KABUL, (TDI): The Taliban-led Afghanistan Interim Government has signed a $1 billion contract with Uzbekistan’s ERIELL Group on Thursday for gas extraction in the Tuti Maidan area of Jawzjan province, northern Afghanistan.
The Taliban and Uzbek officials signed the deal in a ceremony that took place in Kabul.
Hidayatullah Badri, the Taliban’s minister of mines, announced that the contract will last for ten years and that ERIELL Group plans to invest $100 million in the first year.
The project is also expected to produce 100 megawatts of electricity within two years.
This agreement has raised concerns among Afghan citizens regarding the transparency of the Taliban’s management of mining revenues.
Critics argue that income from the country’s natural resources should benefit the public good, as these resources are considered national assets.
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Earlier Tuesday, work on construction of a solar power project in Kabul, with a capacity exceeding 22 megawatts, was launched.
This $18 million initiative aims to enhance energy supply for Afghanistan’s industrial parks and residents.
Solar power project launched in Kabul
The project is a joint venture between Turkish company 77 Turkey and Afghan firm Zolaristan. Located in the Surobi district near the Naghlu Dam, the solar facility is expected to be completed within a year.
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During the inauguration ceremony in Kabul, Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, criticized the international community for pausing clean energy projects in Afghanistan since the Taliban’s return to power.
He urged the United Nations and other global organizations to renew their support for solar initiatives in the country.
