The Mongolian Mining Journal

“Large projects should progress with no political interference” E.Odjargal talks to B.Bayarsaikhan, Head of the National Development Agency, on the success or otherwise of the Public Investment Programme and other such moves in bringing in foreign direct investment, and on how to protect the investment climate from political instability.

Asgat gets a new owner but is it ready to be mined? On January 7, 2019, G. Zandanshatar, Head of the Cabinet Secretariat, issued directives tothe Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry (MMHI) and the Mineral Resources and Petroleum Authority (MRPAM) to transfer the ownership of the Asgat polymetallic deposit from Mongolrostsvetmet to the state-owned Erdenes Mongol.

Agreement with OT a big boost to TT power plant project By signing on the very last day of 2018 an agreement on Oyu Tolgoi sourcing power from inside the country, Ts. Davaasuren, Minister of Energy, G.Batsukh, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Oyu Tolgoi, and Armando Torres, the company’s CEO, took the actual implementation of the long-discussed Tavan Tolgoi power plant mega project one big step forward.

Beautiful minds of mongolia

Umnugobi aimag. Mukhar Shivert

Photo by R.Delger /MMJ/

Government policy and State policy Events in the past few weeks cannot but make us wonder where the state policy on the mineral sector is headed. A special operation with soldiers and police personnel was undertaken to clear the Salkhit silver mine of all activities by its licence holders.

Mining sector to benefit from campaign to make meat products more hygienic In recent years, demand for meat products has risen sharply because of the rapid development of the mining sector, which now accounts for 90% of Mongolia’s gross industrial product, and employs 60,000 people.

Mongolia waits for mega projects to move in 2019 Mongolia leads other countries in the excessive number of policies, decisions, rules and regulations around its investment climate,” emphasized Ms. Christine Zhenwei Qiang, Practice Manager for the Global Investment and Competition Unit of the World Bank Group’s Macro, Trade and Investment (MTI) Global Practice, at the Economic Forum in May.

Erdene sees positive results of PEA study on Khundii Gold Project Following the completion of an independent Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) study for its 100%-owned Khundii Gold Project in southwest Mongolia, Erdene Resource Development Corp. (TSX:ERD MSE:ERDN) has drawn particular attention to the following results of the PEA.

“The Sandvik Way” of doing business John Oberg, CEO, Sandvik Mongolia, answers questions from MMJ on his company’s work in the geological and mining sectors.

Political instability shakes investors’ confidence The political crisis is deepening as the New Year approaches. As we write this, Parliament, the highest institution of state authority, has not sat for several days because of internal disputes in The Mongolian People Party (MPP), which commands a very comfortable majority in it.

How to remember the glory days of Nalaikh Operations at Nalaikh, the very first mine in Mongolia, were abandoned quite some time ago but artisanal miners now extract coal from there to sell to ger district households. There are considerable security risks in this and it is imperative to effectively close the mine.

How and why mining continues to be important to Australia’s economy Australia is a microcosm of the global mining experience. MMJ finds out from Robin Evans, Program Leader, Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI) Transformational Learning at The University of Queensland how it is addressing environmental concerns, adopting less harmful energy options, preparing to face the challenges of climate change,adjusting to automation and other issues.

A most important information source Service and agriculture were the dominant sectors in the Mongolian economy before 2008, with mining contributing relatively little.

The first decade Ten years have passed since the freezing day in November 2008 when Boloroo– as our founder-editor Bolormaa Luntan was affectionately called -- carried copies of the first issue of The Mongolian Mining Journal to distribute them at various sales points.

“We are aiming to establish an oil refinery plant that is most suitable to Mongolian requirements” The progress of the project to construct a grass root oil refinery plant with crude oil supply pipeline is moving forward. Since the commencement of the infrastructure project in June, 2018, a great progress has been made on the construction of road, railway, power transmission lines, and substations under short period of time.

Gold in placer deposits to be exhausted in 2 years There is widespread concern at the imminent prospect of Mongolia’s placer deposits being left with no gold. At present their reserves are put at 57 tonnes, and as between 22 tonnes and 25 tonnes are annually extracted from them, the gold is likely to be exhausted by the end of the decade.

Centerra’s exit raises questions, suspicions Centerra Gold has finally moved out of Mongolia, after failing to reach an agreement with the Government on how to develop the Gatsuurt gold deposit.

UBTZ hopes to benefit from planned new railways E.Odjargal talks to I.V.Milostnykh, First Deputy Director, Ulaanbaatar Railway (UBTZ), about the status of its upgrading work and other issues.

All smiles at Discover Mongolia 2018 The overall impression at the end of the 16th Discover Mongolia, held in Ulaanbaatar on 6-7 September, was positive for the Mongolian mining sector. The annual international conference is a major platform for wide-ranging discussions on the sector, bringing together investors and members of the Mongolian Government.

Erdene Resource has built relationships of trust, study finds Erdene Resource Development describes itself as “a company that is focused on creating value for all stakeholders, doing things ‘The Erdene Way’ ”. A core element of this “Erdene way” is its commitment to make positive contributions to local economic development.