KABUL (Pajhwok): An agreement has been signed with an Australian company in violation of the mining law, some sources say and the Wolesi Jirga’s Environmental Protection Commission says the matter is being probed.
KABUL (Pajhwok): The mining contracts of Balkhab copper reserve in Sar-i-Pul province and a gold mine in Badakhshan province have been twice signed and revoked in the past eight years and once delayed due to the conflict of interest.
KABUL (Pajhwok): A table of the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum (MoMP) shows that of 748 mining areas in different parts of Afghanistan, about 283 are controlled by the Taliban, 281 by government and the remaining by power full individuals. The ministry collected information on nationwide mining sites. A source in MoMP provided Pajhwok Afghan News the table based on that information. He said this information was collected between 2018 and 2020. The information contains the number of mineral areas, locations of mines, who control them and types of minerals.
TALOQAN (Pajhwok): Of the mines in northern Takhar province, six are being controlled by Taliban, five by the government and three by illegal gunmen, Pajhwok Afghan News’ findings show. Preliminary surveys and research indicate 44 mines have been discovered in Takhar so far. Fourteen of them have been registered and the nature and quantity of deposits therein estimated. Documents obtained by Pajhwok indicate the government is in control of coalmine in Chaal district, salt, sand and gold mines in Taloqan and the construction stone mine in Farkhar.
PUL-I-KHUMRI (Pajhwok): Gypsum from Sheikh Jalal Mine in Baghlan-i-Markzai district of northern Baghlan province is illegally extracted by local irresponsible armed men and gypsum processing factories since last seven years while the government is yet to take any steps to stop it.
TALOQAN (Pajhwok): Extraction works at two salt mines has been stopped in northern Takhar province due to insecurity and lack of government’s cooperation with the contractor. Local Takhar officials say the contractor owed over $800,000 to the government while the company officials say insecurity and interference from strongmen created problems for their operations. Taqcha Khan Salt Mine is located in Namakab district and Archa Kutal Salt Mine is located in Kulfgan district of Takhar province.
MAZAR-I-SHARIF (Pajhwok): Gypsum is illegally extracted from mines located in Chamtal district of northern Balkh province by local people and a number of companies, causing the government 25 million afghanis loss each year. Gypsum mines are located in Chamtal, Khulm and Marmal districts of Balkh province but the mineral is illegally extracted from the ones in Chamtal and Khulm. Pajhwok Afghan News findings show people use explosives to extract the mineral such as ‘dynamite’ which local officials term as dangerous for environment.
PUL-I-KHUMRI (Pajhwok): Pajhwok Afghan News findings show a number of strongmen in Nahrain district of Baghlan province have stopped a coalmine extraction company from operating and as a result 126 million afghanis go to personal pockets annually. Coal from the mine located in Chinarak area of Nahrain district is illegally extracted since last two years. Pajhwok findings show 15 trucks carried away coal illegally and unprofessionally extracted from the mine on a daily basis and all the money from the extraction goes to irresponsible armed men and local strongmen.
Kabul (Pajhwok): ‘The Roadmap for Afghanistan Natural Resources’, a strategy approved by the government in 2017, suggests that Afghanistan could become an average income country from a low income in few decades if the stra
