“Coal Mongolia” forum: Mongolia has 175 billion tons of coal

At the “Coal Mongolia 2012” forum on Thursday, attendees discussed current trends in coal mining, investment opportunities, coal reserves, infrastructure issues, environmentally-friendly mining, and coal processing.


According to statistics, Mongolia exported 16 million tons of coal in 2010 and 21 million tons in 2011.

Secretary State of the Ministry of Road, Transportation and Urban Development J.Bat-Erdene outlined the state’s policy on coal transportation at the forum. He noted that a railway construction program was recently ratified because transporting coal by heavy trucks has negatively impacted the ecosystem of the Gobi region.

J.Bat-Erdene said the Government plans to build 5,683 km of new railways in three phases to Russia and China, and Parliament ratified the plan in 2011. He said the Government plans to finish the work in six years, and the first phase of 1,300 km will begin this year. He noted that the total cost of new railway construction is an estimated USD 5 billion, and the Government decided to finance USD 55 million for the first phase.

National Development and Renovation Committee Chairman Ch.Khashchuluun read a report and noted that Mongolia aims to be more than a coal exporter. He said the state plans to increase coal exports to 100 million tons a year, but coal will also be used domestically in the energy, oil, and chemical sectors. China is the largest market for Mongolia’s coal, and many Chinese delegations are taking part in the forum. They are interested in the Government’s policy in the coal sector. Deputy Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Ts.Garamjav said international investors consider the forum significant. Mongolia has the 15th largest coal reserve in the world, with an estimated 175 billion tons. The Government has decided to develop processing factories that could end Mongolia’s dependence on petroleum imports. First of all, Ts.Garamjav said, we should decide infrastructure issues to develop production and run environmentally-friendly operations.

N.Enkhtaivan, director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Office, said Mongolia increases coal exports year by year, but we sell our coal at a cheap price to China because, firstly, Mongolia does not have adequate infrastructure, and secondly, the Chinese government has avoided buying processed coal from Mongolia. China levies high customs taxes on processed coal imported from Mongolia, and this shows that China is more interested in buying raw coal.

Also, Inner Mongolia has a large coal reserve. But Mongolia should not sell its coal at a price 25 to 50 percent lower than the Chinese domestic price. Mongolia lost USD 600 million in coal revenue in 2011 due to poor infrastructure. N.Boldkhuu, deputy head of the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy’s Fuel Policy Board, said the ministry is concluding talks with South Korea to resume Nalaikh mining. The forum is continuing on Friday.

Source : news

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