OREANDA-NEWS. April 26, 2011. Tethys Petroleum Limited, common shares of which are officially listed on Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE), provided to KASE the following press release, reported the press-centre of KASE:

Tethys Petroleum Limited ("Tethys" or the "Company" (TSX: TPL) announced that it has responded positively to an announcement by Afghanistan Government that it is one of five international companies who have pre-qualified for a tender to explore and develop oil and gas deposits in northern Afghanistan.

The process represents the first round of the Afghan Government's plan to issue licenses to foreign energy companies.

A spokesman for Tethys said he believed that the development could play a hugely significant role in the economic and political development of Afghanistan.

Dr David Robson, Chairman, President and CEO of Tethys said after a meeting in Kabul with H.E. Minister Wahidullah Shahrani, Minister of Mines that the Afghan Government, supported by the International Community and the US Government, is running the tendering process in "an open, transparent and efficient manner. Given the risks and dangers which have existed in Afghanistan, and the enormous emerging potential in the minerals sector, I believe the way these matters have been handled is providing a model for the future and is bound to have a positive impact on the attitude of foreign investors."