February 13, 2002	Wednesday	Ziqa’ad 29, 1422

KARACHI, Feb 12: The government will ensure the supply of only those steel products into Afghanistan which are based on the raw material inputs of Pakistan Steel.

“We have been given this firm assurance by the Federal Industries Ministry only last week,” a senior officer of Pakistan Steel disclosed to Dawn.

He said that the multi-billion rupees Ghazi Brotha project was also consuming construction materials and billets, made from Pakistan’s Steel raw materials.

The construction and rehabilitation in Afghanistan has opened new avenues for the Pakistan Steel as well as for re- rolling mills to supply a sizable quantity of materials used in the construction.

The chairman PS, Lt Col (retd), Mohammad Afzal Khan is hopeful of getting a good chance in carving out a major share in Afghanistan’s construction both for the mill as well as for the country.

He told Dawn that the PS has been active in supplying quality products in Ghazi Brotha and other mega projects. The same quality it intends to supply in Afghanistan.

However, so far, the PS has not received any enquiry from Afghanistan in this connection, but chances are bright, he added.

Meanwhile, a leading steel products producer, said that no concrete offer has come from Afghanistan so far but “we are eagerly waiting for orders in months to come,” he said.

On other front, Afzal Khan said that the September 11 incident in the US had further slackened the construction activities of country’s mega projects, thus giving a crippling blow to our sales. For example, he said currently, the construction activities in Ghazi Brotha Project has been on the stand-still since September 11. “I hope, it will get under way in April,” he said.

Another senior official in the PS said that the Steel Mill can benefit from Afghanistan by procuring iron ore. PS annual import of iron ore ranges between 1.6 to 1.8 million tons from Australia, India, Mauritania and Iran, costing over Rs2 billion.

He said Afghanistan has abundant iron ore deposits as previously studied by Soviet Union experts. Although presently the data on the actual deposits is not available as the work carried out in survey and research has been destroyed.

However, he said, a private Geological Exploration Company of Pakistan evaluated the worth carried out by Russian experts and is currently trying to compile the same and to retrieve the maximum data in this regard.

With new developments in Afghanistan, this aspect will be of great interest to Pakistan and open new avenues for the Pakistan Steel to procure iron ore from the neighbouring country, the official said.