The Afghan government on Saturday invited bids from international mining firms to develop an iron ore deposit said to be one of the world''s richest, the mines minister said. The Hajigak iron ore mine in central Bamiyan province is believed to hold up to two billion tonnes of high-grade iron ore, the main raw material used in making steel.
"The Hajigak iron ore deposit is open for tender as of today," said mines minister Wahidullah Shahrani. "We are going to tender this today in Kabul on all government websites, all leading economic and mines journals for the expression of interest," he told reporters during a visit to the mine. He said the mine would generate annual 300 million dollars in direct earnings for the Afghan government and 1.5 billion dollars in indirect income for the country.
Afghanistan invited tenders last year to develop the mine but, receiving only a lukewarm response, cancelled the process after Shahrani took over the minister''s post when his predecessor was removed amid corruption allegations. He planned to travel to New York on Wednesday, he said, to persuade major miners to bid. He visited London earlier this year to drum up international interest in Afghanistan''s mineral wealth.
Comments
Comments are closed.