Bloomberg quoted Afghan government said it will soon seek new bids to mine one of the world’s richest iron ore deposits after abandoning a tender damaged by company complaints and withdrawals.
Mr Abdul Qudus Hamidi Deputy Mines Minister said the government has formally decided to restart bidding for the 1.8 billion ton Hajigak deposit after Tuwairqi Steel Mills Ltd a Pakistani unit of Saudi Arabia Al-Tuwairqi Group alone accepted invitations to visit the site. The government had in July approved seven companies to compete for the mine.
Mr Hamidi and Finance Ministry spokesman Mr Aziz Shams said the government is concerned about complaints over the transparency of the initial bidding. We have a number of protest letters, including from companies that were bidding to mine Hajigak and the copper ore deposit at Ainak which was awarded to a Chinese firm in 2007, Shams said in a phone interview.
Mr Hamidi said Mr Hamid Karzai the administration of President which faces international pressure to tackle official corruption will aim to improve transparency in its bid process. He said that “We have set no date for inviting more bids, but it will be in the near future.”
Hajigak drew interest last year from Chinese and Indian companies eager to secure resources for their economies, among the world fastest-growing. China has wrestled with the main global iron ore suppliers Brazil Vale SA, London-based Rio Tinto Plc and Australia’s BHP Billiton Ltd in an effort to circumvent rising prices.
While the government generally controls the Hajigak area, in the Hindu Kush mountains 100 kilometers west of the capital Kabul, Taliban insurgents have shown an ability to strike in such regions and the war has hampered the government’s effort to attract foreign investment.
Mr Aziz Shams said authorities will restart bidding in part because we don’t want to create any opportunity for companies to complain about the Hajigak process. He declined to describe the complaints or to name the companies that made them.
Mr Mohammad Ibrahim Adel Former Mines Minister has denied reports by the Washington Post and Associated Press that he took a bribe of at least USD 20 million to award the Ainak license to the Metallurgical Corp of China Ltd or MCC. Adel was replaced as minister last month.
Mr Karzai government may hope that new bids will help persuade the Obama administration and other backers that it’s confronting corruption, a key demand made at a London meeting last month by more than 60 governments assisting Afghanistan.