India, Afghanistan to sign mining agreement soon

[SpArK]

India, Afghanistan to sign mining agreement soon​

India and Afghanistan are set to take up their economic engagement to a new level as the war ravaged nation has invited India to explore and mine its large mineral deposits, reports CNBC-TV18’s Rituparna Bhuyan quoting sources.


Initially, the Afghani mineral resources were estimated at around USD 1 trillion. Now it turns out that the reserves are actually worth 3 times that initial estimate and have been presently valued at around USD 3.3 trillion. Sources have told CNBC-TV18 that being a strategic partner, Afghanistan is now actually looking at India to formalize an agreement for cooperation on mining through which Indian companies can go to Afghanistan and mine Afghani mineral resources.


India and Afghanistan will soon be signing an MoU on this and Afghani Mines Minister Wahidullah Shahrani is already in India and has had talks with the Mines Minister B K Handique and Commerce Minister Anand Sharma.

India already has an advantage in this regard as the Geological Survey of India already has maps of the region. Sources said that the Geological Survey of India as well as officials from the Indian Bureau of Mines will be going to Afghanistan in April after the winter is over.


Moreover, executives from Hindustan Copper Limited are also likely to visit the war ravaged country to assess the copper reserves in that nation. Sources said that Indian interest in that country includes huge reserves of copper, iron ore, gold, uranium and lithium deposit.

What remains to be seen here is that if India is able to have a first mover advantage in the region as other resource hungry nations will be vying for the same resources as well.



India, Afghanistan to sign mining agreement soon: Sources - CNBC-TV18 -

 

[SpArK]

Afghanistan to sign mining MoU with India
​

(Reuters) - Afghanistan will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with India on mining in a month, the country's mines minister, Wahidullah Shahrani, told reporters on Friday during a visit to India.

"We are quite optimistic on this. We would prefer to see more investment by Indian companies," he said after meeting with his Indian counterpart B.K. Handique.

The MoU will cover potential investment by India's private and government companies in Afghanistan to mine mineral resources and also training by India for Afghan professionals in the sector, Shahrani said.

Afghanistan is estimated to be sitting on $3 trillion worth of untapped mineral deposits, but poor infrastructure and investor caution are inhibiting development of its mining industry, Shahrani told Reuters in an interview last month.

Shahrani said Afghanistan would like Indian firms to invest in the development of mineral deposits.

"We had very good meetings with a number of them (companies) ... companies like Ispat, Essar, ArcelorMittal, Jindal Group," he said.

"We have had some communication and we are expecting them to participate in bids for the Hajigak iron ore deposit," Shahrani said.


Afghanistan put its Hajigak deposit, located west of the capital city Kabul, back up for tender in September after taking it off the market in 2009, with promises of security for investors despite a worsening insurgency.

Afghanistan, seeking to exploit its untapped mineral wealth, has sought global investors to bid for a series of other mining projects as well.


Shahrani said Afghanistan would launch tenders for its Balkhab copper deposit and another copper deposit in northern Aynak in June or July 2011. Last month, he said the ministry hoped to launch tenders for the Balkhab deposit by the end of 2011.

Afghanistan awarded a giant copper contract in 2007 to a Chinese consortium to develop a deposit in the Aynak region south of Kabul.

With the United States planning to begin a military withdrawal from July 2011, India and China along with Afghanistan's other neighbours such as Pakistan and Iran have stepped up efforts to increase influence in the unstable region.


Afghanistan to sign mining MoU with India | Reuters

 

[SpArK]

ArcelorMittal, Tatas, Jindals keen on Afghanistan investment​

NEW DELHI: Afghanistan on Friday said many Indian corporate houses including Tatas and Jindals besides Indian origin ArcelorMittal have evinced interest in developing its Hajigak mines with an estimated reserves of 2 billion tonnes of high quality iron ore.

"The companies which are seeking information for Hajigak include Ispat, Essar, Indian-origin ArcelorMittal, Jindals and Tatas," Afghanistan Mines Minister Wahidullah Shahrani told reporters after calling on Indian Mines Minister BK Handique.

In order to attract investment in the war-torn country, Afghanistan had in September sought expression of interest (EoI) from global companies to develop Hajigak mines.

"The mines is part of huge mineral reserves in the country, which have been scientifically assessed and are valued at $3 trillion", Shahrani said.

"We will encourage Indian mining companies to mine reserves there and set up steel plants. They can mine up to 20 million tonnes per annum and they would be allowed to export because we have got huge reserves of 20 billion tonnes of iron ore," Shahrani said.

The EoI for the Hajigak mines will close in January next year and would be followed by many such tenders for the development of mineral deposits, the Afghan minister said.

The EoI, he said, will close on January 13. The two countries are also working towards a Memorandum of Understanding for collaborating in the mining sector.

The MoU is likely to be inked within a month's time, he said.

Keen to attract more investment in the sector, Shahrani said Afghanistan would look at tendering its mineral assets and seek to rope in global companies.

"We are going to tender other mining reserve also to sustain our economic growth. Our mineral reserves worth $3 trillion have been scientifically ascertained", Shahrani said.

The minerals include high-grade iron ore, copper, rare earth metals like lithium, also gold and coal," he said.

The mining possibilities in the country and Hindustan Copper CMD will be part of the team as HCL is keen on Copper mining.

Giving a time-frame for some of these bids, Shahrani said these will be undertaken for development of two major copper blocks in June-July next year.

"Bids will be invited for development of oil blocks in June next year. For Gas block, it will be in January and two gold deposits in March 2011," he said

The Afghan Minister said he had a detailed meeting with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Commerce Minister Anand Sharma and was hopeful of significant collaboration.

Asked about the proposed MoU with mines in Afghanistan Minister BK Handique said his Ministry was in the process of finalising the details for it for tie ups in the areas of capacity building, training etc.

Handique said a team of officials from India will visit Afghanistan in April next year to assess the mining possibilities in the country and Hindustan Copper CMD will be part of the team as HCL is keen on Copper mining.




ArcelorMittal, Tatas, Jindals keen on Afghanistan investment - The Economic Times

 

[Bhairava]

The days of militarily dominating a country was the norm 6 decades ago....then came idealogical (political) domination.....Now its the Economy stupid !!!!

An Indians seem to have realised that and are going along the right path.This will also earn tremendous goodwill among the common Afghan.

 

[BATMAN]

Sound like more trouble for Pakistan.
Now free Afghan transit will be used to supply Afghan gold to India.

 

[Abu Zolfiqar]

More troubles for Pakistan.

not as long as the government there is pro-Pakistan or at least NOT anti-Pakistan

I can sense that in the next ten years, China will have even more leverage in Afghanistan; and when that happens, our interests will continue to merge there.

I can't help but sometimes laugh at some NATO countries....they did the fighting in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan; Chinese going in as the dust settles and securing the deals and contracts

 

[The Clarifier]

Anti-Pakistani sentiments from Afghanistan would probably be one of the biggest harms that have been done to Pakistan. If there was just a little bit of unity between Afghanistan and Pakistan, a lot of the troubles both countries face today wouldn't have existed. A little bit of acceptance for Pakistan; could've done much good. Afghanistan had a lot to gain but I guess it is hard to swallow nationalistic pride.

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

not as long as the government there is pro-Pakistan or at least NOT anti-Pakistan

I can sense that in the next ten years, China will have even more leverage in Afghanistan; and when that happens, our interests will continue to merge there.

I can't help but sometimes laugh at some NATO countries....they did the fighting in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan; Chinese going in as the dust settles and securing the deals and contracts

pardon my ignorance but aren't the western nations and india getting any deals , contracts and investments in iraq and afghanistan ?

I don't have much knowledge regarding this , so i would like it if other more knowledgeable members can elaborate on the above post.

Its hard to believe the westerners are not getting any economic benefits from these two countries when the governments there are pro west.

 

[The Clarifier]

^

I have always believed the war on terror was to keep western economy (namely US) stimulated. Weapons make a lot of profit; comparable to oil.

 

[Fair]

INDIA AFGHANISTAN

 

[StingRoy]

Excellent move there... signaling the efforts to stabilize the country with economics... As they say... It is the money stupid.

This move will create more jobs (in large numbers) and possibly distract the poor from indulging their minds in other nefarious activities. Good move for the benefit of the whole region.

 

[prototype]

pardon my ignorance but aren't the western nations and india getting any deals , contracts and investments in iraq and afghanistan ?

I don't have much knowledge regarding this , so i would like it if other more knowledgeable members can elaborate on the above post.

Its hard to believe the westerners are not getting any economic benefits from these two countries when the governments there are pro west.

the poster u quoted is particularly ignorant in this matter,When it is about netting deals,China is still nowhere in regards to the NATO group in Iraq and afghan,and about India getting deal,read the first and second post.

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

the poster u quoted is particularly ignorant in this matter,When it is about netting deals,China is still nowhere in regards to the NATO group in Iraq and afghan,and about India getting deal,read the first and second post.

Exactly what i thought

 

[DesiGuy]

Nice job by India.

 

[karan.1970]

good one..money speaks louder than religion or bankrupt ideologies