As the COVID-19 epidemic in other parts of China subsides, it's flaring up in North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region which on Wednesday said it's registered 240 positive infections in the past six days.

Since the seven positive cases reported on June 2, the daily tally jumped to 81 on Tuesday. The current 240 positive infections spread in five areas of Inner Mongolia, with Erenhot, located in Xilingol League and bordering Mongolia, affected the most.

Senior local official urged to cut off viral transmission at a quick speed. Wang Lixia, the deputy Party chief of Inner Mongolia, noted on Tuesday that the epidemic in Erenhot, the focal point of this wave of epidemic resurgence, is severely complicated, stressing a quick speed to contain the virus.

Latest data released at Wednesday's press conference showed that Erenhot was hit by Omicron, which infected 224 people in the city with most showing mild symptoms.

The region now registers seven high-risk areas and one medium-risk area for COVID-19.

Since June 2, Erenhot has imposed static management with all communities under strict management and all residents being encouraged to work from home. The routes in and out of the city were suspended. If people would like to leave for special reasons, they should apply to local anti-epidemic department.

Another city, Chifeng, required all people at public posts to work from home. Two certificates of negative nucleic acid tests taken within 48 hours are required to leave the city.

Global Times

At today’s regular Cabinet meeting, a resolution on some measures to be taken to Erdenes Mongol LLC was approved.

According to the resolution, Erdenet Mining Corporation and Mongolrostsvetmet state-owned enterprise will be affiliated to Erdenes Mongol LLC. Also, Prime Minister L. Oyun-Erdene assigned the relevant officials to reduce the total number of the board members of the company’s subsidiaries from 207 to 27.

Minister of Mining and Heavy Industry G. Yondon said, “The Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry drafted a Bill on National Wealth Fund and presented it to the Government. The Government supported the Bill and decided to submit it to the Parliament for consideration. According to the Bill, Erdenes Mongol LLC will become the National Wealth Fund; thus the company’s structure, executive management, the Board of Directors, and mission and strategy of operations have been clearly specified in the Bill.”

Sydney-listed TMK Energy on June 8 said that drilling on Snow Leopard-2 (SL-02) in Mongolia has intersected a further 21 m of gassy coal in the lower seam, from a depth of 457 m to 478.5 m.

This is in addition to the 70 m of coal that was intersected in the upper seam at SL-02 and brings the total net coal thickness intersected to 91 m. “Coal core from both the upper and lower coal seams at SL-02 have been sampled for gas desorption testing and preliminary results indicate that both seams contain high gas contents,” the company said.

Drilling at SL-02 is now complete with the total depth of the well at 540 m. Downhole geophysical surveys are currently being completed in preparation for potentially completing further permeability testing on the coal intersections, subject to hole conditions.

The Gurvantes XXXV coalbed methane project in the South Gobi basin of Mongolia covers an area of 8,400 km2 and is situated around 20 km from the Chinese-Mongolian border and close to the northern China gas transmission and distribution network. TMK earlier this year completed the acquisition of Telmen Energy, which held a 100% interest in the Gurvantes XXXV project.

TMK CEO Brendan Stats said that the company's focus has now shifted to the fast-tracking of the pilot production system and early commercialisation opportunities.

Ukraine will not be exporting gas and coal to other countries, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday. He warned that the state is facing the “most difficult” winter since its independence 30 years ago, due to the ongoing military conflict with Russia.

“It’s OK, we have to go through it so that our people can feel that the state is functioning normally,” Zelensky said in an address posted on his Telegram channel. “At this time, we will not be selling our gas and coal abroad. All domestic production will be directed to the internal needs of our citizens," he added.

Zelensky demanded that the government do everything possible to ensure that gas and electricity prices stay unchanged for consumers in the upcoming heating season. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Denis Shmygal said that coal production in Ukraine’s state-owned mines has decreased by about a third since the end of February.

According to the International Energy Agency, Ukraine produces coal, natural gas and oil; however, the energy demand exceeds domestic supply, with the country having to import fossil fuels to cover an energy gap of about 35%.

Ukraine ranked sixth in the world for hard coal reserves in 2019, with coal accounting for over 90% of the country’s fossil fuels. Despite this, the IEA notes, Ukraine has increasingly relied on imports in recent years, with 70% of imported coal coming from Russia.

Much of the natural gas Ukraine imports also originates from Russia, as it travels into Ukraine through reverse flows from central and eastern European countries, the IEA says. Ukraine is an important transit country for gas supplies from Russia to Europe.

The coal, fuel and petroleum products that Ukraine exports mainly go to other former Soviet Republics as well as to Turkey and China, according to data from Trading Economics.

During its annual congress that took place in Finland, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has made the decision for 2023 IIHF World Championship Division IV to be hosted in the capital city of Mongolia.

Mongolia will be hosting the international tournament for the very first time on March 12-16, 2023. According to the State Committee for Physical Culture and Sports, teams of Mongolia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore will be competing in the tournament.

Mongolia plans to organize the supply of meat and other goods to Uzbekistan by charter flights, Spot reports citing the press service of the Agriculture Ministry.

This and other issues were discussed by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Alisher Turayev and Deputy Head of the Mongolian FM Batsumber Munkhjin, who arrived in Uzbekistan on a visit. The main topic of the meeting was the agricultural sector and cooperation in it.

During the conversation, it was noted that animal husbandry is the main branch of the agricultural sector in Mongolia. There are about 70 million cattle and small cattle in the country. The Mongolian side proposed to increase the supply of meat to Uzbekistan.

Now bilateral transportation of goods is carried out by land, Munkhjin said. To increase their volume, he proposed to establish charter flights.

Following the meeting, the parties agreed that Mongolia will increase the export of meat and meat products to Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan, in turn, will provide the Mongolian market with an additional volume of food and agricultural products.

MIAT - Mongolian Airlines (OM, Ulaanbaatar) is planning to launch B737-8 operations in July 2022, more than three years after the delivery of the only unit of the type, but will only proffer it to the ACMI market for the time being.

Broker Zela Aviation said EI-MNG (msn 43795) would be available for long-term wet-lease deals. The aircraft is configured for up to 162 passengers, including 12 in business class. MIAT took delivery of the aircraft on March 10, 2019, a few days before the type was grounded globally. Even though the B737 MAX was cleared to fly in the United States in late 2020 and subsequently in most other countries, Mongolia's only two neighbours, China and Russia, have yet to permit its operations. As such, MIAT cannot operate the aircraft commercially on international routes. Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows it operated a single technical flight in March 2022. Since then, EI-MNG has been stored at Uléi. It is owned by Avolon, the ch-aviation fleets ownership module shows.

The Mongolian flag carrier also operates three B737-800s and a single B767-300(ER). The B767 is also available for long-term wet-lease commitments through Zela Aviation, while one of the B737s will become available starting with the Winter 2022 season.

WASHINGTON, June 6, 2022 – The World Bank Board of Executive Directors today approved a credit of $40.7 million from the International Development Association (IDA) to help Mongolia improve online public services to citizens and businesses, boost digital skills training, and increase digital-enabled jobs.

The Smart Government II Project aims to improve Mongolia’s legal and regulatory environment for building trust and cybersecurity in the use of digital technologies. The project will also enable the development of public services, shared use of cloud computing, and cybersecurity services in the public sector.

The project also aims to help develop Mongolia's digital economy in response to the impact of disruptive technologies transforming economies and societies globally, and to provide new opportunities for Mongolia's development. For the digital economy, the project will provide skills and literacy training to 13,000 civil servants and citizens, create 3,000 new digital jobs for youth and women, and help digitalize 2,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to improve their competitiveness and resilience in the global economy.

The project will expand on the successful interventions of the first SMART Government Project that will close on August 31, 2022. The closing project had built and strengthened critical enablers for public sector transformation and online service delivery, including the national-level disaster recovery center, government enterprise architecture, e-Mongolia and open data portal, and e-property registration system.

"It is important that all Mongolian citizens and businesses be able to benefit from the global digital transformation and their country's digital development efforts,” said Andrei Mikhnev, World Bank Country Manager for Mongolia. “This project will provide Mongolian women, persons with disabilities, and rural or remote inhabitants with easy-to-use and efficient digital public services, and allow youths to develop digital skills and access a wider range of jobs. It will help SMEs – especially those owned or led by women – increase their competitiveness in the global digital market and build their resilience for future crises.”

The Mongolian government has succeeded in providing online public services to citizens and businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. This experience has added momentum to the government's longstanding commitment to use the digital transformation as a new driver of economic growth, to develop efficient and accessible public services, and to become a “Digital Nation” in the next five years.

The new project will assist the government in adopting an integrated, whole-of-government approach for its online public services and digital investments.

Mongolia officially launched its participation in the Opening Extractives programme on 19 May 2022. The hybrid event, which was attended by more than 30 in-person and online participants, follows a new Mongolian law on the disclosure of public information that became effective this month. The law requires companies to disclose beneficial ownership information, including all beneficial owners of legal entities.

Company ownership is a matter of public interest for Mongolia’s mining sector, which plays an important role in the country’s economy. The sector – which is mainly centred around gold, copper, coal and iron – accounted for 22% of Mongolia’s GDP, 57% of total industrial production, 42% of total investments and 26% of the national budget revenue in 2020. Mongolia also has a small oil and gas sector, however these resources remain largely underdeveloped.

Launch report

Ms Erdenechimeg, Governance Manager at Open Society Forum, pointed out that while beneficial ownership data is disclosed in Mongolia, there is need for more transparency and adherence to the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the EITI Standard. She further emphasised that beneficial ownership transparency helps to prevent conflicts of interest and can help ensure compliance with anti-corruption requirements. The Opening Extractives programme will help Mongolia’s government to improve the availability and use of beneficial ownership data for effective governance in the country’s extractive sector.

On behalf of the State Secretary of the Mongolian Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry (MMHI) and Head of the Mongolia EITI Multi-Stakeholder Group, Mr Batbold, Chief of Research and Investment Department, remarked that Mongolia has made strides in beneficial ownership. The General Authority for State Registration (GASR) system has been used to implement a legal requirement for all companies to identify and report their beneficial owners in 2020. He further highlighted that the programme would assist in raising beneficial ownership awareness for government agencies, civil society and companies to access comprehensive and reliable information on the ultimate owners of extractive industry companies. Publishing information on beneficial ownership would support responsible investment in Mongolia and increase trust and accountability for citizens and governments.

The open panel discussion during the launch gave a platform for Mongolia government ministries, civil society and company representatives to discuss how the programme can be effective for beneficial ownership transparency in the country. Representatives from the MMHI, the General Department of Taxation, Mongolian National Audit Office and civil society groups – including the Publish What You Pay Coalition and Transparency International – gave insights on how the programme can assist in the collective efforts of government, civil society and industry stakeholders to enhance beneficial ownership transparency through data-use initiatives. All agreed on the contribution of the programme to strengthen natural resource governance.

The key next step to follow this official launch, according to Mr Batbold, is for Mongolia to implement its beneficial ownership roadmap. The country wishes to strengthen stakeholder engagement and coordination on legislative matters, and improve data collection, due diligence, and public oversight of beneficial ownership in the extractive sector.

Zbigniew Rau came to Mongolia as part of a wider trip to Central Asia, public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.

Poland’s top diplomat made the visit as the current chairman of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

While in Mongolia, Rau met with President Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh and Foreign Minister Battsetseg Batmunkh, among other officials.

Praise for Mongolia’s reforms

At a joint news conference with Batmunkh, Poland’s foreign minister expressed his appreciation for Mongolia’s political and constitutional reform in the field of human rights, civic liberties and the institutional duties of being an OSCE participating state.

Rau also congratulated Mongolia on the tenth anniversary of its entry to the OSCE and reaffirmed the organisation’s readiness to offer further support.

Poland’s cooperation with Mongolia

The Polish foreign minister said: “My visit takes place at a time when the OSCE region is facing major security challenges. The OSCE was designed to prevent wars and military confrontation.’

He added: “It is my strong conviction that we should revert to its original purpose and by fully adhering to the Helsinki principles and specific culture of cooperation that the Organisation has developed for over five decades.”

“I very much look forward to working with our Mongolian partners on advancing this goal,” Rau concluded.

During his visit, Poland’s top diplomat also discussed Polish-Mongolian cooperation on economic and scientific issues, as well as in arts and culture, officials told reporters.

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Source: IAR, gov.pl