nCa Report
Afghanistan, while dependent on imports for a lot of things, has attained self-sufficiency in the steel industry, mainly in the metallic construction materials.
There are currently 42 steel mills in Afghanistan, representing an investment of about USD 500 million in the industry.
All of the raw material required for production is available in Afghanistan.
The steel industry is labour-intensive, which means that each new unit creates about 700 job vacancies.
Some of the steel mills of Afghanistan had their stalls at the Afghanistan single-country exhibition, held in Ashgabat, 4-6 March 2024.
One of them was the Sadat Hofiani Steel Mill (SHS). We spoke to its head of administration and finance, Sherzad Yousufzai, and Sayed Asghar Asghari, the Deputy Managing Director.
He told that SHS produces various kinds of metallic construction materials such as ribbed tor steel bars and angle iron, with specialization in the I beams of various sizes and gauges.
SHS, established in 2015, is the largest smelter factory in Afghanistan. It employs 600 people.
SHS website – https://hofianisteel.com
Faqiri Steel also had its stall at the exhibition.
This company produces angle bar, T bar, Re Bar (Rebar), Flat Bar, Square bar, Round bar, and Channel bar.
Faqiri Steel inaugurated its second phase in July 2023.
Faqiri Steel website – https://faqiristeel.com
Milat Steel, present at the exhibition, is a comparatively new player in the steel market of Afghanistan. It was established in 2022.
However, its high quality has earned it a fair share of the market. It specialises in the production of reinforcement rebar of up to grade 60.
We spoke to Naqibullah Nazari, the Vice President of Milat Steel.
There are chemical tests and stretching, bending and elongation tests before sending the product to the customer.
Milat Steel website – https://milatsteel.com
Meli Steel was present at the exhibition. It is one of the largest among the steel mills in Afghanistan, employing 2434 people.
We spoke to Sayed Asghart Asghari, the Deputy Managing Director of Meli Steel.
Among its several products, there is rebar 60 and 75 diameters 8-36 mm in accordance with standard ASTM A615 compatible to other international standards. Meli Steel also produces Ingots (Billets) in sectional dimensions 80×80, 100×100, 125×125 with 6m length.
Meli Steel website – https://melisteel.af
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The period of uncertainty in Afghanistan is almost over. The supposed vacuum left by the sudden collapse of the Ghani regime and the abrupt departure of the foreign troops created chaos, giving rise to the fears that the economy of Afghanistan would collapse.
The Taliban, however, followed a systematic and discipline approach, cognizant of the fact that they would need to live for the time being without any access to their funds in the western banks and without any recognition by the world community at large. Their banking system was also constrained by the barriers from many directions.
Despite all that, Afghanistan managed to not only survive but there is discernible turnaround in its economy. This is, to great part, because of the cooperation from the friendly countries including Central Asia, China, Russia, Iran, and Türkiye. /// nCa,
Here are some pictures from the steel industry stalls at the Afghan exhibition in Ashgabat:
