The Taliban-run Ministry of Mines and Petroleum said on Thursday that it has earned about $137 million in 2025 from crude oil extracted from the Amu Darya basin, one of the country’s key energy fields.
Taliban spokesman for the ministry, Homayoun Afghan, said 268,989 tonnes of crude oil were produced from the Amu Darya oil field during the year and sold to domestic companies for processing, generating revenues of $137,048,053.
The announcement comes as the Taliban continue to withhold details of Afghanistan’s national budget, including overall revenue and expenditure figures, prompting concerns among economists about transparency and oversight.
Economic analysts warn that without the publication of a comprehensive national budget, revenues from natural resources could be misused or diverted. “The absence of transparency creates serious risks for the management of national income,” said Bahram Ramesh, an economic analyst.
Natural resources have become a key source of income for the Taliban since they returned to power in August 2021, as foreign aid declined sharply and international sanctions restricted access to external financing. Taliban officials have periodically released figures on mining and energy revenues, but have not published full budget data.
The Amu Darya oil field was among the first major mining contracts awarded by the Taliban, granted in January 2023 to a Chinese firm known as Xinjiang Central Asia Petroleum and Gas Company. The Taliban cancelled the contract in mid-2025, nearly three years later, but oil production and sales continued during the year, according to their officials.
Residents meanwhile say economic conditions remain difficult, citing rising unemployment and widespread poverty across the country.
Afghanistan’s economy has struggled under international isolation, banking restrictions and the near-total suspension of development aid. The United Nations estimates that more than 90% of the population lives below the poverty line.
Concerns persist over limited independent oversight of mining contracts and extraction activities, as monitoring bodies remain largely absent under Taliban rule.
