RIYADH - Saudi Arabia's Ma'aden, the mining arm of the Crown Prince's Public Investment Fund (PAF), plans to open its first office in Sao Paulo, Brazilian mining minister Alexandre Silveira said on Tuesday.

The initiative includes an estimated 8 billion reais ($1.31 billion) to advance geological mapping in Brazil, Silveira told reporters in Riyadh.

"We need to know more about our subsoil...and partner with the Brazilian mining sector so that we can explore and take advantage of the subsoil in a sustainable, adequate way," he said, emphasising that mining, along with oil and gas, is critical to the global energy transition.

The investment aligns with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 strategy to diversify its economy, leveraging its expertise in mining and sustainable energy.

($1 = 6.0944 reais)

(Reporting by Pesha Magid in Riyadh, Writing by Natalia Siniawski and Tiago Brandao; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)