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Associated Press

Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban government said it signed seven mining contracts Thursday amounting to US$6.5 billion in investment, in the biggest such round of deals since seizing power two years ago.
The seven contracts are with locally based companies, many of which have foreign partners in countries including China, Iran, and Turkey.
They include the extraction and processing of iron ore, lead, zinc and gold in four provinces: Herat, Ghor, Logar and Takhar.
A statement on the contracts from Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdul Ghani Baradar Akhund gave few details, but said they would create thousands of jobs and significantly improve the economic situation of the country.

Any figures given for the deals could be misleading unless they lead to fully realised mining operations on the ground, which could take years, said Javed Noorani, an expert in Afghanistan’s mining sector.
“The Taliban know Afghanistan has minerals and this is cash, but it’s not easy cash,” Noorani said. “Mineral mining is an incredibly complicated operation. It requires a proper framework, strategies, institutions and infrastructure. You open up the sector slowly and start with low-hanging fruit.”
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Nobody from the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum was available to provide further information on the contracts or the companies.
Associated Press contacted the Kabul-based Sahil Middle East Mining & Logistics Ltd, which signed an iron ore deal according to the official statement, but received no immediate response.
The Taliban has been courting foreign investment to revitalise the economy since their takeover.
Nearly 80 per cent of the previous, Western-backed Afghan government’s budget came from the international community. That money, now largely cut off, financed hospitals, schools, factories and government ministries.
The Taliban, like previous administrations in Afghanistan, are pinning their hopes on the country’s vast and untapped mineral resources to line the nation’s coffers. Logar province is believed to hold the world’s largest copper deposit.


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Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s Taliban say they have signed mining contracts worth US$6.5 billion

Taliban mark the second anniversary of their takeover of the country in Kabul, Afghanistan, on  August 15. Photo: AP

Logar province is believed to hold the world’s largest copper deposit. File photo: AFP

Afghanistan’s Taliban government marks 2 years since return to power

The Taliban marked the second anniversary of its takeover of Kabul, Afghanistan, on Tuesday. Photo: AP

People protest in London on Tuesday, the anniversary of the 2021 Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Photo: AP

Afghans mark the second anniversary of the Taliban taking over the Afghan government on Tuesday. The takeover has led to the country being isolated by the international community. Photo: EPA-EFE

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A shipment bound for Afghanistan left Lanzhou on Wednesday. Photo: Xinhua

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Afghanistan national flag carrier Ariana Afghan Airlines is resuming passenger air services between  Kabul and Urumqi. Photo: Xinhua

Ariana Afghan Airlines is operating weekly round-trip flights between Kabul and Urumqi. Photo: Xinhua

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Russia & Central Asia

Mining contracts are with Afghanistan-based companies, many of which have foreign partners in countries including China
The Taliban has been courting foreign investment to revitalise the economy since their takeover two years ago


The mining contracts are the Taliban’s biggest such round of deals since seizing power two years ago.


Afghanistan after the US withdrawal

Afghanistan: All stories

China-Afghanistan relations

Afghanistan’s Taliban say they have signed mining contracts worth US$6.5 billion

Mining contracts are with Afghanistan-based companies, many of which have foreign partners in countries including China The Taliban has been courting foreign investment to revitalise the economy since their takeover two years ago

Mining contracts are with Afghanistan-based companies, many of which have foreign partners in countries including China

The Taliban has been courting foreign investment to revitalise the economy since their takeover two years ago