Fourth Future Minerals Forum Starts in Riyadh

The fourth edition of the forum, held between January 14 and 16 - SPA
The fourth edition of the forum, held between January 14 and 16 - SPA
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Fourth Future Minerals Forum Starts in Riyadh

The fourth edition of the forum, held between January 14 and 16 - SPA
The fourth edition of the forum, held between January 14 and 16 - SPA

Under the patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the fourth edition of the Future Minerals Forum kicked off in Riyadh. The event features representatives from over 90 countries, including 16 G20 nations, 50 international governmental and non-governmental organizations, commodity trade associations, and leading figures in the global mining industry.
The forum began with the Fourth Ministerial Roundtable meeting, which aims to bolster international collaboration in producing the critical minerals essential for the global energy transition. It provides a platform for ministers and senior officials to discuss sustainable development strategies for the mining sector, focusing on positioning mining as a catalyst for economic growth and social progress, SPA reported.
The government officials met to lead global action on minerals around three key initiatives: Strategic Framework for Critical Minerals, which aims to develop a collaborative framework in the Super Region of Africa, West, and Central Asia to harness the region's mineral potential fully; Sustainability, aimed at the development of responsible supply priorities that reflect local realities in supplier countries and enhance transparency through supply chain certification; and Centers of Excellence, establishing a network to drive investments, develop human capital, and accelerate technological innovation within the Super Region and supplier countries.
The fourth edition of the forum, held between January 14 and 16, features 250 speakers, including CEOs of leading mining and mineral-related companies and financial institutions. Around 15,000 participants are expected to attend its sessions.



Bezos' Blue Origin calls off New Glenn Launch Again, Eyes Thursday

A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket stands ready for its inaugural launch at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., January 11, 2025. REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket stands ready for its inaugural launch at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., January 11, 2025. REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo
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Bezos' Blue Origin calls off New Glenn Launch Again, Eyes Thursday

A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket stands ready for its inaugural launch at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., January 11, 2025. REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket stands ready for its inaugural launch at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., January 11, 2025. REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo

Jeff Bezos' rocket company Blue Origin moved the launch of its New Glenn rocket from Tuesday to Thursday, Jan. 16, further pushing back its inaugural attempt to reach orbit and compete with SpaceX in the satellite launch market.

The company called off its first scheduled launch on Monday after a technical issue was encountered in the lead-up to its takeoff.

The three-hour launch window opens at 1 a.m. EST (0600 GMT) on Thursday, Blue Origin said in a post on X, according to Reuters.

The development of New Glenn has spanned three Blue Origin CEOs and faced numerous delays as Elon Musk's SpaceX grew into an industry juggernaut with its reusable Falcon 9, the world's most active rocket.

New Glenn is more than twice as powerful as a Falcon 9 rocket and has dozens of customer launch contracts collectively worth billions of dollars lined up.

The rocket would seek to land New Glenn's first stage booster on a sea-fairing barge in the Atlantic Ocean 10 minutes after liftoff, while the rocket's second stage continues toward orbit.

"The thing we're most nervous about is the booster landing," Bezos, who founded Blue Origin in 2000, told Reuters in a pre-launch interview on Sunday. "Clearly on a first flight you could have an anomaly at any mission phase, so anything could happen.