The Taliban-led Ministry of Mines and Petroleum has canceled a 25-year oil extraction agreement with Chinese company Afchin, citing repeated violations of the contract’s terms, Hasht-e Subh Daily reported.
The terminated contract involved the development of the Amu Darya oil field, a vast area spanning 4,500 square kilometers across Sar-e Pol and Faryab provinces, with an estimated 87mn tons of proven crude oil reserves, according to Taliban authorities.
In a statement, the ministry said joint investigative commissions found Afchin had repeatedly failed to fulfill its contractual obligations.
The violations prompted the Taliban to unilaterally annul the long-term agreement, which was originally signed under the expectation that the company would inject $150mn in the first year and a further $450mn over the following three years.
To address the legal and financial consequences of the cancellation, the Taliban has invited international consulting firms to assist in reviewing the contract, assessing violations, and ensuring a transparent settlement of accounts with Afchin.
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