Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia will provide preventive and early-detection checkups to the country's entire population from May 1, Mongolian Health Minister Sereejav Enkhbold said Wednesday.

The move aims to reduce the risk of fatal diseases among Mongolian citizens, and narrow the life expectancy gap between men and women, Enkhbold told a press conference.

In Mongolia, the average life expectancy is 70.8 years for women and 60.6 years for men, Enkhbold said, adding that the government aims to reduce the gap to five years by 2024.

Cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, cancers, and traumatic injury are now the leading causes of death in Mongolia, according to the health minister.

A total of 60.8 billion Mongolian tugriks (about 21.3 million U.S. dollars) from the state budget will be used to support the preventive and early-detection checkups this year.

The government-financed checkups designed to cover a population of 3.4 million will also help improve Mongolia's health data, the ministry said.

Aspire Mining Ltd is focused on the development of metallurgical coal assets in Mongolia, principally the wholly owned Ovoot Coking Coal Project (OCCP). There have been some recent positive developments in Mongolia which will assist the company in the funding and operation of the OCCP.

Summary

Resolution of the Oyu Tolgoi dispute.

Confirmation of a number of rail developments, including the commencement of construction of the Sainshand to Khangi\Mandal border railway, which will significantly alleviate bottlenecks at the Erlian border.

The growing requirement to use containers for bulk coal shipments into China.

Resolution of Oyu Tolgoi investment agreement and underground development approval

On 25 January 2022, the Board of Oyu Tolgoi unanimously approved commencement of underground operations at the Oyu Tolgoi copper\gold project (OT), by far the largest mining project in Mongolia. OT is owned 34% by the Mongolian government and 66% by Rio Tinto controlled Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd (TRQ). This approval followed the Parliament of Mongolia’s Resolution 103 which resolved a number of disputes between the parties and approved a comprehensive package of outcomes to progress development of OT.

Being by far the largest foreign investment in Mongolia, the OT disputes between the Mongolian government and Rio\TRQ gained worldwide negative attention. The continued uncertainty about the future operations of OT has been referred to by many commentators as an ongoing sovereign risk issue and expressed caution about the security of international investment into the country.

The OT Project is described by TRQ CEO, Steve Thibeault, as a “once in a generation mine that when finished is expected to be one of the largest copper producing mines in the world and a generator of vast economic value and employment in Mongolia.”

While the circumstances of Aspire and its OCCP are vastly different, nevertheless Aspire sees this as a watershed moment in revitalising the attractiveness of Mongolia as a standout destination for foreign investment combined with its excellent geological prospectivity and its strategic location in Asia.

This was confirmed by Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene, the Prime Minister of Mongolia, who noted that: “The commencement of Oyu Tolgoi underground mining operations demonstrates to the world that Mongolia can work together with investors in a sustainable manner and become a trusted partner. As part of our ‘New Recovery Policy,’ I am happy to express Mongolia’s readiness to work actively and mutually beneficially with global investors and partners.”

Major Mongolian rail developments

There are significant tangible developments in rail that will significantly enhance the capacity of Mongolia to export to China, including:

The commissioning of the 416 km long Zuunbayan – Tavan Tolgoi Railway is expected in March 2022.

The progress on the 281 km railway from Zuunbayan to Khangi\Mandal. This project is expected to be completed in 2023 and will remove a significant bottleneck that currently exists in the railway from Sainshand to Zamyn -Uud\Erlian.

Chinese rail authorities noting that they intend to extend the Erlian border checkpoint after the 2022 Lunar New Year celebrations, boosting Mongolian export capacity through Zamyn-Uud.

The expectation that the Tavan Tolgoi – Gashuua Sukhait railway will be completed in July 2022, with the construction of the much shorter Gashuua Sukhait to Grants Mod railway that will deliver Mongolian coal directly into China, railway to start May 2022.

The Mongolia\China border at Khangi\Mandal is already receiving Mongolian iron ore exports by truck. The Mongolian government has prioritised both the 281 km rail extension to Khangi and the Khangi\Mandal border for a significant upgrade to its terminal activities as well as introducing container handling capabilities.

Aspire’s OCCP is planning to use both the expanded Zamyn-Uud\Erlian and Khangi\Mandal borders to export metallurgical coal, as well as markets accessible through the Russian rail system to the north.

Introducing containers to move metallurgical coal into China

Chinese border officials have recently been encouraging Mongolian iron ore and coal exporters to use containers through the Zamyn -Uud\Erlian border, which the company expects will also be extended to the Khangi\Mandal border once the railway connection has been completed.

While containers are more expensive on a per tonne basis than bulk carriers, there are specific benefits at the Mongolian\China border due to the change in rail gauge requiring transhipment. There are also environmental and commercial benefits in reducing coal dust and coal losses during transport, as well as providing additional product quality control over the entire logistics chain through to the end customer.

This mode of transport will be of particular benefit to Mongolian washed metallurgical coal exporters such as Aspire and its OCCP.

It is possible to transport international cargo from Mongolia to 18 countries. Currently, intergovernmental agreements on international road transport have been signed with Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Turkey, Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Kyrgyzstan, Hungary, Slovenia and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. In addition, it is intended to sign the agreement with Georgia, Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany and Moldova. The agreements have yet been formalized, but it is possible to transport goods to these countries by exchanging permit documents.

Moreover, with aims to facilitate international transport, a protocol between the Ministry of Road and Transport of Mongolia and the Ministry of Transport of China on the implementation of the international road transport agreement between the Governments of Mongolia and China was renewed in 2019.

Within the framework of the ‘China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor’ program which aims to develop transport connectivity and cross-border trade services, ‘Intergovernmental agreement on international road transport along the Asian Highway Network’ was signed by the three countries. It is now effective since 2019. In this context, it is possible to transport in two directions: Asian Highway Network’s AH 3 route or Ulan-Ude –Ulaanbaatar –Tianjin port, and AH 4 route or Novosibirsk –Bayan Ulgii-Khovd -Urumqi –Hongiraf port. Unfortunately, transportation has been currently suspended due to the pandemic, reports the Ministry of Road and Transport.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Mongolia held the second meeting with the relevant officials to discuss a launch of direct flight between Mongolia and the US.

The meeting discussed the process of establishing air services between the two countries, concluding air transport agreements, and the requirements and preparations of other countries for direct flights from the US Federal Aviation Administration. MIAT JSC also introduced the options of direct flights between Mongolia and the US.

According to U.Batbayar, Ambassador of Mongolia to the United States of America, two sides are planning to make the first direct flight by 2023.

The direct flight has the advantage of saving time and money for citizens traveling to and from the United States and Mongolia. Furthermore, the direct flights between Mongolia and the United States will be a significant milestone in economic and bilateral cooperation.

Today (17 February), Mongolia reported 874 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the national tally to 459,183. Meanwhile, three more COVID-19 patients died in the past day, bringing the death toll to 2,152.

The daily tally showed pandemic-related hospitalizations stood at 5,937, a drop of 230 compared with the previous day. This includes 45 patients in intensive care units, a decrease of three. Furthermore, 19,557 Covid-19 patients are receiving home-based care; decreased from 20,637 on 16 February.

Mongolia on Monday canceled a heightened state of readiness imposed in February 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resumed in-person classes for all levels of educational institutions. The decisions were made based on the country’s infection rate, high vaccination coverage, and assessments by relevant authorities.

So far, 66.8 percent of the country’s population of 3.4 million people have received two COVID-19 vaccine doses, while more than 1 million people over 18 received a third dose. More than 91,000 people have received a fourth shot, which the country started to administer in January on a voluntary basis.

The construction of a railway at Gashuunsukhait-Gantsmod – the port handles more than 50 percent of Mongolia’s copper and coking coal exports was one of key issues at talks between Mongolian Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The meeting was held on 7 February when L.Oyun-Erdene attended the Opening Ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

The Gashuunsukhait-Gantsmod border crossing has been a contentious topic for Mongolian policymakers for years. Although different parties and ministries have agreed on the economic importance of the railroad, they disagreed on many important technical aspects such as the railroad gauge, allocation of investment, and the environmental and geological impacts that come with such a significant megaproject. The financial question was one of the major hurdles as well. The China-proposed railroad project is more costly than what the Mongolians envisioned.

This means Mongolian coals will be transferred to the Chinese trains in Gantsmod.

The Mongolian folk-metal group announced a slew of tour dates following their show at this year’s Coachella Festival on 15 April, 2022.

Following Coachella, the band will be on the road until ending May 31, 2022 in Mexico City. The group is leaving no stone unturned. The tour includes stops in San Diego, Las Vegas, Detroit, Maine, Washington, DC, Nashville, and Dallas.

The band has said the tour will continue to tease new music from their highly anticipated second album, due later this year from Better Noise Music.

Founded in 2016, the band hails from Mongolia. They blend heavy metal and traditional Mongolian throat singing. The group of four guys describes their style as “Hunnu Rock.” The Hunnu people were an ancient Mongolian empire. Their name, The Hu, is the Mongolian root word for human being.

Today on February 16, Minister of Finance B.Javkhlan announced that the strategy and development policy for the Ministry of Economy and Development was approved at the regular Cabinet meeting.

With the changes made to the 2022 State Budget and the Law on the Government, the Ministry of Economy and Development was officially established in January this year. “By having the strategy and development policy approved by the Cabinet, the Ministry is provided with opportunities and proper structure to fulfill its duties that have been reflected in the respective law. In its framework, an agency is also being established on foreign investment,” highlighted Minister B.Javkhlan.

“Previously, the Foreign Investment Agency carried out its operations independently under the Government. The agency is now being re-established under the current government after many years. With the re-establishment of the agency, Mongolia’s mid- and long-term policies and plans for foreign investment will become very clear, creating the appropriate conditions to connect foreign investors to large-scale construction projects being carried out domestically as well as with other economic sectors. The agency will be in charge of promoting current opportunities for making investments in Mongolia by carrying out wide-scale works to introduce the country’s business sectors,” he said.

On February 15, Central Geological Laboratory state-owned enterprise and Oyu Tolgoi LLC renewed and signed the agreement to conduct an external inspection and sample of copper concentrate for export.

Under the government’s resolution dated in 2013, the Central Geological Laboratory (CGL) became responsible for conducting an external inspection and sample of copper concentrate for export. Accordingly, the CGL and Oyu Tolgoi LLC first established the agreement on June 1, 2013.

The laboratory has been continuously performing high-quality and international standards works, such as taking samples from every packaged copper concentrate to be exported by Oyu Tolgoi, determining moisture, preparing samples for testing, carrying out chemical analysis and submitting test results.

Since 2013, the laboratory has analyzed about 6.5 million tons of Oyu Tolgoi’s concentrate.

Director of the Central Geological Laboratory O. Davaasambuu said that the agreement has been renewed for five years in connection with the commencement of underground mining operations. He added that according to the renewed agreement, OT’s concentrate sample preparation and inspection work contracts would be established separately, reflecting consumer price index and international standard price for inspection.

The laboratory determines the content of copper, gold, silver and 20 elements in the packaged copper concentrates of Oyu Tolgoi LLC using internationally approved methods, including standard chemical and modern instrumental analysis methods.