KABUL: The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum has announced the signing of a contract for the extraction and processing of Block Two of the talc mine in the Kudi Khel area of Shirzad district in Nangarhar province.
Humayun Afghan, a ministry spokesperson, said in a post on X that the contract, valued at $65.865 million, was signed with the Nangarhar Afghan Talc Mining and Processing Company and will cover an area of 3.826394 square kilometers.
Under the agreement, the contracting company will pay the Islamic Emirate a royalty of 2,265 Afghanis for every metric ton of talc extracted.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Minister of Mines and Petroleum Mullah Hedayatullah Badri said implementing the talc extraction and processing project would create employment opportunities for local residents.
Meanwhile, the head of the contracting company pledged that the extraction, processing, and other related activities would be carried out professionally.