First Newsletter - Ministry of Mines

The Ministry of Mines of Afghanistan 

Quarterly Newsle-er 

An insight on Afghanistan’s progress and opportuniJes in the minerals and hydrocarbon sectors 

Issue 1: April 2012 

IN THIS ISSUE: 

• Update of mineral tenders 

currently in progress (p.2) 

• Tender for West Afghan Tajik Oil 

Basin announced in March 2012 (p. 

3) 

• Amu Darya Oil Basin contract 

awarded in December 2011 (p.4) 

• ‘NaJonal Mining Policy of 

Afghanistan’ is ready; major 

updates to Mining and 

Hydrocarbon Law being prepared 

(p.8) 

UPCOMING EVENTS 

Ministry of Mines of Afghanistan to par>cipate in the 

Africa Down Under Conference, Australia 

The Ministry of Mines will be a2ending the Africa Down 

Under Conference at the Pan Pacific Perth (formerly 

Sheraton Hotel) and Novotel Perth Langley, from 29 August 

to 31 August 2012. 

The Ministry of Mines will have a separate session dedicated 

to Afghanistan’s mineral exploraOon potenOal and current 

investment opportuniOes. There will also be an opportunity 

for mining companies to meet with Afghanistan’s 

delegaOon, ask quesOons and get further informaOon. 

To arrange a meeOng with Ministry of Mines delegaOon 

please contact: miningenquiries@mom.gov.af 

InformaOon about the conference can be found at: 

www.africadownunderconference.com 

Annual Investment Mee>ng Dubai 

The Ministry of Mines of Afghanistan will be a2ending this 

unique event from 1 May – 3 May 2012 that brings together 

the world’s leading insOtuOonal investors, private financiers, 

high profile government officials and assets owners. 

InformaOon about the event can be found at 

www.aimcongress.com 

MOM Quarterly Newsle-er Issue 1 April 2012 

1

MOM Quarterly Newsle-er April 2012 

MINERAL TENDERS IN PROGRESS 

The Government of Afghanistan announced tenders for gold, copper and iron ore projects in London and 

New York City during 2010 and 2011. IniOal exploraOon of these deposits was conducted by the USSR, with 

more recent work undertaken by the Afghanistan Geological Society and US Geological Society. For the four 

gold and copper tenders launched in December 2011, over 30 expressions of interest were received from 

internaOonal bidders. The qualified bidders will be announced this month (April 2012) with site visits being 

conducted in May 2012. The Ministry of Mines anOcipates finalizing these tenders by the end of 2012. 

1. Badakhshan Gold 

Status: Pre Qualifica


CURRENT TENDERS 

Tender for West Afghan Tajik Oil Basin announced in March 2012 

The Ministry of Mines announced a public tender for exploraOon, development and producOon of 

hydrocarbons in 6 blocks at the APPEX conference in London in March 2012. 

These blocks are Ahmadabad 1,855km 2 , Balkh 1,861km 2 , Mazar-‐I-‐Sharif 2,715km 2 , Shamar 2,143km 2 , 

Sanduqli 2583km 2 and Mohammed Jan Dagar 3603km 2 in the Afghan-‐Tajik basin. 

Interested companies should submit their expression of interest by 30 June 2012. 

The blocks are located in Northern Afghanistan in the region surrounding the city of Mazar-‐I-‐Sharif, where 

2D-‐Seismic data gathering is being conducted to improve the quality of available data to bidders. For more 

informaOon please visit our website at: 

Afghan-‐Tajik Phase I Tender Blocks 

hXp://www.afghantajiktender.com/ 


3


NEWS 

First Oil & Gas Produc>on-‐Sharing Agreement Signed With Chinese Joint 

Venture Company 

On 26 December 2011 the Ministry of Mines signed an exploraOon and producOon-‐sharing agreement with 

a joint venture comprising the China NaOonal Petroleum Company InternaOonal and Watan Group 

(CNPCIW) for oil and gas exploraOon, development and producOon from the Zamarudsay, Bazarkhami and 

Kashkari blocks (totalling 3,549km 2 ) in the Amu Darya basin in Northern Afghanistan. 

Over the next several years, the CNPCIN will be commencing producOon from exisOng wells and bringing 

new wells online to eventually produce a minimum of 5 million barrels of oil per year from 2018. 

Insert Amu Darya Basin Map 

The producOon-‐sharing agreement provides for 4.5 years of exploraOon (with two possible extensions of 2 

years each) followed by 25 years of producOon (with the potenOal to extend for a further 10 years). 

Details of the contract can be seen under “Abstract of EPSC at : h2p://mom.gov.af/en/page/1384 

The Amu Darya Petroleum Authority (ADPA) was recently established to supervise implementaOon of the 

producOon-‐sharing agreement. The main goals of this department are to ensure proper environmental 

protecOon, financial safeguarding and social development over the life of the contract. By 2018, the 

agreement is anOcipated to generate approximately US $250 million in tax and producOon-‐sharing 

revenues for the Government of Afghanistan. 


4

EXPLORATION ROUND UP 


It is well-‐known that Afghanistan is home to numerous high-‐grade coal deposits. What is less known is the 

extent of these deposits and the volume and quality of coal available. From October 2011 to February 

2012, the AGS, with the support of USAID, conducted an in-‐depth geological survey of the Dar-‐i-‐Suf coal 

fields in Samangan. The work consisted of surface and underground geological mapping, total surface 

trenching of 600m and underground channel sampling in the Dan-‐i-‐Tor and Shabashak areas. One hundred 

standard samples were taken and the analysis of these is due to be completed in July 2012. 

Although the geological data collected during the field season is sOll being compiled and analysed, the 

Ministry of Mines are confident that coal resources in the Dar-‐i-‐Suf area are far more extensive than 

previously reported, and numerous coal seams are amenable to modern, industrial mining 

techniques. There is also strong geological evidence that indicates that the Dan-‐i-‐Tor coal measures 

extend much further in all direcOons, but parOcularly to the south, than earlier surveys suggest. It is hoped 

that core drilling, using the new AGS drill rigs, will take place during 2012 to confirm surface studies. 

For further informaOon about coal resources of Afghanistan please see: h2p://afghanistan.cr.usgs.gov/coal 

The coal seams can be grouped into at least three disOnct formaOons daOng in age from the Middle to 

Upper Jurassic. The above map shows the surface exposure of the sedimentary formaOons with the red 

arrows indicaOng extension of the coal measures under younger Cretaceous and TerOary cover. 


5

! 


NATIONAL AND REGIONAL RESOURCE CORRIDORS PROGRAM 

The Na>onal and 

Regional Resource 

Corridors Program aims 

to connect Afghanistan to 

the Central Asian and 

Middle Eastern regions 

through the coordinated 

development of roads 

and railways along with 

exploraOon and 

development of the 

country’s energy and 

mineral resources. The US 

$3 million program is 

being financed by the 

internaOonal community, 

including the Asian 

Development Bank, 

USAID, European Union, 

World Bank, India and 

Japan. 

Hairatan-‐Mazar Railway is the first railway project in Afghanistan. In the first phase of the project 106km of 

railway line has been constructed along with staOons and other related faciliOes which are now ready for 

use. 


6

GOLD DEPOSIT AND POTENTIAL IN AFGHANISTAN 


Afghanistan has the potenOal for many types of gold mineralizaOon, such as: Alluvial, skarn, placer, vein hosted and 

porphyry. Gold has been mined for centuries in many areas including Takhar province in the north, Ghazni, Zabul, 

Kandahar provinces in the south-‐west and Baghlan province in the northeast of the country. There are a number of 

deposits, some of which have been contracted and awarded, some are currently being tendered. 

Qara-‐Zaghan Gold explora>on and exploita>on project: 

This gold mine is located in Qara Zaghan village in Dushi District, Baghlan Province. An area of 1,257 hectares has 

been leased to a joint venture comprising Afghan Krystal Natural Resources (AKNR) and Central Asian Resources 

(CENTAR) which will invest up to US $50m, including US $12m for exploraOon and US $38 million for exploraOon and 

exploitaOon over 10 years. JP Morgan Cazenove has provided the investment fund for this venture. 

Iden>fied gold deposits with poten>al for tender for early stage explora>on: 

Kundalyan: copper gold deposit in Zabul province, which is localized along a 400-‐m long , 1.5km wide inlier within a 

fault zone that consist of altered limestone, chert and skarn. There are 13 ore bodies along the Kundalayan fault 

zone and the category C1+C2 reserve in the Soviet classificaOon system are 13,600 tons of contained copper and 1.1 

ton of gold at grades of 1.07% Cu and 0.9g/t Au. 

Katawas: located In Ghazni & PakOka provinces, this is a conceptual target based on geologic and remote-‐sensing 

data and evidence of hydrothermal alteraOon and could be an ideal junior company grass-‐roots project. 

Ahonkashan: located in Badghis province, there are six mineralized zones of 700m to 2,500m long and up to 75m 

wide and could be ideal for junior or mid-‐Oer company grass-‐roots project. 


7

BUSINESS PROFILES FOR EXPLORATION SERVICES 


The AGS has recently acquired five new Chinese manufactured, hydraulic, diamond core drill rigs. The two 

larger HYDX-‐4 track mounted rigs are capable of drilling in excess of 500m (NQ size, 47.6mm core diameter) 

under ideal condiOons, while the three smaller HYDX-‐2 rigs can be disassembled rapidly with parts weighing 

less than 100kg and then and quickly transported and reassembled. The drill manufacturer provided 

training on the operaOon of the rigs to AGS staff during February 2012. 

Both rig types are ideal for Afghanistan 

condiOons as they require small crews 

(4-‐6 staff) and are easy to operate, 

maintain and transport. These modern, 

wire-‐line drill rigs will greatly increase 

the capacity of the AGS to conduct 

mineral exploraOon and resource 

evaluaOon. The high quality geological 

data sets that AGS can now acquire 

with these rigs will increase the rate 

that new mineral prospects can be put 

up for tender and lower the risk for 

mining companies when making 

investment decisions. 

LEGAL FRAMEWORK OF THE AFGHAN MINING SECTOR 

Na>onal Mining Policy for Afghanistan 

The Ministry of Mines has successfully prepared its NaOonal Mining Policy in order to create a reliable and 

comprehensive framework. In addiOon, sector policies for different minerals and hydrocarbons have been 

prepared to guarantee a secure base for the mining sector. The Cabinet is expected to approve all the 

policies at the end of May, 2012. 

The Ministry of Mines is currently working on amendments to the Mining and Hydrocarbon Law to ensure 

an investor-‐friendly private sector for mining companies and internaOonal investors. 

Contact Details: 

Office of the Deputy Minister of Policy and Promo>on 

Mr. Najibullah Amirzai 

E: najib_amirzai@yahoo.com 

T: +93 (0) 202 104 370 

Investment Promo>on Directorate 

E: mininginquiries@mom.gov.af 

T: +93 (0) 752 0764 83 


Cadaster Directorate 

E: shaheer@mom.gov.af 

T: +93 (0) 079 327 1565 

Afghan Geological Survey 

E: asidiqi@mom.gov.af 

T: +93 (0) 797 227 212 

8

First Newsletter - Ministry of Mines

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?