Leading global law firm Mayer Brown has been retained by the government of Afghanistan as part of a group of international advisors charged with expediting international investment in Afghanistan’s mineral sector.

The group, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense’s Task Force for Business and Stability Operations, also includes technical advisors SRK Consulting and Canadian firm Heenan Blaikie. The group will design and implement a transparent tender process that relies upon internationally-recognized business practices on behalf of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Mines in order to enable that nation to realize the full potential from its mineral resources – reserves thought to be worth as much as $3 trillion. Reserves are thought to contain a variety of metals including gold, copper, iron ore, lithium and rare earths.

Mayer Brown will assist in the development of a legislative and regulatory framework as well as in the implementation of the tendering process.

The Mayer Brown team will be led by London partner Ian Coles, who heads the firm’s global Mining and Minerals practice. Mayer Brown has worked on mining projects in almost 50 countries across the globe, including the first producing mine in Eritrea, the Voshkod Chrome project in Kazakhstan, and the Kupol gold and silver mines in Russia. Ian Coles has been involved in the negotiation of government-sponsored mining agreements in Asia, Africa and elsewhere around the world.