Six Large-Scale Mines Are Ready For Extraction in Afghanistan, Says Taliban

The Taliban's Ministry of Mines and Petroleum announced that six "large-scale" mines are ready for the extraction process in Afghanistan.

Shahabuddin Delawar, Minister of Mines and Petroleum of the Taliban, said that these six mines can lead Afghanistan towards a self-sustaining economy.

According to Delawar, these oil, gas and gold mines are located in Herat, Ghor, Kandahar, Logar, Jawzjan, and Samangan provinces, however, no extraction contract for these mining sites have been signed.

The Taliban’s minister added that companies from China, Qatar, UAE, Turkey, Iran and some European and American countries are ready to invest in these mines.

Delawar added that the Amu Darya oilfield contract has been signed with a Chinese company and there will be 540 million dollars investment on this major mining site in the next three years.

According to Delawar, currently 150 to 200 tonnes of oil is being extracted daily in the Qashgari oilfield, and the group expects that the daily extraction from this site will increase to 1000 tonnes per day.

He mentioned Afghanistan's lithium mines as the main wealth of Afghanistan and said that some Chinese companies have expressed willingness to invest in lithium mining sites of the country.

The Taliban’s Ministry of Mines and Petroleum has talked about the importance and development of Afghanistan’s mining sites to the country’s economy, while millions of Afghans seek refuge in other countries for security and lack of employment issues.

The Taliban officials have started appearing in a programme called "Government Accountability to the Nation" at the government media and information center since Sunday.

The "Government Accountability to the Nation" programme had started during the previous government of Afghanistan.