Egypt Contracts Spain’s Xcalibur to Launch Nationwide Mining Survey

The Mineral Resources and Mining Industries Authority (MRMIA) has signed a contract with Spain’s Xcalibur, to launch Egypt’s first nationwide airborne geophysical survey in more than 40 years.

This followed the Cabinet approval in March of the authority’s request to contract a specialized company to conduct the survey.

For implementing the survey, Xcalibur will deploy its latest aircraft and advanced technologies, while cooperating with the Nuclear Materials Authority and Drone Tech, an Egyptian drone Service provider, to maximize the use of national assets and capabilities, according to MRMIA Chairman Yasser Ramadan.

In November 2025, the MRMIA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Xcalibur to survey six research zones: the Eastern Desert, Western Desert, Sinai, Bahariya Oasis, and Abu Tartur.

Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, explained that the survey will provide a modern, high-resolution database of Egypt’s mineral deposits, creating attractive investment opportunities for exploration and mining based on reliable data.

The Spanish firm has extensive international experience in airborne geophysical surveys, having completed more than 1,400 projects worldwide across the mining, energy, and infrastructure sectors, using advanced digital systems and artificial intelligence to analyze multi-source geophysical data.