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Mes Aynak, meaning small copper deposit in Dari, one of Afghanistan\u2019s official languages, is huge \u2013 estimates<\/a> indicate it contains some 450 million metric tonnes of ore worth at least US$50 billion (317 billion yuan).<\/p>\n China\u2019s appetite for minerals has powered a rapid expansion of its international mining interests<\/a> in all major metals \u2013 including copper, which is vital to the automotive, power generation, and consumer electronics industries. But so far not much has been done in Mes Aynak.<\/p>\n The Afghan government\u2019s hopes of economic development were high in 2008 when it signed contracts with a consortium consisting of Metallurgical Corporation of China (MCC) and Jiangxi Copper Corporation. MCC has since been absorbed<\/a> into China MinMetals Corporation<\/a>, a vast entity with expertise covering the supply chain from exploration to advanced processing.<\/p>\n The contracts<\/a> not only promised favourable premium and royalty payments to the Afghan government, but also the construction of much needed infrastructure, including a railway and power plant by the consortium.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was the<\/em> big contract, raising hopes and expectations not only for Mes Aynak, but for the extractive industry in Afghanistan as a whole,\u201d said Stephen Carter, Afghanistan campaign leader for Global Witness, an international non-governmental organisation working on corruption, conflict and natural resources.<\/p>\n Looking for an explanation, chinadialogue<\/em> has obtained exclusive access to a recent report of the Logar provincial government, amongst others, listing the problems that have held back the mine\u2019s launch. It states that the Chinese consortium has requested to renegotiate the contracts, and that the excavation of an archaeological site in the mining area is taking longer than expected. The report also indicates a lack of phosphate sources \u2013 a mineral needed for the further processing of copper ore \u2013 that the Afghan government promised to make available to the consortium, and concerns over security.<\/p>\n In addition to the issues listed by the report, Mohammad Halim Fedoi, who at the time of the visit in February 2018 was governor of Logar, mentioned problems with resettling people that live in the mining area due to the lack of funding to construct a township for them.<\/p>\n The representatives of the Chinese consortium in Afghanistan could not be contacted for comment.<\/p>\n But a knowledgeable source who asked not to be identified confirmed to chinadialogue<\/em> that \u2013 according to the Chinese side \u2013 the main sticking points are the contract renegotiations, the archaeological excavations, and the security situation.<\/p>\n Contract wrangle<\/strong><\/p>\n With respect to renegotiations, the source claimed that problems at the Afghan Ministry of Mines are stalling the process. Since spring 2016<\/a>, the ministry has been led by acting ministers who have limited powers. The ministry\u2019s dependence on foreign advisors also further complicates the issue, according to the same source.<\/p>\n The ministry did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Javed Noorani, a member of the Afghan Environment and Natural Resources Monitoring Network, said he believed the account was accurate.<\/p>\n But why do the contracts need renegotiation?<\/p>\n A recent report<\/a> from the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) calls the commitments made by the Chinese consortium \u201cunrealistic\u201d. It notes the high royalty rates and the terms of the construction of a railway<\/a>, which has not started, as examples. The railway line is supposed to connect the mine with Kabul, and from there with the main Afghan-Pakistani border crossing of Torkham in the east, as well as the border with Uzbekistan in the north. The railway branch to the east is meant to transport the mined copper out of country, and the branch to the north to bring coal and phosphate that are, or were hoped, to be found in central and northern Afghan provinces to the mining site, including to its intended coal-fired power plant<\/a>. The railway would also be open to other commercial use.<\/p>\n Why such unrealistic promises were made in the first place could not be determined. Unconfirmed rumours allege that China, which has stakes in other major copper deposits, not only inside China<\/a>, but around the world, such as the Las Bambas<\/a> mine in Peru, the Chuquicamata<\/a> mine in Chile, and the Tenke Fungurume<\/a> mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been mainly interested in occupying the site in Mes Aynak rather than moving forward with exploitation, with some sources alleging this was to shut out competition.<\/p>\n In any event, Andrew Small, a senior transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, told chinadialogue<\/em> that the mining project in Mes Aynak \u201cis no longer a priority for the Chinese government and does not play a significant role in China\u2019s Belt and Road Initiative that is anyway focused on infrastructure development, outsourcing capacity, and market-building, and not the extraction of natural resources.\u201d<\/p>\n Soon after the contract was signed copper prices plummeted<\/a>, and after a brief recovery in 2011-12, they have fallen back and remain weak.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWith the price of copper falling, [the Chinese consortium] also lost interest in the investment, especially given the problems they experienced around the mine in Mes Aynak,\u201d Small added.<\/p>\n Thriving in ancient times<\/strong><\/p>\n Even if the contracts were successfully renegotiated, preserving a major Buddhist city dating from 200 CE to 700 CE would still delay the project. \u201cThe site is far bigger than initially assumed and excavating it as well as transporting the larger remains to a place outside the mining area will take another five to seven years,\u201d said Noor Agha Noori, director of the Archaeology Institute of Afghanistan.<\/p>\n \u201cIn general, during that time exploitation of the mine will not be possible without damaging the archaeological site,\u201d Noori stated. This is easy to imagine as many remains sit right atop the mountain that was described as containing the main copper deposit. However, if the mining consortium would provide exact information, archaeologists might be able to consider possible ways to harmonise at least some mining work with excavations or expedite excavations in the most crucial spots, Noori added.<\/p>\n The Mes Aynak site is unique as it holds Buddhist monasteries built right next to a commercial centre (some copper was already mined back then), whereas other Buddhist monasteries used to be sited at least some distance away from cities.<\/p>\n Allegations of security hazards hindering the project were rejected by a local security source who requested anonymity. Over 120 small guard huts and watchtowers as well as some camps dotting the site reportedly house three kandaks (battalions) of the Afghan Public Protection Force, a unit providing security to development projects and private companies. The source said the outposts are all manned, which would roughly add up to the 1,500 to 1,750 men stipulated by the original contract<\/a> and the provincial government\u2019s report, respectively.<\/p>\n However, a local government official acknowledged that insurgents occasionally fire rockets onto the mining area from the vicinity of Oparon, a nearby village under Taliban control.<\/p>\n How much of a danger this poses is difficult to say though. Such rockets are typically old Soviet models, usually crudely fired without proper launch systems. They are seldom accurate.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/DSC_0406.jpg\")
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