KABUL: Afghanistan’s Taliban-led administration has set up a consortium of companies, including some in Russia, Iran and Pakistan, to create a investment plan focusing on power, mining and infrastructure, the acting commerce minister said on Wednesday.
The consortium included 14 Afghan businessmen and his ministry had signed a memorandum of understanding with the foreign companies who would send delegates to Kabul to look into projects worth up to $1 billion, Nooruddin Azizi told Reuters.
Afghanistan’s economy has been severely hampered since the Taliban took over in 2021, sparking the international community to cut most development funding and enforce sanctions on the banking sector.
A series of attacks waged by Daesh against foreign targets has also worried some investors.
Azizi said the administration was focused on launching several longterm business plans including the consortium and special economic zones, and that it was working on ensuring security.
“Lots of discussions on security have taken place in cabinet meetings also, commissions have been established and ... the hiding places (of militants) have been destroyed,” he said.
“The Islamic Emirate will ensure security and will support the private sector in the security field,” he said, referring to the Taliban administration.
As well as mining and power projects, he said the consortium was eyeing the possibility of building a second tunnel through the Salang pass that connects Afghanistan’s north to the rest of the country, and a project to divert water from northern Panjshir province to the capital as well as re-building the main highway connecting Kabul to western Herat province.
The minister said the Taliban administration was planning to focus on building special economic zones it hoped would attract foreign investment.
His ministry has helped develop a plan to convert foreign bases into the zones, and a board was being set up with representatives of different ministries. He declined to elaborate while the details were finalized with other ministries and senior leadership.
Shipments of oil, gas and wheat under a major deal with Russia last year had begun arriving in Afghanistan by road and rail through Central Asia, he said, after the payments were made via banking channels despite sanctions that have limited many international payments.
He did not elaborate on which banks had facilitated the payment.
Taliban sets up investment consortium with firms from Russia, Iran
https://arab.news/bf4kv
Taliban sets up investment consortium with firms from Russia, Iran
- Afghanistan's economy has been severely hampered since the Taliban took over in 2021
- Azizi said the administration was focused on launching several longterm business plans including the consortium and special economic zones
Saudi Aramco, ExxonMobil, Samref ink deal to study Yanbu refinery upgrade
RIYADH: Energy giants Saudi Aramco, ExxonMobil, and Samref have signed a venture framework agreement to upgrade the Yanbu refinery and expand it into an integrated petrochemical complex.
As a part of the deal, the companies will explore capital investments to upgrade and diversify production, including high-quality distillates that result in lower emissions and high-performance chemicals, according to a joint press statement.
The agreement will also see the parties explore opportunities to improve the refinery’s energy efficiency and reduce environmental impacts from operations through an integrated emissions-reduction strategy.
Samref is an equally owned joint venture between Aramco and Mobil Yanbu Refining Co. Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corp.
The refinery currently has the capacity to process more than 400,000 barrels of crude oil per day, producing a diverse range of energy products, including propane, automotive diesel oil, marine heavy fuel oil, and sulfur.
“This next phase of Samref marks a step in our long-term strategic collaboration with ExxonMobil. Designed to increase the conversion of crude oil and petroleum liquids into high-value chemicals, this project reinforces our commitment to advancing Downstream value creation and our liquids-to-chemicals strategy,” said Aramco Downstream President, Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani.
He added that the deal will help position Samref as a key driver of the Kingdom’s petrochemical sector’s growth.
The press statement further said that companies will commence a preliminary front-end engineering and design phase for the proposed project, which would aim to maximize operational advantages, enhance Samref’s competitiveness, and help to meet growing demand for high-quality petrochemical products in Saudi Arabia.
The firms added that these plans are subject to market conditions, regulatory approvals, and final investment decisions by Aramco and ExxonMobil.
“We value our partnership with Aramco and our long history in Saudi Arabia. We look forward to evaluating this project, which aligns with our strategy to focus on investments that allow us to grow high-value products that meet society’s evolving energy needs and contribute to a lower-emission future,” said Jack Williams, senior vice president of Exxon Mobil Corp.
