93 billion riyals from 2019 until October 2025, enabling industrial projects with investment volumes exceeding 280 billion riyals. The credit facilities provided by the Saudi Export-Import Bank exceeded 100 billion riyals since its establishment in 2020, enabling Saudi products to access global markets.

Al-Khurayyif pointed out that the local content percentage of government purchases rose to more than 51%, in addition to including 1,554 products in the mandatory list of national products aimed at developing local content.

He touched on the "Made in Saudi" program, explaining that the program launched in 2021 has registered 3,700 national companies, encompassing more than 19,000 products.

Al-Khurayyif noted that Saudi Arabia's non-oil exports achieved a historic performance during the first half of 2025, recording the highest semi-annual value of 307 billion riyals. He drew attention to the fact that the share of non-oil exports of total exports rose to 44%, compared to 28% during the same period in 2016.

The Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources explained that these achievements would not have been possible without many enablers provided by the industrial ecosystem, including the Standardized Incentives Program for the industrial sector, which aims to enable the production of goods not currently manufactured inside the Kingdom; the Petrochemical Raw Materials Availability and Competitiveness Program launched in cooperation with the Ministry of Energy to enhance supply chains related to the petrochemical raw materials sector; the Innovation Incentive Program that allows industrial and mining facilities to access more than 30 research centers; in addition to the Supplier Linkage Program aimed at developing suppliers and linking them to global value chains.

Al-Khurayyif highlighted achievements in sub-industrial sectors, including the automotive industry, pharmaceutical industries, medical devices and equipment manufacturing, and the aviation industry. Saudi Arabia has made progress in localizing the automotive industry, including launching the "King Salman Automotive Manufacturing Complex," launching the "SIR" company, inaugurating the "Lucid Motors" factory, localizing prosthetics manufacturing, and launching the "Aviation Industries Cluster" in Jeddah.

The government press conference was held on the sidelines of the third edition of the "Made in Saudi Arabia" exhibition, which is a leading platform to showcase prominent national products and services and discuss ways to enhance their presence in local and global markets.