PRESS RELEASE ON HAJIGAK IRON ORE DEPOSIT

July 13, 2011

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN:  The Ministry of Mines of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is pleased to announce that the Hajigak Iron Ore Tender is progressing well with a number of the short-listed companies indicating that they will submit a proposal.  In recognition of the complexity of the Tender, the Bid Submission date has been extended from 3 August, 2011 to 4 September, 2011.  An extension was requested by several of the Bidders, and the decision was taken to grant the extension.  The Ministry is working closely with all of the Bidders to answer their questions, demonstrating once again that Afghanistan is keen on developing its vast mineral assets for the betterment of Afghanistan.  The extension of time will allow the Bidders to improve their proposals.

In this regard H.E Wahidullah Shahrani, the Afghan Minister of Mines said, referring to the extension, “The extension of time shows our commitment to fairness, transparency and flexibility in dealing with complex international transactions like the Hajigak Tender.  We look forward to receiving proposals from a number of companies that reflect the potential value of Hajigak to the Afghan people.”

The Afghan Ministry of Mines has conducted several successful Tenders in the past and, besides the Hajigak Tender, there will be several additional outstanding mineral deposits set for tender in the latter part of 2011.  Please contact the Ministry at seraj_mehrab@yahoo.co for further information.