Today (14 February), Mongolian Government has scrapped almost all remaining Covid-19 restrictions, but keeping face mask, hand sanitizing and the one-metre rules. Majority of measures that have been in place for almost three years are now lifted. Mongolia is the one of the continent’s highest uptake of booster vaccines, which has helped keep the number of seriously ill people well below the previous peak.

All levels of educational institutions in Mongolia has resumed in-person classes starting from today. Now, Mongolia opens its borders fully to foreign travellers. Previously, the Central Asian country reopened its air border to resume international passenger flights on June, 2021 after more than a year of closure because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On same day, Mongolia has downgraded emergency levels related to Covid-19 from orange to yellow. The four levels are represented by a color and lays out detailed rules and guidelines for operations and activities to be carried out by government organizations, individuals and private businesses under each level.

1. Green Level – Guidelines for the green level transmission are issued when the country has gone 28 days straight with zero COVID-19 cases. Operations of public and private organizations and individuals are not suspended, only health preventative guidelines and recommendations are in place.

2. Yellow Level – issued when the coronavirus cases registered in the past 14 days are ‘imported’ from abroad and taken under control or the local cases confirmed in the past two weeks are not directly related to each other in terms of their timing and locations. Under the Yellow Level transmission, complete or partial heightened state of readiness is declared and operations of public and private organizations and individuals are restricted to a certain extent.

3. Orange Level – issued when cluster infections are confirmed and local cases recorded in the past 14 days are related to each other in terms of their timing and locations. Under the Orange Level transmission, complete or partial heightened state of readiness is declared and operations of public and private organizations and individuals are restricted to a certain extent depending on the situation.

4. Red Level – issued when large-scale community infections of COVID-19 are recorded, positive coronavirus cases recorded in the past 14 days are found to have been virally transmitted among general population or the cluster source of 25 percent of newly confirmed cases cannot be identified or mortality rate per 10,000 people is higher than 0.1. Under the Red Level transmission, all-out readiness regime is issued in full or partial manners and operations of public and private organizations and individuals are restricted and special measures for lockdown and quarantine are implemented.

The country has been one of the most cautious countries on the risks of COVID-19, putting in place toughest restrictions. The country of three million shut its borders with China on 27 January 2020 and closed all schools, kindergartens and public gatherings as preventive measures against the COVID-19 outbreak.

Today, on Feb 14, 2022 H.E.Mr. Jan Vytopil Ambassador of Czech Republic and Mr. Ser-Od Ichinkhorloo Founder/CEO of MBD (Mongolian Business Datasase) signed the contract for PROPEA (Czech Business Support) project in Mongolia.

The long-term goal of the PROPEA program is:

 provide quality services to Czech companies on foreign markets,

 reduce Czech companies' risks associated with entering demanding foreign markets,

 to support Czech companies in the future, whose activities abroad are not limited to exports, but rather have an investment character,

 strengthen the capacity of the Czech Republic to support a more permanent presence of companies in foreign markets.

The PROPEA program is funded by inter-ministerial funds to support economic diplomacy. The services provided within the PROPEA projects are cost-effective for companies and, namely, in Mongolia they represent a supplement to the individual services provided by the embassy, inter alia, in the form of PROPED economic diplomacy projects. 70% of the PROPEA budget subsidizes 70% of the price of the service, the remaining 30% is co-financed by interested Czech companies. The complete tariff of services that Czech companies can use within PROPEA projects contains the following items:

 elaboration of a business plan for market entry or investment,

 preparation of legal, tax, financial and legislative analysis,

 launching products on the market (assistance in negotiations with financial institutions, support in setting up an account and securing financing, setting up a company, etc.),

 securing licenses, certifications, product registrations and trademarks,

 provision and verification of documentation for import / export and logistics,

 creation and coordination of supplier and partner networks,

 provision of promotional, marketing and PR services,

 start-up / start-up support for service companies use of technical background,

 Representation of the company on the spot (on a commercial contractual basis between a Czech company and a foreign representative, without financial support from the PROPEA budget).

Big banks are pumping billions into new oil and gas production despite net zero pledges, campaigners have said.

Banks including HSBC, Barclays and Deutsche Bank are still backing new oil and gas despite being part of a green banking group, ShareAction said.

Investors should force banks to demand green plans from fossil fuel firms before funding them, it said.

HSBC and Barclays said they were focused on achieving environmental goals.

"Net zero" means not adding to greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere by cutting and trying to balance out emissions.

If the Earth is to avoid damaging environmental effects, including more extreme weather, it needs to limit average global warming to below 1.5 degrees centigrade.

To achieve this, we need to get to net zero by 2050, experts have said.

As part of getting to net zero, the International Energy Agency has said there should be no new oil and natural gas fields.

But big banks are continuing to fund oil and gas expansion with billions of dollars, ShareAction said, despite being part of a UN-led group called the Net Zero Banking Alliance.

What is net zero and how are the UK and other countries doing?

Is a new oil field climate change hypocrisy?

HSBC put an estimated $8.7bn (£6.4bn) into new oil and gas in 2021, while Barclays put in $4.5bn, and Deutsche Bank loaned $5.7bn, the campaign group estimated.

The fossil fuel giants receiving the funding included Exxon Mobil, Shell, BP, and Saudi Aramco.

This is a big drop from 2020, when HSBC alone pumped more than $18bn into new oil and gas, and there were big drops in funding across the board between 2020 and 2021, according to figures from consultancy Profundo.

ShareAction said this was due to banks focussing on providing pandemic-related loans to keep fossil fuel firms afloat during the pandemic, and that in 2021 funding returned to pre-pandemic levels.

'Lose-lose'

Since joining the Net Zero Banking Alliance last year, 24 big banks have provided $33bn for new oil and gas projects, with more than half of that amount ($19bn) coming from four of the founding members - HSBC, Barclays, BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank, the campaigners said.

ShareAction urged big investors to demand that banks restrict finance for oil and gas expansion, saying funding new oil and gas is a lose-lose for banks and investors.

Xavier Lerin, ShareAction senior research manager, said: "If oil and gas demand decreases in line with 1.5C scenarios, prices will fall and assets will become stranded.

"On the other hand, if demand does not fall enough to limit global warming to 1.5C, the economy will suffer from severe physical climate impacts.

"Either way, value will be destroyed for energy companies, banks and their investors."

The campaign group added: "Banks say that they want to help their clients to transition away from fossil fuels, but there is little evidence for this claim."

"Most banks - HSBC included - are not demanding transition plans from clients, raising doubts about their commitment to this transition," it added.

But an HSBC spokesman said the bank was "committed to working with our customers to achieve a transition towards a thriving low carbon economy".

The bank published its policy to phase out funding coal for energy production in December, and said its oil and gas net zero financing plans would be published on 22 February in its annual report.

Barclays said it "continues to engage with a broad range of stakeholders on climate and sustainability topics".

"We continue to focus on our ambition to become a net zero bank by 2050, and our commitment to align our financing with the goals and timelines of the Paris Agreement," a spokeswoman said.

Barclays has a target of a 15% reduction in financed emissions from energy, including coal, oil and gas, by 2025.

"We also have restrictions around the direct financing of new oil and gas exploration projects in the Arctic or financing for companies primarily engaged in oil and gas exploration and production in this region," the spokeswoman added.

A Deutsche Bank spokesman said: "Carbon intensive sectors account for only a small share of our loan book and based on publicly available data our lending and underwriting activity in fossil fuels is significantly smaller than global peers'.

"Moreover, our aim is to support all of our customers as we transition to a net zero world."

Deutsche Bank said it was "well under way" to hitting green and social targets of €200bn (£170bn) by 2023, including "an intense dialogue with clients to move from high-carbon business models towards low and no-carbon ones".

The spokesman added: "We have committed to align the operational and attributable emissions from our portfolio with pathways to net-zero by 2050 or sooner.

"This includes measuring and subsequently disclosing the carbon intensity of our loan portfolio and developing and disclosing plans to adjust its footprint in accordance with national and international climate targets by end of this year."

BNP Paribas, which was also named in the ShareAction report, said: "As the leading bank in continental Europe, BNP Paribas is a major financier of European energy companies that are largely committed to transitioning their model through strong investments in developing renewable energies."

The bank said it is "convinced that these players, due to their technical and financial capacities, have the levers necessary to accelerate transition by developing renewable energy and other transformative solutions".

'Investment needed'

Meanwhile, oil giant Exxon Mobil said that the International Energy Agency and the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change "agree that significant investment in oil and gas is still needed in Paris-aligned scenarios".

It said that even in the IEA net zero scenario, "additional investment of approximately $11tn through 2050 would be required in both oil and natural gas development to meet the world's energy demand".

BP said it "has a net zero ambition and we have set out a strategy to deliver it".

"Resilient hydrocarbons are a core part of our strategy, but we are not aiming to grow our oil and gas production - we expect to see production fall 40% from 2019 to 2030.

"We expect to hold investment in oil and gas flat over this decade as output falls, while at the same time expanding our spending in transition growth businesses - including EV charging, convenience, renewables, hydrogen and bioenergy - to around 50% of the total by 2030," BP added.

Shell declined to comment, and Saudi Aramco was approached for comment.

Investors in the world’s biggest mining companies will this month be watching for signs that mounting cost pressures and the impacts of slowing Chinese growth could further erode record earnings.

Miners are likely to report a drop in profits. The top-five western diversified mining companies, including iron-ore giants Rio Tinto Group, Vale SA and BHP Group Ltd., may see combined 2021 second-half earnings of $73 billion, according to analysts’ estimates, compared to $82 billion in the first half.

Although elevated prices for metals mean profits remain robust on a historical basis, the dip is reflective of the headwinds that developed over the period.

“That’s going to be a theme: With the bumper profits that they’re enjoying, they are rewarding shareholders with dividends rather than ploughing it back into expansion,” said David Bassanese, chief economist at fund manager BetaShares in Sydney. “That shows that there’s not a lot of confidence” for the longer-term, with uncertainty about China at the forefront of concerns, he said.

Threats to economic growth in the world’s largest metals consumer are clouding the outlook for miners — and especially iron-ore companies.

Giant miners to see record profits slip as cost pressures bite

China’s property market, which consumes around a third of the country’s steel output, has been cooling — Bloomberg Intelligence expects new home starts to decline by 5% this year. And Beijing’s bid to cling to its Covid-zero status, even as regional outbreaks become more frequent, is the X factor that’s likely giving some resource executives sleepless nights.

The pandemic has been a double-edged sword for the mining sector over the six months to Dec. 31. On the positive side of the ledger, the trillions of dollars in stimulus packages ignited demand for commodities like iron ore, copper and aluminum, driving prices sharply higher and sending inflation pressures rippling through the global economy.

On the negative: rising operating costs are set to be a feature of the latest set of reports. Labor shortages are becoming an increasing challenge to ore producers in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, a state which remains subject to strict borders controls to keep the Covid-19 out. Supply chain bottlenecks have also seen global shipping rates ratchet higher.

“While commodity prices remain at or close to record highs, and the underlying performances of companies are generally robust, rising costs related to inflationary pressures are eating into operating margins at an even faster rate,” said Gavin Wendt, founding director at the consultancy MineLife Pty. That’s “leading to disappointment in the minds of some investors,” he said.

BHP and Rio have said that a lack of workers in key roles are having an impact on their operations. Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., the world’s No. 4 ore producer, reported last month that its costs had risen 20% over the past 12 months driven primarily by rising fuel prices and labor shortages.

Vale is expected to have offset volatile ore prices by selling down its stockpiles and getting some cost relief last quarter. Still, the market will be wary of the potential for increased provisions for remedial action following the Samarco dam disaster.

The Brazilian company is still trying to get its base metals division back on track after a strike and an incident with workers trapped in a mine in Canada. That affected nickel and copper production in the third quarter.

Giant miners to see record profits slip as cost pressures bite

All up, iron-ore miners had a bumpy ride in the second half of 2021. Prices collapsed from peaks north of $230 per ton in May to the mid-$80s in November after China tightened curbs on steel production to meet stricter environmental standards. They have since rallied afresh on expectations for a rebound in steel output after Beijing relaxed climate targets, yet price volatility remains a risk for the earnings outlook.

Coal surge

Glencore Plc has limited iron ore exposure and missed out on the excess riches enjoyed by its rivals in the first half. That trend is set to reverse in the second half, with the Swiss-based group benefiting from surging prices for coal — a commodity it has stuck with even as the likes of Rio and BHP look to sell out. The Swiss-headquartered company is the only one of the big five expected to report a rise in underlying earnings for the period.

Meanwhile at Anglo American Plc, Chief Executive Officer Mark Cutifani will preside over his last earnings report after almost nine years at the helm. Investors will also be keen for an update from the company on its plans to develop the Woodsmith potash mine in northern England.

The earnings season will also see close scrutiny on what the big miners are doing to tackle deep-rooted cultural issues highlighted in Rio’s report into workplace culture earlier this month. Chief Executive Officer Jakob Stausholm said he was shamed by the report, which pointed to endemic sexism, racism and bullying across its operations.

(By James Thornhill, Thomas Biesheuvel and Mariana Durao, with assistance from Tim Smith and Ricardo Strulovici Wolfrid)

On February 11, a Memorandum of Cooperation was established between the Ministry of Education and Science and the University of Cambridge in aims of bringing the current school curricula for mathematics, English, and science up to globally competitive levels.

Within the aim of improving school curricula as well as its management, a certain number of public schools were established with the Cambridge programme in 2011. Since then, the initiative has been continuously implemented in cooperation with the Cambridge International Examinations (CIE).

As of today, there are over 10 public and private schools that have the Cambridge programme. Thus, in order to introduce the programme at all general education schools in the framework of the goal to increase the accessibility of quality education and provide equal opportunities to students nationwide, the Ministry of Education and Science has established a Memorandum of Cooperation with the University of Cambridge.

In the framework of the cooperation, works will be carried out:

• to bring the curricula for mathematics, science, and English up to globally competitive levels, and have them internationally recognized and accepted,

• to specifically create a national system for the programme’s implementation,

• to establish specialised high schools, provide opportunity for the schools to implement the international programme,

• to ensure the continuous professional development for teachers involved in the programme’s implementation,

• to build the capacity of professional institutions to be in charge of developing the assessment, textbooks, and other teaching tools based on the programme,

• to establish a centre for examinations and assessment based on the programme, and create equal opportunities for all students to take the Cambridge examinations.

The Central Bank of Mongolia or Mongolbank purchased 1.6 tons of gold in January. This represents that the amount of precious metal purchase increased by 312 kg compared with the same period of the previous year.

In January, the BoM branches in Darkhan-Uul and Bayankhongor provinces bought 48.5 kg and 64.1 kg of precious metals respectively.

The average price of BoM’s purchase of 1 gram of gold was MNT 166,244.8 last month.

Gold Reserves in Mongolia averaged 4.89 Tonnes from 2000 until 2021, reaching an all time high of 23.40 Tonnes in the first quarter of 2020 and a record low of 0 Tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2005.

Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- Mongolian Foreign Minister Batmunkh Battsetseg has praised China for successfully hosting the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games.

"First of all, I would like to say that China is very successfully hosting the 'white' Olympics or the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games," Battsetseg told Xinhua.

During the a time when the Omicron variant of the coronavirus was on the rise around the world, Battsetseg said "China successfully organized the splendid opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics by taking the advantage of technology at the highest level" under strict anti-pandemic measures "with the attendance of leaders of state and government of many countries."

She accompanied her country's Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games.

Billionaire investor George Soros bought nearly 20 million shares of electric truck startup Rivian, according to securities filings released on Friday. The shares were worth roughly $2 billion at the time of purchase, making Soros Fund Management one of the firm’s largest investors.

Rivian, which is 20% owned by e-commerce giant Amazon, was a hit with investors last fall, when it raised $12 billion in its IPO, becoming the largest market debut of 2021.

However, the startup has not yet produced a consumer vehicle. As of December 2021, the carmaker has reportedly delivered just 150 of its electric R1T pickup trucks and only two electric SUVs, the R1S, to customers (mostly employees) with little revenue to report. It is hard to tell when non-employee customers will receive their Rivian cars, but the automaker began notifying non-affiliated reservation holders about when they could expect their vehicles in September last year. In a Rivian Owners forum poll, reservation holders said their R1S delivery dates are between June and September of 2022, while the majority of R1T respondents put down deliveries from March to June.

Rivian was due to provide Amazon with more than 100,000 electric trucks last year, but said in December it expected production to fall “a few hundred vehicles short” amid supply chain constraints.

Apparently due to the failure to deliver on its promises so far, Rivian saw shares drop 43% for the year to date on Friday. The carmaker’s stock price is currently down 67% from the high of $179.46 it reached a week after its IPO debut.

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 1, 2022) - Aranjin Resources Ltd. (TSXV: ARJN) ("Aranjin") is very pleased to announce that it has have entered into a term sheet agreement (the "Term Sheet") which sets out the terms for an exploration joint venture with ION Energy Ltd (the "Joint Venture"). The Joint Venture will consist of both Parties granting one another reciprocal exploration rights on their respective exploration licences within Mongolia.

Both ION and Aranjin will leverage one another's expertise in their respective metals, with Aranjin being granted a right to explore ION's properties for base metals (including copper, lead, zinc, nickel, cobalt and associated metals), and ION being granted a right to explore Aranjin's properties for lithium. This structured approach is aimed at enlarging both Parties' exploration area within the mineral rich regions of Mongolia, thus ensuring that both ION and Aranjin maximize their chances of carrying a property to the development stage.

The area covered by the Joint Venture consists of all mineral rights in Mongolia currently held by the Parties, which consists of the Sharga Project, the Bayan Undur Project, the Baruun Tal Project (pending final purchase), the Baavhai Uul Project, the Urgakh Naran Project and all mineral rights acquired by the Parties in Mongolia after the date of entering into the Joint Venture.

Highlights:

Maiden auger drill program was completed in the fall of 2021 at ION's Baavhai Uul project and included 222 auger holes for a total of 1,304.5 meters

To date, only 50% of the assay samples have been returned

Initial drilling results are highly encouraging with a new Copper and Nickel discovery at the center of the Baavhai Uul licence

Drill hole AU-83 returned results of up to 2,150 ppm Nickel from 5.0 to 5.5m depth in clay samples and average 202 ppm Nickel. Numerous auger holes with over 200 ppm and up to 480 ppm Nickel were assayed in the eastern area of the licence and these will be subject to follow up infill drilling programs

Drill hole AU-85 returned up to 570 ppm Copper from 2.5-3m depth and averaged 103 ppm Copper. seven auger holes that were drilled in the eastern part of the licence returned over 100 ppm Copper

The copper geochemical anomaly is over 4 sq km in size and the Nickel Geochem anomaly is over 2 sq km in size, anomalies located in the central part of the licence overlap each other.

Auger holes were drilled to a maximum depth of six meters with samples being collected every 0.5 meter and were located over 1 kilometer apart. This represented a broad pass of the licence prospectively. The remaining results from this drilling program are expected before the end of February 2022.

The main aim of Aranjin's 2022 exploration program is to expand the revealed Nickel and Copper high grade anomalies and plan to drill infill auger holes in a 250m grid. A total of 321 holes are planned over 1,926 meters. The Aranjin drilling program is scheduled to begin no later than February 5, 2022. Aranjin also plans to test the high grade zones using IP Geophysics and diamond drill holes at shallow depth. ION will continue its exploration with Hydrogeological sampling and advanced Lithium exploration techniques over the coming months.

Joint Venture Highlights

ION and Aranjin will grant each other a reciprocal right to explore one another's properties, with Aranjin earning an 80% interest and ION earning a 20% interest in all base metal projects discovered on ION's properties, and ION earning an 80% interest and Aranjin earning a 20% interest in all lithium projects discovered on Aranjin's properties, subject to existing royalties.

If a Party has prepared a Feasibility Study (as defined by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum) in respect of a deposit on a licence of the other Party, and the Party wishes to undertake development of the deposit (the "Development Project"), the Parties shall negotiate a separate joint venture or similar agreement governing the development and operation of the Development Project, with the initial participating interest being 80% for the Party initiating the Development Project, and 20% for the other Party.

Each Party will bear their own costs of exploration on the properties of the other Party, with ION obligated to expend at least USD$500,000 and Aranjin USD$3,000,000 over the three (3) years commencing from the date of the Term Sheet. Aranjin shall be entitled to satisfy any shortfall of its required expenditures in cash up to USD$2,500,000.

If a Party fails to prepare a Feasibility Study in respect of a deposit on the licence of the other Party within five (5) years of the date of the Term Sheet, the rights of the non-performing Party under the Term Sheet will be terminated.

Aranjin shall appoint Ali Haji, Chief Executive Officer of ION, to the board of directors of Aranjin, and further appoint him as President and Chief Executive Officer of Aranjin.

Matthew Wood will resign as President and Chief Executive Officer of Aranjin and will continue to act as Executive Chairman of Aranjin.

Aranjin intends to issue 1% of the outstanding common shares to Mr. Haji as an inducement to act as President and CEO of Aranjin. The common shares issued to Mr. Haji will be subject to a hold period of four months and a day.

Ali Haji, incoming President and CEO of Aranjin, commented: "This joint-venture allows for ION Energy to work alongside Aranjin on two very important elements that are required for the clean, green energy revolution. The synergistic makeup of each company will allow for this joint-venture drive the electrification of the future and represent the largest lithium and copper exploration licence holders in Mongolia. We look forward to working together and receiving the balance of our exploration results."

Matthew Wood, Executive Chairman of Aranjin, noted: "With the promising early results and evidence of copper at the Baavhai Uul Project we are excited to expand our portfolio of prospective copper assets. Partnering with ION allows us to diversify our asset footprint and our exploration spend."

Final approval of the Joint Venture and the share issuance to Mr. Haji remains subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

About ION Energy Ltd.

ION Energy Ltd. is committed to exploring and developing Mongolia's lithium salars, which includes the Baavhai Uul and Urgakh Naran Project. ION's flagship, 81,000+ hectare Baavhai Uul lithium brine project, represents the largest and first lithium brine exploration licence awarded in Mongolia. ION Energy is well-poised to be a key player in the clean energy revolution, positioned well to service the world's increased demand for lithium. Information about the Company is available on its website, www.ionenergy.ca, or under its profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

About Aranjin Resources Ltd.

Aranjin Resources Ltd. is committed to exploring and developing its prospective copper projects, the Sharga Project, the Bayan Under Project and the Baruun Tal Project (pending final purchase) located in Mongolia. Information about the Company is available on its website, www.aranjinresources.com, or under its profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia's COVID-19 tally rose to 457,372 after 893 new infections were reported in the past 24 hours, the country's health ministry said Sunday.

The new cases were all local transmissions, and among them, 465 were detected in capital Ulan Bator, which is the region hit hardest by COVID-19 and home to more than half of the country's population of 3.4 million.

Meanwhile, the national death toll increased to 2,073 after one more COVID-19 patient died in the past day, the ministry said.

So far, 66.8 percent of the country's total population have received two COVID-19 vaccine doses, while more than 1,013,900 people aged over 18 have received a third dose.

More than 89,800 Mongolians have received a fourth dose, which the country started to administer from Jan. 7 on a voluntary basis.