Taliban says Saudi company may invest in Afghanistan’s oil and gas sector
The Taliban administration has said a Saudi company has expressed readiness to invest directly in Afghanistan’s oil and gas projects, but the process depends on technical and legal agreements. The issue, along with a lack of legal transparency and financial restrictions, is among the main challenges facing such contracts.
Hedayatullah Badri, acting minister of mines and petroleum in the Taliban administration, met with Shaher Al-Taqi, chief executive of Saudi Arabia’s Delta International, to discuss investment opportunities in the exploration and extraction of Afghanistan’s oil and gas resources, the ministry said.
According to the Taliban-run Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, the company’s chief executive described the results of talks with the ministry’s technical teams as positive and said that if the technical and legal agreements are finalised, Delta International will begin direct investment in Afghanistan’s hydrocarbon projects in the near future.
The talks come as the Taliban administration has sought in recent years to make the mining and subsoil resources sector a central pillar for attracting foreign investment and generating revenue. However, a lack of transparency in legal frameworks, international financial sanctions and the failure to recognise the Taliban administration continue to cast doubt over the implementation of major projects.
Previously, Chinese companies have had the largest presence in Afghanistan’s energy sector and have taken part in contracts to extract from the Amu Darya oil basin. The Amu Darya basin is located in northern Afghanistan and is considered one of the country’s most important oil fields.
