U.S. Spent $43 Million on Afghanistan Gas Station: Watchdog Report

American taxpayers footed a nearly $43 million bill for a compressed natural gas station built in Afghanistan, according to a government watching.

In a report released on Monday, Special Inspected General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) said the project was to take advantage of the country’s domestic natural gas reserves and reduce its reliance on foreign imports.

SIGAR said one “troubling” issue is how the Department of Defense couldn’t explain why the project was so expensive.

"It's an outrageous waste of money that raises suspicions that there is something more there than just stupidity," John Sopko, the special inspector general, told NBC News.

The Department of Defense said it’s willing to provide information about the project.

"We're quite ready, willing and able to provide access to these records and we've made that plain to Mr. Sopko's office," Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Brian McKeon told NBC News. "We have a mandate under the law to provide access to documents and that's what we're doing."

Contact Us