Mining in Afghanistan

Mining in Afghanistan was controlled by the

It is estimated that forty million years ago the tectonic plates of India-Europe, Asia and Africa collided in a massive upheaval. This upheaval created the region of towering mountains that now includes Afghanistan. This diverse geological foundation has resulted in a significant mineral heritage with over 1,400 mineral occurrences recorded to date, including gold, copper, lithium, uranium, iron ore, cobalt, natural gas and oil.^[10] Afghanistan's resources could make it one of the richest mining regions in the world.^[11]

Afghanistan has large untapped energy and mineral resources, which have great potential to contribute to the country's economic development and growth. The major mineral resources include chromium, copper, gold, iron ore, lead and zinc, lithium, marble, precious and semiprecious stones, sulfur and talc among many other minerals. The energy resources consist of natural gas and petroleum. The government was working to introduce new mineral and hydrocarbon laws that would meet international standards of governance.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the British geological survey were doing resource estimation work in the country. Prior to that work, Afghanistan's exploration activity had been conducted by geologists from the Soviet Union who left good-quality geologic records that indicate significant mineral potential. Resource development would require improvements in the infrastructure and security in Afghanistan. The government had awarded contracts to develop the Aynak copper project and the Hajigak iron ore project; in addition, the government could offer tenders for new exploration, including exploration of copper at Balkhab, gold at Badakhshan, gemstones and lithium at Nuristan, and oil and gas at Sheberghan.

The Ministry of Mines drew up its first business reform plan in a bid to create a more accountable and transparent mining industry. Afghanistan joined the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative as a candidate country. It was expected that after 5 years, the contribution of royalties from mineral production to the revenues of the government would be at least $1.2 billion per year, and that after 15 years, the contribution would increase to $3.5 billion per year.

Afghanistan's mining industry was at a primitive artisanal stage of development; the operations were all low-scale and output was supplied to local and regional markets. The government considered development of the country's mineral resources to be a priority for economic growth, including development of the industrial mineral resources (such as gravel, sand, and limestone for cement) for use by the domestic construction industry. Investment in infrastructure and transportation projects for mining was a critical aspect of developing the mining industry.

The government completed Afghanistan's first railway with an investment of $170 million in 2010. The 76-kilometer (km) route link Mazar-i-Sharif to the extensive rail networks in Uzbekistan. The new route would allow Afghan exporters to transport minerals and other goods into Europe. China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC) is building a railroad to transport copper ore in Afghanistan from Logar to Kabul.

Owing to the lack of mineral production data reported by the miners, information about Afghanistan's mining activities was not readily available, but they appeared to be limited in scope. Production of Barite was estimated by the USGS to be about 2,000 metric tons; chromite, 6,000 tons; and

Privatization of Afghanistan's state-owned companies, which controlled many of the country's mineral resources, was ongoing but not complete. Investment in the mining sector by private domestic companies and foreign investors was encouraged by the government, which had offered the first contract for development of the Aynak copper project to two Chinese companies in 2007. The government also issued the tenders for the development of the hajigak iron ore project in 2009 and tenders for oil and gas exploration in 2010. The Ministry of Mines is involved in the exploration for and development, exploitation, and processing of minerals and hydrocarbons. The Ministry is also responsible for protecting the ownership and regulating the transportation and marketing of mineral resources in accordance with the country's new laws. Regulations to clarify the country's environmental laws were scheduled for adoption in 2010.

History

The last mining boom in Afghanistan was over 2,000 years ago in the era of

Historical mining concentrated mostly on precious stone production, with some of the oldest known mines in the world believed to have been established in Afghanistan. Lapis lazuli was being mined in the

The mine of Aynak's copper has more than 2,000 years of history, from the coins and the tools that were found there. The gold of Zarkashan has more than 2,000 years of history in Ghazni Province.

Afghanistan's ruby/spinel mines were mentioned in the Arabic writings of many early travellers, including

The British Empire first initiated resource assessments in Afghanistan in the early nineteenth century as they searched through pioneering exploration and military escapades for countries to dominate as markets and trading partners.[16] From the time of their first geological mapping and mineral resource assessments in Afghanistan,^[17] and on into the twentieth century,^[18] the British maintained a comprehensive interest in resources of Afghanistan. This was done while also improving their military intelligence on resources and topographic detail that would be needed in the event of any unrest in the machinations of their Great Game face-off against the Russian Empire, and as long as they could maintain their British Raj (rule) of the Indian subcontinent. A number of other nationalities (German, French, Russian) also looked at geology and resources in the country from time to time but nothing much seemed to come of their explorations. Following the third Anglo-Afghan War in 1919, Afghanistan won its independence from diplomatic domination by the British and it was not long after that a Soviet publication on mineral "riches" first appeared,^[19] published by a man who later came to be revered as an early Russian ‘father’ of geologic studies. Nevertheless, in spite of early attempts by the government of Afghanistan to entice Americans to become engaged in resource discovery and extraction in the country, distance from market, economic concerns, and looming worries about World War II caused rejection of the overtures, much to the discomfiture of the government of Afghanistan. In spite of a number of discoveries by the American geologist Fox (1943) and others, post-war assessment by an American geographer^[20] concluded shortsightedly that there were no useful resources in Afghanistan about which there should be any diplomatic concern.

With its attention on resources accordingly diverted elsewhere for decades to come, the

The result of this Cold War confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union in Afghanistan was that the neighboring USSR was able to fairly easily sidestep or ignore developing resources in Afghanistan until conditions were more to its liking as it consolidated its preeminent position in the country, ultimately leading to its invasion in 1979. With its already dominant roles in the Afghanistan Cartographic Institute, the Afghanistan Geological Survey, and many other ministries, the USSR was in a position in the early 1980s to completely take over all resource extraction in Afghanistan. Indeed, they did pump much natural gas across the northern border of the Amu Darya into the USSR where the gauges to measure delivered volumes were located, and plans were made for development of other resources.^[22] In addition, the Aynak copper deposit near Kabul was investigated in detail and a smelter scheduled for installation in the mid-1980s.

In an interesting sidelight of these times in the early 1980s, a Soviet-Afghan convoy from Aynak was assaulted by the Mujahideen and the captured documents that were sent to co-author Shroder by British sources proved that the Aynak copper lode was one of the largest in the world, as proved by a plethora of kilometer-deep boreholes that allowed the Soviets to sample the deposit extensively. The increasing resistance of the Afghan people and the Mujahideen, in the final cumulative battles of the Cold War, precluded significant further development of any resources at that time. Instead the Soviet withdrawal in defeat occurred in 1988–89. The subsequent invasion of Afghanistan by the United States and coalition troops in 2001 began a new phase in the history of Afghanistan, as many old resource projects were assessed again, and new ones were initiated.^[23]

In 2001, the September 11 attacks in New York led to the United States invasion of Afghanistan. According to Mark Landler and James Risen, in 2007 U.S. government sent geologist to explore the mining potential in Afghanistan. Using old Soviet maps of mining location, America created a more precise map of mineral locations. Former President Trump had agreed to remain in Afghanistan to help mine for minerals because he believed it will be a "win-win" for both countries.^[24]

Legal framework

A new mining law was passed in 2006 and as of 2006 regulations were being developed to provide the framework for more formal exploration for and mining of minerals. The process of applying for mineral rights was also being revised as of 2006. All minerals located on or under the surface are the exclusive property of the Government, except for

• Badakhshan Province: Badakhshan Gold, gemstones, lapis lazuli.
• Baghlan Province: Baghlan clay and gypsum, Dudkash industrial minerals
• Balkh Province: oil.
• Hajigak Mine
  (iron oxide).
• Daykundi Province: tin and tungsten
• Farah Province in the west: copper, lithium;
• Ghazni Province: Dashti Nawar lithium salts; Zarkashan Mine(copper, gold);.^[26]
• Ghor Province: Karnak-Kanjar mercury, Nalbandon lead and zinc
• Helmand Province: Khanneshin carbonatite, gold, rare-earth elements, possible uranium reserves; Chagai Hills travertine, copper and gold.
• Shaida Copper Mine
  Dusar tin, Tourmaline tin, Herat barite and limestone
• Jowzjan Province: Oil and Gas
• Surobi District (gemstones).^[27]
• Kandahar Province: copper, cement
• Kapisa Province: copper
• Kunduz Province: Kunduz celestite
• Logar Province: copper (Mes Aynak).
• Nangarhar Province: elbaite, Ghunday Achin magnesite and talc.
• Nimroz Province
  : Godzareh (Gaudi Zireh) lithium salts.
• Nuristan Province: Nuristan pegmatites and gemstones.
• Panjshir Province: Panjshir Valley gemstones e.g. emerald.
• Paktika Province: Katawaz gold and Oil
• Dara-I-Suf District
  (coking coal).
• Balkhab Copper Mine
  (world's largest deposit), Oil (Kashkari, Angot, etc.).
• Panj River
  Valley (gold), Evaporite.
• Urozgan Province
  : Bakhud fluorite
• Zabul Province: Kundalyan gold and copper.

Also the following places which have not, as yet, been positively located:

• Southeastern Afghanistan: copper, at the Darband, and the Jawkhar prospects.
• Anjir, Hasar, and Nooraba Valleys: gold

Commodities

Afghanistan has abundant non-fuel mineral resources, including both known and potential deposits of a wide variety of minerals ranging from copper, iron, and sulfur to bauxite, lithium, and rare-earth elements.

In 2007, a 30-year lease was granted for the development of a copper mine at Mes Aynak in Logar Province to the China Metallurgical Group for $3 billion, making it the biggest foreign investment and private business venture in Afghanistan's history. It is believed to contain the second-largest reserves of copper ore in the world and the deposits are estimated to be worth up to $88 billion. It is also the site of one of Afghanistan's most important archaeological sites and, although there are desperate efforts being made to save as much as possible, the main Buddhist monastery and other remains are due to be bulldozed to make way for the mine.^[42]

Several new mineral-rich sites, with estimated deposits of about $250 billion, had been found in six other provinces. Launched in 2006, a US Geological Survey (USGS), jointly conducted with the Ministry of Mines, was completed last year. The survey covers 30 percent of the country. "The survey provides credible information on mines in 28 different parts of Afghanistan," Wahidullah Shahrani told reporters.

It showed the world's largest copper deposits existed in Balkhab district of Sar-e-Pol. The copper mine was discovered near a river, an area which might hold gold reserves as well. The government launched tenders in late 2011 for the Balkhab copper deposit, which had reserves of about 45 Mt of copper. Citing the report, an Afghan government minister said two new copper mines in Logar Province and Herat Province provinces had been discovered. The value of the Logar pit, not the Ainak mine, is estimated at $43 billion. Copper and gold mines worth of $30 billion were discovered in the Zarkasho area of Ghazni and lithium pits of $20 billion in Farah and Nimroz provinces, Shahwani said.

A deposit of

Coal

Afghanistan has rich reserves of coking coal, coal is primarily located within a Jurassic belt from the northern provinces of Takhar and Badakhshan through the center of the country and towards the west in Herat, according to Afghan mines ministry.^[43]

In 2014 however, the U.S. Department of Labor has issued a List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor in which Afghanistan appeared to be one of the 74 countries with noticeable incidence of child labor in the coal mining field.^[44]

Gemstones

Afghanistan is known to have exploited its

As of 2006, gold was mined from the Samti placer deposit in Takhar Province in the north by groups of artisanal miners. Badakhshan Province also had occurrences of placer gold deposits. The deposits were found on the western flanks of the mountains in alluvium or alluvial fan in several river valleys, particularly in the Anjir, the Hasar, the Nooraba, and the Panj Valleys. The Samti deposit is located in the Panj River Valley and was estimated to contain between 20 and 25 metric tons of gold. The southern regions of Afghanistan is believed to contain large gold deposits, particularly the Helmand Province.^[46] There is an estimated $50 billion in gold and copper deposits in Ghazni province.^{[citation needed]}

The Afghan government signed a deal with Afghan Krystal natural Resources Co. (a local company) to invest up to $50 million in the Qara Zaghan Mine in northern Baghlan Province. Qara Zaghan was the country's second gold mine, and production there was planned to begin by 2013. The mine's gold reserves were not yet known, but the company intended to spend the next 2 years exploring the site. Investors from Indonesia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States were backing the project. The first gold mine was being developed by Westland general trading LLC of the United Arab Emirates at Nor Aaba near the border with Tajikistan in northern Takhar Province. The mine was expected to provide $4 million to $5 million per year in royalties to the government.

Iron ore

The best known and largest iron oxide deposit in Afghanistan is located at Hajigak in

In December 2011, Afghanistan signed an oil exploration contract with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) for the development of three oil fields along the Amu Darya river.^[53] In 2012 it was projected Afghanistan would have its first oil refineries within the next three years, after which it will receive 70 percent of the profits from the sale of the oil and natural gas.^[54] CNPC began Afghan oil production in October 2012, extracting 1.5 million barrels of oil annually.^[9][55]

Rare-earth elements

According to a September 2011 US Geological Survey estimate, the Khanashin carbonatites in southern Helmand Province have an estimated 1 million metric tonnes of rare-earth elements at a potentially useful concentration in the rock, but of unknown economic value. Regina Dubey, acting director for the Department of Defence Task Force for Business and Stability Operations (TFBSO) stated that "this is just one more piece of evidence that Afghanistan's mineral sector has a bright future."^[56]

Uranium

The Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan is believed to possess uranium reserves, according to Afghan Ministry of Mines.^[57][58]

See also

• List of places in Afghanistan

References