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    

Category

Events

Events

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

NEWS

64x64

The Taliban are sitting on $1 trillion worth of minerals the world desperately needs www.cnn.com

London (CNN Business)The swift fall of Afghanistan to Taliban fighters two decades after the United States invaded the country has triggered a political and humanitarian crisis. It's also causing security experts to wonder: What's going to happen to the country's vast untapped mineral wealth?
Afghanistan is one of the poorest nations in the world. But in 2010, US military officials and geologists revealed that the country, which lies at the crossroads of Central and South Asia, was sitting on mineral deposits worth nearly $1 trillion that could dramatically transform its economic prospects.
Supplies of minerals such as iron, copper and gold are scattered across provinces. There are also rare earth minerals and, perhaps most importantly, what could be one of the world's biggest deposits of lithium — an essential but scarce component in rechargeable batteries and other technologies vital to tackling the climate crisis.
"Afghanistan is certainly one of the regions richest in traditional precious metals, but also the metals [needed] for the emerging economy of the 21st century," said Rod Schoonover, a scientist and security expert who founded the Ecological Futures Group.
Security challenges, a lack of infrastructure and severe droughts have prevented the extraction of most valuable minerals in the past. That's unlikely to change soon under Taliban control. Still, there's interest from countries including China, Pakistan and India, which may try to engage despite the chaos.
"It's a big question mark," Schoonover said.
Huge potential
Even before President Joe Biden announced that he would withdraw US troops from Afghanistan earlier this year, setting the stage for the return of Taliban control, the country's economic prospects were dim.
As of 2020, an estimated 90% of Afghans were living below the government-determined poverty level of $2 per day, according to a report from the US Congressional Research Service published in June. In its latest country profile, the World Bank said that the economy remains "shaped by fragility and aid dependence."
"Private sector development and diversification is constrained by insecurity, political instability, weak institutions, inadequate infrastructure, widespread corruption, and a difficult business environment," it said in March.
Many countries with weak governments suffer from what's known as the "resource curse," in which efforts to exploit natural resources fail to provide benefits to local people and the domestic economy. Even so, revelations about Afghanistan's mineral wealth, which built on earlier surveys conducted by the Soviet Union, have offered huge promise.
Demand for metals like lithium and cobalt, as well as rare earth elements such as neodymium, is soaring as countries try to switch to electric cars and other clean technologies to slash carbon emissions.
The International Energy Agency said in May that global supplies of lithium, copper, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements needed to increase sharply or the world would fail in its attempt to tackle the climate crisis. Three countries — China, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Australia — currently account for 75% of the global output of lithium, cobalt and rare earths.
The average electric car requires six times more minerals than a conventional car, according to the IEA. Lithium, nickel and cobalt are crucial to batteries. Electricity networks also require huge amounts of copper and aluminum, while rare earth elements are used in the magnets needed to make wind turbines work.
The US government has reportedly estimated that lithium deposits in Afghanistan could rival those in Bolivia, home to the world's largest known reserves.
"If Afghanistan has a few years of calm, allowing the development of its mineral resources, it could become one of the richest countries in the area within a decade," Said Mirzad of the US Geological Survey told Science magazine in 2010.
Even more obstacles
That calm never arrived, and most of Afghanistan's mineral wealth has remained in the ground, said Mosin Khan, a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and former Middle East and central Asia director at the International Monetary Fund.
While there has been some extraction of gold, copper and iron, exploiting lithium and rare earth minerals requires much greater investment and technical know-how, as well as time. The IEA estimates that it takes 16 years on average from the discovery of a deposit for a mine to start production.
Right now, minerals generate just $1 billion in Afghanistan per year, according to Khan. He estimates that 30% to 40% has been siphoned off by corruption, as well as by warlords and the Taliban, which has presided over small mining projects.
Still, there's a chance the Taliban uses its new power to develop the mining sector, Schoonover said.
"You can imagine one trajectory is maybe there's some consolidation, and some of this mining will no longer need to be unregulated," he said.
But, Schoonover continued, the "odds are against it," given that the Taliban will need to devote its immediate attention to a wide range of security and humanitarian issues.
"The Taliban has taken power but the transition from insurgent group to national government will be far from straightforward," said Joseph Parkes, Asia security analyst at risk intelligence firm Verisk Maplecroft. "Functional governance of the nascent mineral sector is likely many years away."
Khan notes that foreign investment was hard to come by before the Taliban ousted Afghanistan's civilian Western-backed government. Attracting private capital will be even more difficult now, particularly as many global businesses and investors are being held to ever higher environmental, social and governance standards.
"Who's going to invest in Afghanistan when they weren't willing to invest before?" Khan said. "Private investors are not going to take the risk."
US restrictions could also present a challenge. The Taliban has not been officially designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the United States. However, the group was placed on a US Treasury Department list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists and a Specially Designated Nationals list.
An opportunity for China?
State-backed projects motivated in part by geopolitics could be a different story. China, the world leader in mining rare earths, said Monday that it has "maintained contact and communication with the Afghan Taliban."
"China, the next-door neighbor, is embarking on a very significant green energy development program," Schoonover said. "Lithium and the rare earths are so far irreplaceable because of their density and physical properties. Those minerals factor into their long-term plans."
Should China step in, Schoonover said there would be concerns about the sustainability of mining projects given China's track record.
"When mining isn't done carefully it can be ecologically devastating, which harms certain segments of the population without a lot of voice," he said.
Beijing could be skeptical of partnering on ventures with the Taliban given ongoing instability, however, and may focus on other regions. Khan pointed out that China has been burned before, having previously tried to invest in a copper project that later stalled.
"I believe they will prioritize other emerging/frontier geographies well before Taliban-led Afghanistan," said RK Equity partner Howard Klein, who advises investors on lithium.
— Matt Egan and Charles Riley contributed reporting.
...


64x64

Erdenes TavanTolgoi JSC- one of the world's largest operating coking coal mines, plans to raise USD 200 million (2nd tranche of bond will close on Aug 25) www.bdsec.mn

For the first time in Mongolia, “Erdenes Tavantolgoi” JSC has announced the issuance of “ETT Bond” with a total value of up to 2 trillion MNT in order to implement major projects and finance working capital. Also, the company is issuing the bond in both of USD and MNT.
The ETT bond is planned to be offered to the public in three tranches. The first tranche was held from March 30, 2021, to April 9, 2021. A total of 970 individuals and business entities participated in the trading and placed 2,755,639 orders, raising MNT 347.7 billion and MNT 330 billion under bank refinancing agreements, for a total of MNT 677.7 billion.
The second tranche of the bond will be issued on August 16-25, offering USD 100 million and MNT 285 billion worth of bonds to the public. The bond is denominated in US dollars, so there is no risk of currency depreciation and has the advantage of relatively high-interest rates over other US dollar financial products.
The bond financing will be used for major national developments such as the Coal Concentrator, the Water Supply Plant, and the Railway. As a result of the above constructions, the company's efficiency will increase, and it is planned to earn a total net profit of MNT 11.5 trillion by 2025.
Source: ett.mn
...


64x64

Fitch Ratings: Development Bank of Mongolia LLC www.fitchratings.com

Support-Driven Ratings: Development Bank of Mongolia LLC's (DBM) Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) are equalised with the IDRs of the Mongolian sovereign. The ratings reflect Fitch Ratings' belief that the state has strong propensity to provide support for the bank, if required. This stems from DBM's policy role, full state ownership and close linkages with the government, such as lending to state-owned companies and state-guaranteed legacy debt. Policy Role to Provide Support: DBM, as the only policy financial institution in Mongolia, has a specific mandate to finance projects in important sectors that support the economy as per the Development Bank of Mongolia Act. DBM is facilitating some of the government's support measures during the Covid-19 pandemic by providing low interest-rate loans to the country's important sectors, such as cashmere manufacturers, agriculture and utilities, and participating in large-scale domestic development projects. Strategic State Ownership: The Mongolian government remains the sole shareholder and the Ministry of Finance chairs the bank's board, overseeing DBM's operations. Fitch considers the state's 100% ownership of the bank as strategic in light of DBM's policy role. The DBM act indicates the government's power to take measures to ensure the sustainability of DBM's finances and solvency. We believe various forms of support from the government for DBM will be available if needed.

...


64x64

Nod for mega green project in Inner Mongolia www.bloomberg.com

The Chinese region of Inner Mongolia has approved a massive power project that will use solar and wind energy to produce green hydrogen.
Inner Mongolia's energy administration has given the go-ahead to a cluster of plants in the cities of Ordos and Baotou that will use 1.85GW of solar energy and 370MW of wind energy to produce 66,900 tonnes of green hydrogen a year, the Hydrogen Energy Industry Promotion Association said in a report. Development will begin in October and the projects will be operational in mid-2023, the association said, without specifying the cost or the developers.
The project, which would produce enough hydrogen output to displace about 21 million gallons of petrol a year if it were used for fuel cell vehicles, is the biggest yet to be spearheaded by the government, according to BloombergNEF analyst Wang Xiaoting. China's booming hydrogen industry still has bottlenecks - including how the fuel is stored and used - that need to be tackled in the next five years, Securities Daily said in an article yesterday.
Less than 20 per cent of the power from the Inner Mongolian development will go to the grid, with the rest dedicated to green hydrogen. While several projects have been announced in China that combine renewables with green hydrogen, most are intended for electricity generation, with the hydrogen component just window dressing to help get approval, Dr Wang said.
The project will, however, require at least 465MW of electrolysers to produce that much hydrogen, she said, adding that global electrolyser shipments were just 200MW last year and are forecast to be 400MW this year.
"These projects will install more electrolysers than the entire global market in 2021," Dr Wang said.
The biggest Chinese green hydrogen projects so far have come from industrial giants like Sinopec and Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group, which is set to complete a 150MW solar-powered electrolyser array this year at one of its coal-to-chemical plants. China Baowu Steel Group has announced plans for 1.5GW of renewable-powered electrolysers, without providing any timing.
While Inner Mongolia has long been one of the leading coal mining regions in China, officials are positioning it as a potential renewable energy hub to export electricity and hydrogen to the rest of the country.
The region gets about 3,100 hours of sunlight a year for solar generation, and is located on the main channel of Siberian wind that could power dozens of gigawatts of wind turbines, according to the hydrogen association.
BLOOMBERG
...


64x64

Resilience Mining completes prospectus for listing Kincora's Mongolian portfolio www.finance.yahoo.com

MELBOURNE, Australia., Aug. 18, 2021 /CNW/ - Kincora Copper Ltd. (the "Company", "Kincora") (TSXV: KCC) (ASX: KCC), is pleased to announce that following the 7-day exposure period, the offer of securities by Resilience Mining Mongolia Limited (proposed ASX ticker: "RM1") under its IPO prospectus to be listed on the ASX has commenced.
Under the prospectus, RM1 proposes to raise a minimum of A$5,000,000 and a maximum of A$6,000,000 (in each case, before costs), of new shares and issue a minimum of A$1,631,676 and a maximum of A$1,769,024 of consideration shares to Kincora (collectively "the Offer"). The Offer is now open with Novus Capital Limited the Lead Manager. Further information is available on the "Investors" section of Resilience Mongolia's website.
Kincora President & CEO, Sam Spring, who is proposed to join the board of RM1 following listing, stated:
"The Resilience board has extensive experience in the mining and exploration fields, and has been active in Mongolia since 2016.
Subject to successful admission to the ASX, RM1 will be well funded to advance the existing Mongolian portfolio, team and project generation strategy as a focused and motivated partner.
Resilience has identified five immediate prospects for drilling, testing porphyry associated copper and gold mineralisation."
Key use of funds for RM1 (subject to successful IPO) is drilling at the Bronze Fox mining license and neighbouring Tourmaline Hills exploration license. Reviews are proposed to commence of the at/near surface oxide mineral systems at Bronze Fox (within the existing mining license and existing exploration target) for drilling and progression of desktop economic studies.
...


64x64

Investors support plans to introduce pandemic economic recovery law www.montsame.mn

On August 17, at the ‘Economy in the midst of the pandemic - Public-Private-Investors Meeting’, Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene said the Government of Mongolia is announcing a policy to intensify public-private partnerships on the 200th day since its formation, which fell on the day of the meeting.
He stated that plans are afoot to establish five national committees and introduce a law on pandemic economic recovery. The Prime Minister also mentioned that instructions have been given to establish a Ministry of Digital Development and introduce an AI-based digital system into the government procurement process, as well as to attract investors to 100 mega projects announced by the government.
Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene underscored the five national committees will be under his direct control and that a sub-working group consisting of investors and representatives of the private sector will be established, which will bring an opportunity to improve public and private sector coordination and solve numerous pressing issues in the investment sector.
Following the Prime Minister’s statement, investors expressed their stances.
In his remarks, Asian Development Bank’s Country Director for Mongolia Pavit Ramachandran stressed the importance of the government’s plans to enhance the legal framework for investment, particularly the easing of restrictions in the law on foreign investment, saying “It is important to attract investment to principal sectors, specifically the 100 mega projects announced by the government. It is of utmost importance to intensify public private partnerships in doing so. Our team stands ready to work with the Mongolian government, Ministry of Finance, and other stakeholders in that effort.”
International Monetary Fund’s Resident Representative for Mongolia Seok Hyun Yoon emphasized that the submission of a bill on pandemic economic recovery is of great importance. “I would like to draw your focus to two priorities for industrial advancement. The government's investment management and expenditure control are what is important,” the IMF Resident Representative said.
World Bank Senior Country Economist Jean-Pascal Nguessa Nganou said, “I would like to congratulate the government of Mongolia that has achieved major success. The Prime Minister’s speech clearly showed how the economy would have been without the implementation of the vaccination program and the economic recovery plan. Loans were given to businesses and jobs were saved as part of the economic stimulation plan,” voicing WB’s readiness to cooperate further with the government of Mongolia.
Investors and representatives of international organizations expressed their readiness to cooperate in agriculture, renewable energy, and food processing and endorsed the Prime Minister's plans to digitalize the government procurement process, establish a Ministry of Digital Development, and create a legal environment for in-pandemic economic recovery. They also asked the Prime Minister to hold such meetings more often than only once.
...


64x64

Buyant Ukhaa airport’s land zoned for special use www.montsame.mn

At its regular meeting on August 18, the Cabinet zoned a 509.1 ha area in the 21st subdistrict of Khan-Uul district for the use of Buyant-Ukhaa airport and another 2.01 ha area for use by the Civil Aviation Authority of Mongolia.
Even though the Buyant-Ukhaa airport’s commercial flights have been transferred to Chinggis Khaan International Aiport, the airport has had to remain open to be used as a backup facility to handle connecting, international and local flights and charter flights and provide space for civil aviation training, aircraft maintenance, meetings, and exhibitions. The airport can also receive civil and state aircrafts, and special, emergency and charter aircrafts.
...


64x64

COVID-19: 1,875 new cases, two deaths reported www.montsame.mn

The Ministry of Health has reported today, August 19 that 1,875 new cases of COVID-19 have been detected after conducting tests nationwide within the past 24 hours. More specifically, 600 new cases were detected in the capital city, with 1,275 cases in rural regions.
In the last 24 hours, 1,672 coronavirus patients made recoveries. Furthermore, two new COVID-19 related deaths has been reported.
Of a total of 9910 patients currently undergoing treatment at hospitals, there are 5,676 patients in mild, 3,216 in serious, 832 in critical, and 186 in very critical conditions.
As of today, August 19, a total of 2,033,613 people have received the second dose of vaccines against COVID-19, equal to 62.5 percent of the total population of Mongolia, and 2,221,121 people or 68.3 percent of the population have gotten their first shots.
A total of 2,945 citizens were involved in immunization in the capital city yesterday, August 18. Specifically, 600 people received their first shots of COVID-19 vaccine while 2,079 people have gotten their second shots and 266 people were vaccinated with the third dose.
...


64x64

PM L.Oyun-Erdene apologizes to foreign investors www.montsame.mn

During the ‘Economy in the midst of the pandemic – Public-private-investors meeting’ which was held yesterday, marking the 200th day since the formation of the new government, Prime Minister of Mongolia L.Oyun-Erdene sincerely apologized on behalf of the Governments of Mongolia for all the uncertainties surrounding foreign investment over the past 30 years.
"The government will continue to take a very responsible approach to investment," he said. "As the Prime Minister, I promise to do my best to reflect on the past and start a new in the future."
He expressed that the President of Mongolia, the Speaker of the State Great Khural, and the Prime Minister have a united position on any matters.
“A working group set up by the Government is looking into the agreements reached with foreign investors in the past. I, hereby, announcing that the Mongolian government will take responsibility if any foreign investment, agreements, and mega projects are stalled due to the fault of the Mongolian side. This has also been announced during a meeting with the ambassadors.”
...


64x64

BHP: Mining giant to leave London's FTSE 100 for Sydney www.bbc.com

Mining giant BHP is set to leave the FTSE 100 index after unveiling plans to scrap the dual listing of its shares in London and Sydney.
The company, part of the UK's blue chip index since 2001, will move its main listing to Australia as part of a huge shake up announcement on Tuesday.
BHP regularly tops the list of the FTSE 100's biggest companies, depending on fluctuations in market values.
The move will see some investor funds that track the FTSE sell BHP shares.
"Now is the right time to unify BHP's corporate structure," said Ken MacKenzie, chairman of the world's biggest listed mining comany. "BHP will be simpler and more efficient, with greater flexibility to shape our portfolio for the future.
"Our plans announced today will better enable BHP to pursue opportunities in new and existing markets and create value and returns over generations."
The move comes as BHP announced it was combining its oil and gas assets with Australia's Woodside, creating one of the world's 10 biggest producers of liquified natural gas.
BHP's chief executive, Mike Henry, is trying the shift the company's focus towards metals such as copper and nickel, and away from fossil fuels. BHP has also put its last thermal coal mine up for sale.
Pressure for change
Abandoning the dual listing unwinds a structure that has been in place since 2001, when Australia's BHP merged with the UK's Billiton. The company was known as BHP Billiton until 2017.
Consumer goods giant Unilever also abandoned its dual structure more than three years ago when it chose London above Amsterdam.
BHP told shareholders that its pre-tax profit had risen to £17.8bn in the last financial year, up from £9.8bn. It was the best annual profit in almost a decade, fuelled by soaring iron ore prices.
Under the merger of the oil and gas assets with Woodside, BHP shareholders will have a 48% stake in the new company.
BHP had come under pressure from some shareholders, notably activist investor Elliott Advisors, to simplify its structure.
Supporters of simplification argued it would make it easier for BHP to raise money, do deals, and return money to shareholders. But BHP had said any gains would be less than the cost of change.
On Tuesday, BHP's market value was about £128bn, second in size in the FTSE 100 only to drugs firm AstraZeneca, which is worth about £131bn. BHP is the biggest company on the Australian stock exchange.
Jamie Maddock, equity research analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said BHP's departure was bad news for UK-focused investors as some asset managers and index tracking funds would be forced to sell their shares.
However, the move will also reduce significantly the FTSE 100's exposure to the mining sector. Big news and developments in the mining sector can affect shares across the wider index.
...


  • Terms of Reference
  • About
  • Contact Us

Managed by: B2BMongolia www.b2bmongolia.com

Events

News

Facebook