In many resource-rich countries, the mining sector is a large contributor to economic growth and social development. In particular, the mining sector can significantly benefit the national economy and local communities in various ways.

Among other transitioning and developing countries, Mongolia benefits greatly from the mining sector as the sector accounts for 88% of its export and 22% of the national GDP (EBRD, 2017). In comparison, other transitioning central Asian countries such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan derive only 18% and 11% of their respective GDP and 12% and 45% of their exports from mining. These indicators are much lower for Russia, Armenia, Tajikistan, Ukraine and many others. As such, Mongolia’s mining sector makes up a large majority of the economy, comparable to countries such as Kuwait where the mining sector accounts for 92% of exports and Saudi Arabia where the mining sector makes up 15% of GDP.

Currently, based on 2019 data from the Mineral Resources and Petroleum Authority of Mongolia (MRPAM), there are 2796 mining licenses for exploration (1126) and production (1670), covering 7.4 million square hectares of land. In 2019, Mongolia produced 57.1 million tonnes of coal, of which 36.8 million tonnes were exported. 6.8 million barrels of oil. of which 6.5 million barrels were exported, and 11 thousand tonnes of refined copper in addition to many other types of mineral commodities.

Mongolia also supported national geological surveys, as state financing for exploration increased from MNT 11 billion in 2015 to MNT 24 billion in 2019. Meanwhile, private exploration financing reached MNT 170 billion in 2016. In 2019, the market cap valuation of listed mining companies operating in Mongolia approached USD 80 billion with Rio Tinto accounting for the majority of it (USD 75 billion). Overall, mining makes up the vast majority of investment in Mongolia with MNT 5.2 trillion (43%) of the MNT 12.5 trillion in total investment going into the mining sector in 2018. These numbers underline the considerable significance of mining in the Mongolian economy.

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