News - Business

Acting Director of fertliser and power plant (Kod-oBarq) in the northern province of Balkh says that the government has allocated 15 million dollars for renovation of the company.

The machinery in the company have been used for 40 years now and need to be replaced, the acting director of the company, Mohammad Ali Sarmastzada, said.

He said the production of fertiliser has decreased due to low gas pressure and the company needs fundamental renovation and new equipment.

As soon as the renovation and re-equipment are done the company will be able to produce more fertiliser, he said.

It is said that Afghanistan annually needs two hundred thousand tonnes of fertiliser.

"Lack of proper maintenance over the past 40 years has caused our production to fall from 126,000 tonnes to 36 tonnes and this is a considerable decrease, Mr Sarmastzada said.

But Mr Sarmastzada is now happy that the government has planned renovation of the company.

It is said that the former US Ambassador to Afghanistan, Karl Eikenberry, and the Afghan Minister of Mines, Waheedullah Shahrani, had signed a memorandum of understanding in summer this year based on which the USAID had promised to provide 84 million dollars for the renovation of the company, but it has not been implemented yet.