Natural resources of Afghanistan

Afghanistan is one of the poorest nations in the world. But in 2010, US military officials and geologists revealed that the country, which lies at the crossroads of Central and South Asia, was sitting on mineral deposits worth nearly $1 trillion.

Supplies of minerals such as iron, copper and gold are scattered across provinces. There are also rare earth minerals and, perhaps most importantly, what could be one of the world’s biggest deposits of lithium — an essential but scarce component in rechargeable batteries and other technologies vital to tackling the climate crisis.

Regulated by the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, mining in the country includes a wide array of mineral resources such as petroleum and natural gas. The value of untapped minerals is estimated to stand at $3 trillion. In total, the number of mineral fields containing different minerals is at least 1400. Estimates place the oil deposits in the country at around 3.8 billion barrels, mostly in the provinces of Jawzjan and Balkh. 

Further studies by the Afghan Ministry of Mines and Industry and the United States Geological Survey showed that the country has significant untapped resources in its northern region. The studies estimate that there are around 1,596 million barrels of undiscovered crude oil while undiscovered natural gas deposits stood at about 444 billion cubic meters. Most of these undiscovered deposits lie in two basins namely the Afghan-Tajik Basin and the Amu Darya Basin. Oil production in the country started back in October 2012 after the country signed an agreement with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). 

Afghanistan has significant deposits of copper. Historically, copper exists in Afghan provinces such as Herat, Farah, Kandahar, Kapisa, and Zabul.

worldatlas.com