1 PRIME MINISTER OYUN-ERDENE VISITS EGIIN GOL HYDROPOWER PLANT PROJECT SITE WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/30      2 ‘I FELT CAUGHT BETWEEN CULTURES’: MONGOLIAN MUSICIAN ENJI ON HER BEGUILING, BORDER-CROSSING MUSIC WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM PUBLISHED:2025/04/30      3 POWER OF SIBERIA 2: ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY OR GEOPOLITICAL RISK FOR MONGOLIA? WWW.THEDIPLOMAT.COM PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      4 UNITED AIRLINES TO LAUNCH FLIGHTS TO MONGOLIA IN MAY WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      5 SIGNATURE OF OIL SALES AGREEMENT FOR BLOCK XX PRODUCTION WWW.RESEARCH-TREE.COM  PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      6 MONGOLIA ISSUES E-VISAS TO 11,575 FOREIGNERS IN Q1 WWW.XINHUANET.COM PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      7 KOREA AN IDEAL PARTNER TO HELP MONGOLIA GROW, SEOUL'S ENVOY SAYS WWW.KOREAJOONGANGDAILY.JOINS.COM  PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      8 MONGOLIA TO HOST THE 30TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF ASIA SECURITIES FORUM WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      9 BAGAKHANGAI-KHUSHIG VALLEY RAILWAY PROJECT LAUNCHES WWW.UBPOST.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      10 THE MONGOLIAN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT AND FDI: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITY WWW.MELVILLEDALAI.COM  PUBLISHED:2025/04/28      849 ТЭРБУМЫН ӨРТӨГТЭЙ "ГАШУУНСУХАЙТ-ГАНЦМОД" БООМТЫН ТЭЗҮ-Д ТУРШЛАГАГҮЙ, МОНГОЛ 2 КОМПАНИ ҮНИЙН САНАЛ ИРҮҮЛЭВ WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     ХУУЛЬ БУСААР АШИГЛАЖ БАЙСАН "БОГД УУЛ" СУВИЛЛЫГ НИЙСЛЭЛ ӨМЧЛӨЛДӨӨ БУЦААВ WWW.NEWS.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     МЕТРО БАРИХ ТӨСЛИЙГ ГҮЙЦЭТГЭХЭЭР САНАЛАА ӨГСӨН МОНГОЛЫН ГУРВАН КОМПАНИ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     "UPC RENEWABLES" КОМПАНИТАЙ ХАМТРАН 2400 МВТ-ЫН ХҮЧИН ЧАДАЛТАЙ САЛХИН ЦАХИЛГААН СТАНЦ БАРИХААР БОЛОВ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     ОРОСЫН МОНГОЛ УЛС ДАХЬ ТОМООХОН ТӨСЛҮҮД ДЭЭР “ГАР БАРИХ” СОНИРХОЛ БА АМБИЦ WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     МОНГОЛ, АНУ-ЫН ХООРОНД ТАВДУГААР САРЫН 1-НЭЭС НИСЛЭГ ҮЙЛДЭНЭ WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     ЕРӨНХИЙ САЙД Л.ОЮУН-ЭРДЭНЭ ЭГИЙН ГОЛЫН УЦС-ЫН ТӨСЛИЙН ТАЛБАЙД АЖИЛЛАЖ БАЙНА WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     Ц.ТОД-ЭРДЭНЭ: БИЧИГТ БООМТЫН ЕРӨНХИЙ ТӨЛӨВЛӨГӨӨ БАТЛАГДВАЛ БУСАД БҮТЭЭН БАЙГУУЛАЛТЫН АЖЛУУД ЭХЛЭХ БОЛОМЖ БҮРДЭНЭ WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     MCS-ИЙН ХОЁР ДАХЬ “УХАА ХУДАГ”: БНХАУ, АВСТРАЛИТАЙ ХАМТРАН ЭЗЭМШДЭГ БАРУУН НАРАНГИЙН ХАЙГУУЛЫГ УЛСЫН ТӨСВӨӨР ХИЙЖЭЭ WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     АМ.ДОЛЛАРЫН ХАНШ ТОГТВОРЖИЖ 3595 ТӨГРӨГ БАЙНА WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29    

Events

Name organizer Where
MBCC “Doing Business with Mongolia seminar and Christmas Receptiom” Dec 10. 2024 London UK MBCCI London UK Goodman LLC

NEWS

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Prime Minister to take part in 7th Eastern Economic Forum www.montsame.com

Prime Minister L. Oyun-Erdene will participate in the 7th Eastern Economic Forum to be held on September 6-8, 2022 in Vladivostok, Russian Federation.
The Eastern Economic Forum is a key international platform for intensifying trade, economic and investment cooperation in Asia and the Pacific. Mongolia has been participating in the event at the high level since 2016.
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Moscow-sponsored international economic forum begins www.nhk.or.jp

Russia's president is taking part in an international economic forum in the country's Far East.
Vladimir Putin says the event will focus on moving away from what he calls an "obsolete unipolar model."
Top officials from China's Communist Party, and the military junta in Myanmar, will also attend.
The Moscow-sponsored forum kicked off Monday.
There are delegates from about 60 countries.
Russian officials are expected to use the gathering to boost economic ties amid tough Western sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian Presidential Office says Li Zhanshu will attend the plenary session on Wednesday.
He's the chairman of China's National People's Congress Standing Committee.
He would become the most senior Chinese official to visit Russia since the start of the invasion.
Analysts say it's meant to underscore Beijing's ties to Russia at a time of heightened tensions with the United States.
Putin's office also confirmed that Myanmar's military chief, Min Aung Hlaing, will also be there.
The event wraps up on Thursday.
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Who is Liz Truss? From teenage Lib Dem to Tory PM www.bbc.com

Liz Truss is to become the UK's next prime minister after winning the contest to replace Boris Johnson as Conservative Party leader. But where did she come from and what makes her tick?
A Remain supporter who has become the darling of the Brexit-backing Conservative right wing.
A former Liberal Democrat activist, who marched against Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s, but who now claims to be the keeper of the Thatcherite flame.
It is fair to say that Mary Elizabeth Truss has been on a political journey.
She may not be a household name like her predecessor at Number 10 - and she was not the first choice of Tory MPs to replace Boris Johnson.
Follow latest updates live
Chris Mason: Truss faces huge challenges in office
Listen: Political Thinking with Nick Robinson - The Liz Truss One
But her promise to return to fundamental Conservative values - cutting taxes and shrinking the state - proved to be exactly what party members, who got the final say over who took over from Mr Johnson, wanted to hear.
And, crucially, as foreign secretary she remained loyal to Mr Johnson until the bitter end as other ministers deserted him, winning her favour with Johnson loyalists.
Grassroots Tory supporters of Liz Truss see in her the steadfast, tenacious and determined qualities they admired in Margaret Thatcher - an image Ms Truss herself has tried to cultivate.
But despite her shifting political positions and allegiances over the years, these words also come up frequently when friends and family are asked to describe her character - along with "ambitious".
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Liz Truss: The basics
Age: 47
Place of birth: Oxford
Home: London and Norfolk
Education: Roundhay School in Leeds, Oxford University
Family: Married to accountant Hugh O'Leary with two teenage daughters
Parliamentary constituency: South West Norfolk
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"She's a very opinionated person in terms of what she wants," said her brother Francis in 2017, when recalling his older sister's teenage dalliance with vegetarianism.
"When you go to a restaurant, you might be 14 but she was precocious about what she wants, what she didn't want."
When the family played Cluedo or Monopoly, "she was someone who had to win," added Francis in a BBC Radio 4 profile of Truss.
"She would create some special system to work out how she could win."
Maurizio Giuliano, a university contemporary who first met her at Liberal Democrat event, says she stood out from the other students.
"I remember her being very well-dressed compared to other 18 to 19-year-olds. She also had the demeanour of a real adult compared to what we were at that age.
"She was forceful and opinionated and she had very strong views."
Serious political debate was the order of the day in the Truss household, according to Francis, the youngest of her three younger brothers.
"You didn't sit around talking about the latest Megadrive game at the dinner table, it was much more issues, political campaigns etc," he told Radio 4's Profile programme.
It must have felt inevitable that she would get involved in politics in some capacity when she grew up, but no-one in her family would have predicted the path she eventually took.
Born in Oxford in 1975, Ms Truss has described her father, a mathematics professor, and her mother, a nurse, as "left-wing".
As a young girl, her mother took on marches for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, an organisation vehemently opposed to the Thatcher government's decision to allow US nuclear warheads to be installed at RAF Greenham Common, west of London.
Though she is now proudly a Conservative from Leeds, back then she was a Scottish liberal.
The family moved to Paisley, just west of Glasgow, when Ms Truss was four-years-old.
In a BBC interview, she recalled shouting "Maggie, Maggie, Maggie - oot, oot, oot," in a Scottish accent, as she took part in marches.
Truss family
IMAGE SOURCE,LIZ TRUSS/INSTAGRAM
Image caption,
The Truss family campaigned for nuclear disarmament
The Truss family later decamped to Leeds, where she attended Roundhay, a state secondary school. She has described seeing "children who failed and were let down by low expectations" during her time there.
Some of Ms Truss's contemporaries at Roundhay have disputed her account of the school, including Guardian journalist Martin Pengelly, who wrote: "Perhaps she is selectively deploying her upbringing, and casually traducing the school and teachers who nurtured her, for simple political gain."
One Roundhay school mate, who did not want to be named, told the BBC: "It was a really good school, really supportive teachers. Quite a lot of us have gone on to good universities and good careers."
Although not part of her friendship group, he has clear memories of the young Truss.
"She was quite studious, serious," he says, with a "heavy social conscience" and part of a group that were into environmentalism.
"I remember a school trip to Sellafield and her asking difficult questions and giving them a grilling. I remember that quite distinctly."
At Oxford University, Ms Truss read philosophy, politics and economics. Friends recall a well-liked, if frenetic student.
Liz Truss
Image caption,
The teenage Truss caused a stir at the Lib Dem conference with her anti-Monarchy stance
"I remember her determination which was very impressive for me," says Jamshid Derakhshan, who was studying for a postgrad degree in mathematics when Truss was an undergraduate.
"She was very quick with everything. Going around the college quickly, being everywhere."
As to what sort of prime minister her old friend will make, Dr Derakhshan says: "My feeling is she's not going to be stuck with one particular idea, she's very flexible in her mind and what will be best for the time."
Ms Truss was involved in many campaigns and causes at Oxford but devoted much of her time to politics, becoming president of the university's Liberal Democrats.
At the party's 1994 conference, she spoke in favour of abolishing the Monarchy, telling delegates in Brighton: "We Liberal Democrats believe in opportunity for all. We do not believe people are born to rule."
She also campaigned for the decriminalisation of cannabis.
"Liz had a very strong radical liberal streak to her," said fellow Lib Dem student Alan Renwick in 2017.
"We were setting up the Freshers Fair stall, Liz was there with a pile of posters, saying 'Free the Weed' and she just wanted the whole stall to be covered with these posters.
"I was scurrying around after Liz trying to take these down and put up a variety of messages, rather than just this one message all over the stall."
Instagram posts from Liz Truss
IMAGE SOURCE,LIZ TRUSS
Image caption,
Her Instagram posts have seen a transformation, from candid shots posing with rhubarb... to striding out of high-level meetings flanked by assistants
Her conversion to Conservatism, towards the end of her time at Oxford is said to have shocked her left-leaning parents, but for Mark Littlewood, a fellow Oxford Lib Dem, it was a natural progression.
"She's been a market liberal all of her adult life," according to Mr Littlewood, who is now director general of the libertarian, free market think-tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs.
"Her political career reflects her ideology - she has always been highly sceptical of big government and privileged institutions who think they know best," Mr Littlewood said.
She clearly changed parties, but that "was a judgement about what's the best and most likely vehicle for her to succeed in politics and get what she wants to get done," Mr Littlewood said.
Nevertheless, what she has described as her "dubious past" came back to haunt her as she tried to convince Tory members she was truly one of them.
At a leadership hustings in Eastbourne, some in the audience jeered, as she told them: "We all make mistakes, we all had teenage misadventures, and that was mine.
"Some people have sex, drugs and rock and roll, I was in the Liberal Democrats. I'm sorry."
She had become a Conservative because she had met like-minded people who shared her commitment to "personal freedom, the ability to shape your own life and shape your own destiny," she explained.
After graduating from Oxford she worked as an accountant for Shell, and Cable & Wireless, and married fellow accountant Hugh O'Leary in 2000. The couple have two children.
Ms Truss stood as the Tory candidate for Hemsworth, West Yorkshire, in the 2001 general election, but lost. Ms Truss suffered another defeat in Calder Valley, also in West Yorkshire, in 2005.
But, her political ambitions undimmed, she was elected as a councillor in Greenwich, south-east London, in 2006, and from 2008 also worked for the right-of-centre Reform think tank.
Liz Truss, in 2010
IMAGE SOURCE,PA MEDIA
Image caption,
Liz Truss became an MP in 2010
Conservative leader David Cameron put Ms Truss on his "A-list" of priority candidates for the 2010 election and she was selected to stand for the safe seat of South West Norfolk.
But she quickly faced a battle against de-selection by the constituency Tory association, after it was revealed she had had an affair with Tory MP Mark Field some years earlier.
The effort to oust her failed and Ms Truss went on to win the seat by more than 13,000 votes.
She co-authored a book, Britannia Unchained, with four other Conservative MPs elected in 2010, which recommended stripping back state regulation to boost the UK's position in the world, marking her out as a prominent advocate of free market policies on the Tory benches.
During a BBC leadership debate, she was challenged about a comment in Britannia Unchained, describing British workers as "among the worst idlers in the world". She insisted she had not written it.
In 2012, just over two years after becoming an MP, she entered government as an education minister and in 2014 was promoted to environment secretary.
At the 2015 Conservative conference, she made a speech in which she said, in an impassioned voice: "We import two-thirds of our cheese. That. Is. A. Disgrace."
The speech was little noticed at the time, but it has taken on a life of its own on social media, attracting much mockery and becoming widely shared.
Less than a year later came arguably the biggest political event in a generation - the EU referendum.
Ms Truss campaigned for Remain, writing in the Sun newspaper that Brexit would be "a triple tragedy - more rules, more forms and more delays when selling to the EU".
However, after her side lost, she changed her mind, arguing that Brexit provided an opportunity to "shake up the way things work".
Liz Truss became justice secretary in 2016
Image caption,
Becoming the first female Lord Chancellor and justice secretary in 2016
Under Theresa May's premiership, she became the first female Lord Chancellor and justice secretary, but she had several high-profile clashes with the judiciary.
Her initial failure to defend judges after they were branded "enemies of the people" by the Daily Mail, when they ruled Parliament had to be given a vote on triggering Brexit, upset the legal establishment.
She later issued a statement supporting the judges, but she was criticised by Lord Chief Justice Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd as "completely and absolutely wrong" for not speaking out sooner.
After 11 months as justice secretary, she was demoted to chief secretary to the Treasury.
When Boris Johnson became prime minister in 2019, Ms Truss was moved to international trade secretary - a job which meant meeting global political and business leaders to promote UK PLC.
Liz Truss and Sergei Lavrov
IMAGE SOURCE,EPA
Image caption,
Liz Truss held a frosty joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in the weeks before the invasion of Ukraine
In 2021, aged 46, she moved to one of the most senior jobs in government, taking over from Dominic Raab as foreign secretary.
In this role she has sought to solve the knotty problem of the Northern Ireland Protocol, by scrapping parts of a post-Brexit EU-UK deal - a move the EU fiercely criticised.
She secured the release of two British-Iranian nationals who had both been arrested and detained in Iran.
And when Russia invaded Ukraine in February she took a hard line, insisting all of Vladimir Putin's forces should be driven from the country.
But she faced criticism for backing people from the UK who wanted to fight in Ukraine.
Her decision to pose for photographs in a tank while visiting British troops in Estonia, was seen as an attempt to emulate Margaret Thatcher, who had famously been pictured aboard a Challenger tank in 1986. It also fuelled speculation that she was on leadership manoeuvres.
Claims she was deliberately trying to channel Thatcher grew even louder when she posed for a photograph in a white pussy bow collar of the kind favoured by the Iron Lady.
But she has always dismissed such criticism, telling GB News: "It is quite frustrating that female politicians always get compared to Margaret Thatcher while male politicians don't get compared to Ted Heath."
Liz Truss visits British troops on deployment to Estonia
IMAGE SOURCE,UK GOVERNMENT
Image caption,
Liz Truss posed for official shots in a tank whilst visiting British troops in Estonia last year
Ms Truss's campaign for the party leadership has not been free of controversy.
Pressed on how she would tackle the cost-of-living crisis, she said she would focus her efforts on "lowering the tax burden, not giving out handouts".
She has been forced to scrap a plan to link public sector pay to regional living costs by a backlash from senior Tories who said it would mean lower pay for millions of workers outside London.
And she called Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon an "attention seeker", adding it was best to "ignore her".
She also got into a spat with French President Emmanuel Macron, who accused her of "playing to the gallery" at a leadership hustings. Asked if Mr Macron was a "friend or foe", she had said the jury was still out.
But it was domestic issues, or rather one domestic issue, that dominated the sometimes fractious leadership contest with Rishi Sunak.
Ms Truss's response to the cost of living crisis, promised within days of taking office, is likely to define her premiership and her chances of gaining a mandate of her own at the next general election.
Additional reporting: Phil Kemp
 
 
 
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With East Asia on the radar, India seeks deeper foothold in Mongolia during Rajnath Singh’s visit www.indianarrative.com

India is seeking a deeper foothold in Mongolia with defence minister Rajnath Singh’s two-day visit to Mongolia on Monday.
Singh’s visit is part of India’s broader, East Asia strategy. With Mongolia sharing borders with Russia and China, India is looking for a firmer connect with Ulaanbaatar, as a third major player. Japan is also keen to forge better ties with Mongolia
The defence minister will ride on two critical initiatives taken after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the country in 2015.
Following PM Modi’s visit, India has emerged as a critical player for providing energy security to Mongolia. India has provided $1.2 billion credit to Mongolia, which is being used to build a large oil refinery. The refinery in Dornogobi province will cover 75 per cent of the country’s energy requirements once it is commissioned in 2025.
“The refinery will address 75 % of Mongolia’s requirements. The country sources its fossil fuel from its biggest neighbour and traditional ally, Russia. India is also assisting Mongolia to build its railway and power infrastructure to help transport Mongolia’s mineral wealth,” Mongolian news website, news.mn reported in early April.
India is also setting up a cyber security centre in Mongolia, which Singh will inaugurate during his visit.
India-Mongolia ties are based on a strong cultural foundation as both countries are leveraging their shared heritage of Buddhism.
In June a 25-member delegation led by Law minister Kiren Rijiju visited Ulaanbaatar with the ceremonial casket of Buddhist holy relics. The visit was timed with Mongolian Buddh Purnima celebrations held on June 14.
The holy Buddha relics, which were housed in New Delhi’s National Museum, are known as the ‘Kapilvastu Relics’ since they are from a site in Bihar first discovered in 1898 which is believed to be the ancient city of Kapilvastu.
Flown to the Mongolian capital in a special Indian Air Force C-17 Globe Master, the relics were accorded the status of a State Guest. The two relics were housed in bullet-proof casings.
A government press statement said that the defence minister will hold talks with Mongolia’s Minister of Defence, Lt Gen. Saikhanbayar. He shall call on the President of Mongolia, U. Khurelsukh and Chairman of the State Great Khural of Mongolia, . G Zandanshatar. “The two democracies have a common interest in fostering peace and prosperity in the entire region,” the statement said.
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How Sand Batteries Can Make Mongolia Energy Secure www.mongoliaweekly.org

Mongolia is one of the countries in the world with the greatest temperature variations throughout the day and across the seasons, owing to the combination of its landlocked location in the temperate zone and its extraordinary aridity. The country experiences warm to fairly hot summers and brutally cold winters due to sparse cloud cover, limited precipitation, and the lack of a significant water body's moderating effect.
These daily and yearly temperature severe differences are likely to grow further as a result of climate change and loss of plant cover, both of which exacerbate each other.
Upset climate patterns not only increase the amplitude of the daily and yearly temperature cycle, but also make it chaotic, resulting in irregular oscillations, frequent and escalating hot and cold waves, and staggered spells of precipitation.
Over 90 percent of Mongolia’s electricity is sourced from coal and air-pollution is becoming a growing concern. Because of use of simple building materials and traditional design, most Mongolian homes are inadequately insulated by modern standards. Houses without central heating are obliged to utilize raw coal for heating, which is an extremely inefficient calorific technology that leaves a large carbon footprint posing a significant health risk.
As a result of indiscriminate home and industrial coal consumption, the world's coldest capital city is threatened by debilitating pollution.
Because of the poor condition of the heat-conveying pipes, a lot of energy is wasted. Meanwhile, population increase, economic development, and urbanization are driving up the demand for civic heating.
Five thousand kilometers away, residents of Kankaanpää, a town in western Finland, enjoy year-round heating of homes, swimming pools, and baths, by means of an ingenious innovation – a seven-meter tall, four-meter wide silo of hot sand. Nicknamed the ‘sand battery’, this giant cylindrical structure situated in the Vatajankoski Power Plant, houses sand at a high temperature.
The sand is first heated to temperatures in the range of 500-1000 degrees Celsius using green electricity, i.e. electricity sourced from renewable sources such as solar or wind energy.
The heat is then retained for months by the well-insulated sand column, with little dissipation to the surroundings. When necessary, heat can be given by releasing hot air from the sand battery to heat water, which is then transported to housing and office blocks via thermal plumbing, often via the District Heating system, a lifeline during the harsh Arctic winters.
A sophisticated software package constantly monitors the entire system to coordinate charging, discharging, and distribution to improve productivity, retentivity, and utility. In the midst of Europe's recent gas crisis, inexpensive, adaptable, local solutions like the Sand Battery have become even more significant.
As climate change makes the weather more erratic and precarious, sand batteries are a game changer toward addressing both the cause and the consequence, assisting in overcoming the drawbacks of weather inconsistency while decreasing carbon footprint to prevent further climate change.
Sand has a high specific heat capacity when compared to metals, which means it can store a lot of heat for a given temperature rise. Most importantly, it is readily available in Mongolia. Furthermore, despite its temperate climate, Mongolia's prominently clear skies, flat terrain, and little vegetation provide the country with a high practical solar potential.
The country's southern region also has great potential for wind energy development. By tapping into these natural resources and storing the captured energy in a cost-effective yet trustworthy sand battery, Mongolia may easily improve energy security for its whole population.
Sand batteries are fairly scalable, adaptable to varied environments, require little to no maintenance, and can fill gaps and disruptions in energy supply. The excess of summer sunshine can be used to thermally charge the sand battery, and this stored heat can be used for home and even micro-industrial heating during the hard, dark winter months.
In Finland, high-temperature storage is used to keep as much heat as possible inside a restricted amount of sand. This high-temperature energy must be reduced in order to be used for indoor heating, which is a relatively wasteful operation.
However, in Mongolia, where sand is much easier to come by, the same amount of heat could be stored at a lower temperature (more in line with domestic requirements) by using a larger mass of sand, avoiding the need to moderate the temperature before supplying (allowing direct passage to buildings) and slowing the rate of heat loss.
Alternatively, the high-temperature heat might be delivered directly to industries that require such heating. The sand column might potentially be built underground by insulating and filling a borehole.
Even with tremendous advancements in solar and wind energy capture technology and infrastructure, energy storage and long-distance transmission remain significant hurdles. Large-scale battery technology continues to be a research hotspot, but the numerous ongoing competing research initiatives have yet to provide commercially viable and widely-adoptable solutions.
Metal-ion and polymer-based batteries are still too complex to be used economically. Grassroots solutions, such as the sand battery, can help decentralize, streamline, and simplify energy distribution, making not only energy but the entire energy-production process, more accessible and inexpensive across geography and demographics.
About the Author: Pitamber Kaushik is a writer, journalist, columnist, and independent researcher based out of Jharkhand, India. His writings have appeared in 130+ publications across 45+ countries.
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Germany announces €65bn package to curb soaring energy costs www.bbc.com

Germany has announced a €65bn (£56.2bn) package of measures to ease the threat of rising energy costs, as Europe struggles with scarce supplies after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The package, much bigger than two previous ones, will include one-off payments to the most vulnerable and tax breaks to energy-intensive businesses.
Energy prices have soared since the February invasion, and Europe is trying to wean itself off Russian energy.
Ukraine has urged Europe to stand firm.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia was trying to destroy the normal life of every European citizen. In his nightly address on Saturday, he said Russia was preparing a "decisive energy attack on all Europeans", and only unity among European countries would offer protection.
And in a BBC interview broadcast on Sunday, his wife Olena said that if support for Ukraine was strong the crisis would be shorter. She reminded Britons that while rising living costs were tough, Ukrainians were paying with their lives.
According to website Politico, European Union officials have warned there is likely to be a crunch point in the coming months when countries start to feel acute economic pain while also still being asked to help the Ukrainian military and humanitarian effort.
There are already small signs of discontent, with protesters taking to the streets of the Czech capital Prague on Sunday, rallying against high energy prices and calling for an end to sanctions against Russia. Police said about 70,000 people, mainly from far-right and far-left groups were in attendance.
Meanwhile, several hundred protesters gathered at Lubmin in north-eastern Germany, the terminal of the Nord Stream gas pipeline from Russia.
They were calling for the commissioning of Nord Stream 2, a new pipeline which was about to go online but was blocked by the German government after the invasion.
Two days ago, Russia said it was suspending gas exports to Germany through the already operating Nord Stream 1 pipeline indefinitely.
The stand-off with Russia has forced countries like Germany to find supplies elsewhere, and its stores have increased from less than half full in June to 84% full today.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told journalists Germany would get through the winter, adding that Russia was "no longer a reliable energy partner".
He said the government would make one-off payments to pensioners, people on benefits and students. There would also be caps on energy bills.
Some 9,000 energy-intensive businesses would receive tax breaks to the tune of €1.7bn.
A windfall tax on energy company profits would also be used to mitigate bills, Mr Scholz said.
The latest package brings the total spent on relief from the energy crisis to almost €100bn, which compares to about €300bn spent on interventions to keep the German economy afloat during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Countries across Europe are considering similar measures.
UK Tory leadership hopeful Liz Truss has said she will announce a plan to deal with energy costs within a week if she becomes prime minister on Tuesday.
And EU energy ministers are due to meet on 9 September to discuss how to ease the burden of energy prices across the bloc.
A document released about the meeting says the agenda will include price caps for gas and emergency liquidity support for energy market participants, Reuters news agency reported.
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Mongolia registers 76 COVID-19 cases on September 4 www.akipress.com

Mongolia registered 76 new COVID-19 cases on September 4.

46 of them were contacts in Ulaanbaatar, and 30 were recorded in the regions. No imported cases were found.

The total number of coronavirus related deaths in Mongolia remained 2,129.

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Turquoise Hill’s fifth largest investor rejects Rio Tinto’s bid www.mining.com

Sailingstone Capital Partners, the fifth-biggest investor in Turquoise Hill Resources (TSX: TQR), is ready to put the brakes on Rio Tinto’s intended $3.3 billion takeover of the Canadian miner as it says the offer does not “adequately compensate” minority shareholders.
Rio Tinto (ASX, LON: RIO) announced on Thursday it had reached an in-principle agreement with Turquoise Hill to acquire the remainder of the company following six months of negotiations.
US-based SailingStone, which has a 2.2% stake in Turquoise Hill, said the “opportunistic” cash offer for the 49% of the shares it doesn’t already own is well below Rio’s own valuation of the company.
According to the fund manager specializing in resources companies, Rio’s bid of C$43 a share was C$13 short of the minimum it would accept.
“Rio Tinto holds its interest in Turquoise Hill on the Rio balance sheet at $41 a share, the equivalent of C$56 a share at current exchange rates and a more than a 30% premium to the revised offer,” Sailingstone said in a statement. “This should be the bare minimum for any attempt at price discovery.”
Under the provisional agreement, two thirds of the remaining shareholders, including Rio Tinto, need to vote in favour of the deal. Additionally, more than 50% of minority shareholders must accept it.
Rio’s offer already has the unanimous support of Turquoise Hill’s special committee of independent directors, the companies said on Thursday.
If approved, the move would give the global miner a 66% stake in the giant Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia, one of the world’s largest known copper and gold deposits. The remaining 34% is owned by the Mongolian government.
Rio Tinto has had a rocky relationship with the Quebec-based miner, particularly over how to fund Oyu Tolgoi’s expansion. Rio has also drawn criticism from some of Turquoise Hill’s minority shareholders about the control it exerts over the company.
The global miner, which has mined copper from Oyu Tolgoi’s open pit for a decade, and the Mongolian government ended earlier this year a long-running dispute over the $7 billion expansion of the mine.
Rio Tinto chief executive Jakob Stausholm has said the proposed takeover would simplify governance, improve efficiency and create greater certainty of funding for the long-term success of the Oyu Tolgoi project.
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Japan revises guidelines for overseas tourists www.nhk.or.jp

The Japan Tourism Agency has revised its guidelines for overseas tourists as the county prepares to reopen to individual tourists next week.
Starting on Wednesday, the government will allow tourists from all countries to enter Japan without joining a guided tour.
Travelers will be able to plan their itinerary more freely, but travel agencies will be asked to secure means of communication with tourists during their stay.
The government will continue to deny entry to individual travelers who don't make their travel and accommodation arrangements through agencies.
Destinations for the guided tours had been determined in advance. But going forward, tourists can freely decide their schedule for sightseeing and meals during the day.
Travel agencies will be responsible for the tours, and will need to obtain phone numbers and other relevant contact information from the tourists. Agencies will also be required to ask tourists to follow basic anti-infection measures, such as wearing face masks.
The Japan Tourism Agency says no overseas tourists have been reported infected with COVID-19 since Japan reopened to holidaymakers in June. The agency says it hopes to gradually increase the number of visitors, while taking thorough anti-infection measures.
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How Pakistan floods are linked to climate change www.bbc.com

The devastating floods in Pakistan are a "wake-up call" to the world on the threats of climate change, experts have said.
The record-breaking rain would devastate any country, not just poorer nations, one climate scientist has told BBC News.
The human impacts are clear - another 2,000 people were rescued from floodwaters on Friday, while ministers warn of food shortages after almost half the country's crops were washed away.
A sense of injustice is keenly felt in the country. Pakistan contributes less than 1% of the global greenhouse gases that warm our planet but its geography makes it extremely vulnerable to climate change.
"Literally, one-third of Pakistan is underwater right now, which has exceeded every boundary, every norm we've seen in the past," Climate minister Sherry Rehman said this week.
Pakistan is located at a place on the globe which bears the brunt of two major weather systems. One can cause high temperatures and drought, like the heatwave in March, and the other brings monsoon rains.
The majority of Pakistan's population live along the Indus river, which swells and can flood during monsoon rains.
The science linking climate change and more intense monsoons is quite simple. Global warming is making air and sea temperatures rise, leading to more evaporation. Warmer air can hold more moisture, making monsoon rainfall more intense.
Scientists predict that the average rainfall in the Indian summer monsoon season will increase due to climate change, explains Anja Katzenberger at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.
But Pakistan has something else making it susceptible to climate change effects - its immense glaciers.
The northern region is sometimes referred to as the 'third pole' - it contains more glacial ice than anywhere in the world outside of the polar regions.
As the world warms, glacial ice is melting. Glaciers in Pakistan's Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa regions are melting rapidly, creating more than 3,000 lakes, the the UN Development Programme told BBC News. Around 33 of these are at risk of sudden bursting, which could unleash millions of cubic meters of water and debris, putting 7 million people at risk.
Pakistan's government and the UN are attempting to reduce the risks of these sudden outburst floods by installing early-warning systems and protective infrastructure.
In the past poorer countries with weaker flood defences or lower-quality housing have been less able to cope with extreme rainfall.
But climate impact scientist Fahad Saeed told BBC News that even a rich nation would be overwhelmed by the catastrophic flooding this summer.
"This is a different type of animal - the scale of the floods is so high and the rain is so extreme, that even very robust defences would struggle," Dr Saeed explains from Islamabad, Pakistan.
He points to the flooding in Germany and Belgium that killed dozens of people in 2021.
Pakistan received nearly 190% more rain than its 30-year average from June to August - reaching a total of 390.7mm.
He says that Pakistan's meteorological service did a "reasonable" job in warning people in advance about flooding. And the country does have some flood defences but they could be improved, he says.
People with the smallest carbon footprints are suffering the most, Dr Saeed says.
"The victims are living in mud homes with hardly any resources - they have contributed virtually nothing to climate change," he says.
The flooding has affected areas that don't normally see this type of rain, including southern regions Singh and Balochistan that are normally arid or semi-arid.
Sindh province awaits more devastation
Yusuf Baluch, a 17-year-old climate activist from Balochistan, says that inequality in the country is making the problem worse. He remembers his own family home being washed away by flooding when he was six years old.
"People living in cities and from more privileged backgrounds are least affected by the flooding," he explains.
"People have the right to be angry. Companies are still extracting fossil fuels from Balochistan, but people there have just lost their homes and have no food or shelter," he says. He believes the government is failing to support communities there.
Dr Saeed says the floods are "absolutely a wake-up call" to governments globally who promised to tackle climate change at successive UN climate conferences.
"All of this is happening when the world has warmed by 1.2C - any more warming than that is a death sentence for many people in Pakistan," he adds.
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