Regional Initiative on Dust Storms to Be Launched During COP17 www.montsame.mn

Mongolia and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) are preparing to launch a regional initiative to combat sand and dust storms during the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.

Minister of Environment and Climate Change Sandag-Ochir Tsend met with Ganbold Baasanjav, Director of the East and North-East Asia Office of UNESCAP, to discuss cooperation during COP17.

The UNESCAP, in cooperation with the Government of Mongolia and the Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (TCS) of China, Japan and the Republic of Korea, is preparing to launch a regional initiative to combat sand and dust storms during COP17.

Last year, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the coming decade as the International Decade on Combating Sand and Dust Storms. As part of this effort, UN Under-Secretary-General and UNESCAP Executive Secretary Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, who co-chairs the UN Coalition on Combating Sand and Dust Storms, is expected to formally launch the regional initiative during her visit to Mongolia for COP17.

During the meeting, Director of National Agency for Meteorology and Environmental Monitoring Battulga Erkhembayar briefed participants on ongoing efforts and exchanged views on future cooperation. The parties said cooperation is expected to strengthen in expanding monitoring stations, improving assessment and modeling, enhancing technical collaboration, and training professional personnel.

The UN Coalition on Combating Sand and Dust Storms brings together more than 20 UN agencies and specialized organizations to support countries most affected by sand and dust storms and to strengthen international cooperation on the issue.

By Unurzul.M

Mongolia to import 6,000 tons of AI-92 and AI-95 gasoline from China www.gogo.mn

Mongolia has reached an agreement to purchase 6,000 tons of AI-92, AI-95, and Euro 5 gasoline from China, with the first shipment of 1,000 tons scheduled to be loaded at Erenhot on July 31, according to B.Dashpurev, State Secretary of the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources.

B.Dashpurev said that fuel reserves and supplies have been affected in recent months by the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war and tensions in the Middle East. In response, the government has been working to increase the country's petroleum reserves and expand fuel storage capacity.

He noted that Mongolia's fuel consumption continues to grow rapidly and that the country currently has the capacity to maintain up to 42 days of fuel reserves, including fuel stored in transit tank cars.

Ahead of the Naadam Festival, the government built up fuel reserves to meet the expected surge in demand during the extended holiday period. Since the spring, Mongolia has been negotiating with Russia, China, and the Republic of Korea to secure additional fuel supplies.

As of today, the country has 31,000 tons of AI-92 gasoline, enough for 15 days of consumption, and 80,000 tons of diesel fuel, sufficient for 20 days.

To further strengthen short-term reserves, Mongolia has increased the volume of fuel imports from Russia for July. Dashpurev also said that Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources G.Damdinnyam is in the Republic of Korea holding talks on fuel imports, including the purchase of Jet A-1 aviation fuel.

The newly signed agreement with China will further expand Mongolia's fuel reserves, with the first shipment expected to arrive after loading begins on July 31 at Erenhot.

G.Dashpurev added that fuel inventories held by Petrovis, Sod Mongol, Shunkhlai, and Tes Petroleum LLC have declined in recent weeks, but expressed confidence that supply shortages will ease as new shipments begin arriving.

Mongolia, Japan expand energy education partnership www.myanmaritv.com

Mongolia and Japan have agreed to expand their bilateral cooperation through energy engineering education and technical training. The primary focus includes renewable energy infrastructure, power grid reliability, and practical skills development.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed an agreement to build Japanese-style practical training facilities and supply equipment in the Mongolian capital. The joint initiative trains local engineering students to support Mongolia's long-term energy transition.

Seoul’s interest in Mongolia’s rare earths www.asianews.it

A Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement signed in recent weeks removes tariffs. Meanwhile, since last December, a joint research centre has been studying mineral resources and developing export routes. However, the issue of dependence on Russia and China for rail networks and ports remains.

The MongolianNews website raises the question of whether Seoul’s interest in Mongolia’s mineral resources risks turning into a geopolitical game between China, Russia and the United States.

Experts argue that the rare-earths agreement between Mongolia and South Korea is in fact a covert deal between Ulaanbaatar and Washington. South Korea’s attempt to develop Mongolia’s vast reserves of critical raw materials aims to reduce its dependence on Beijing, but the logistics routes that pass exclusively through China and Russia make this strategy highly vulnerable to external pressure.

“As China tightens its grip on exports of critical minerals, South Korea is looking to Mongolia as an alternative supplier. However, its distribution networks are constrained by China and Russia, which poses long-term risks of political interference from these regional giants,” notes Sarah Cheah, business correspondent for the Korea JoongAng Daily.

Tensions could rise if South Korea were to start redirecting these minerals to the United States, as part of a growing bilateral alliance to ensure supply chain security. Seoul currently leads a coalition of 17 nations, spearheaded by Washington, to reduce global dependence on China for critical minerals.

On 11 July, the presidents of South Korea and Mongolia signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which removes tariffs (previously ranging from 2 per cent to 5 per cent) on imports of copper, molybdenum and rare-earth elements from Mongolia.

Furthermore, since December last year, a joint research centre has been operating in both countries, studying mineral resources and developing export routes. Rare-earth elements are often referred to as the ‘vitamins of the high-tech industry’; their name does not derive from their physical scarcity in the Earth’s crust, but rather from the extreme difficulty of extracting and separating them from minerals.

Microscopic amounts of rare-earth elements are crucial for the production of permanent magnets, which are essential for the manufacture of electric vehicles, microchips, defence products, robotics and drones.

As a landlocked country, Mongolia is forced to transport up to 90 per cent of its exports, including minerals, via Russian or Chinese rail networks and seaports. This total dependence on transit routes makes Mongolian supplies extremely vulnerable: “If China were to enter into direct conflict with the United States, it would simply need to drastically increase customs duties or slow down the clearance of goods at the border,” notes Chang Jae-hyuk, a professor in the Department of Mongolian Studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.

Alternatively, South Korea is considering the possibility of building processing plants directly in Mongolia, and then exporting the finished, high-value materials by air. Assessing the feasibility of this scenario is currently one of the main objectives of a joint research centre inaugurated at the end of last year.

“Critically important minerals such as tungsten, molybdenum and rare-earth elements can be processed directly on site to produce concentrates or intermediate products. Enriching and smelting raw materials within the country would drastically improve logistical efficiency,” says Son Byung-gu, president of the Korean Association of Mongolian Studies and a professor at Dankook University.

According to the US Geological Survey, Mongolia ranks among the top ten countries in the world for mineral resources, and its subsoil has been officially confirmed to contain over 80 types of minerals, including rare-earth elements, copper, gold and uranium.

By Vladimir Rozanskij

Runic Inscriptions 1300 Years Old Discovered in Mongolia www.open.kg

An archaeological expedition from China and Mongolia has made a significant discovery by uncovering an ancient Turkic runic inscription in the Mongolian province of Bayankhongor. The research was conducted during fieldwork, and the symbols, which date back to the 8th century, were recorded on a rock surface. This information was published by the Chinese tabloid Global Times.

The inscription consists of a series of well-preserved runic symbols and demonstrates excellent condition of the carving. High-resolution photographic documentation was prepared to document the find, a map was created, and detailed records were made in accordance with archaeological research standards. A thorough survey of the surrounding area was also conducted, adding value to the study.

Runic writing was used by various nomadic states on the Mongolian plateau, including the Turkic and Uyghur khanates, from the 7th to the 10th centuries. The most famous examples of such inscriptions are the monuments in the Orkhon Valley.

This find significantly enriches the existing limited collection of runic inscriptions, which are about 1300 years old. It is expected to influence the study of Turkic and Uyghur history, as well as research on the ancient Silk Road. Archaeologists, in collaboration with linguists and historians, will begin deciphering the text and conducting comprehensive studies. The results of their work will be presented to the scientific community.

S. Korea helps Mongolia build cultural heritage conservation program www.koreaherald.com

Education Minister Choi Kyo-jin visited the Mongolian University of Science and Technology on July 10 to review the progress of a higher education cooperation project aimed at training specialists in cultural heritage conservation.

According to the Education Ministry on Thursday, Choi inspected the facilities, established under Korea's Leading University Project for International Cooperation, together with his Mongolian counterpart.

The two ministers toured conservation treatment and analysis facilities, digital documentation laboratories and a cultural heritage conservation education center. They also discussed how the program could become self-sustaining after the Korean-backed project ends and ways to expand higher education cooperation between the two countries.

The initiative is part of South Korea’s official development assistance program for higher education, under which Korean universities support universities in developing countries with the creation or restructuring of academic departments, curriculum development and faculty training.

Kongju National University has worked with the Mongolian University of Science and Technology since 2020 to train professionals in cultural heritage conservation.

Under the project, Mongolia’s first Department of Tangible Cultural Heritage Conservation Technology was established at the university in December 2022.

Kongju National University helped develop the department’s curriculum based on its experience in Korea, produce Mongolian-language textbooks, improve laboratory facilities and administer field training programs.

A total of 51 undergraduate students have enrolled in the department so far, with the first class expected to graduate in May 2027. Graduates are expected to pursue careers at museums, cultural heritage centers and archaeological research institutions.

In 2023, the department was included among professional fields identified by Mongolia’s Education and Science Ministry as necessary for future education, according to the Korean ministry.

The project has also established a Cultural Heritage Conservation Education Center linking undergraduate education with professional training in the field.

The Korean government has also supported faculty development through the Global Korea Scholarship program.

A Mongolian faculty member earned a doctorate in digital cultural heritage at Kongju National University through the scholarship program and is expected to help lead the department and the conservation education center.

The ministry said the program is gradually shifting from a system led by Korean experts dispatched to Mongolia to one operated by locally trained faculty.

“The significance of the project lies in helping partner universities develop the capacity to conduct education and research independently,” Choi said.

There Are Some Reasons To Suggest That Mongolia Energy's (HKG:276) Earnings Are A Poor Reflection Of Profitability www.simplywall.st

Shareholders were pleased with the recent earnings report from Mongolia Energy Corporation Limited (HKG:276). Investors should be cautious however, as there some causes of concern deeper in the numbers.

Zooming In On Mongolia Energy's Earnings

Many investors haven't heard of the accrual ratio from cashflow, but it is actually a useful measure of how well a company's profit is backed up by free cash flow (FCF) during a given period. To get the accrual ratio we first subtract FCF from profit for a period, and then divide that number by the average operating assets for the period. You could think of the accrual ratio from cashflow as the 'non-FCF profit ratio'.

Therefore, it's actually considered a good thing when a company has a negative accrual ratio, but a bad thing if its accrual ratio is positive. While it's not a problem to have a positive accrual ratio, indicating a certain level of non-cash profits, a high accrual ratio is arguably a bad thing, because it indicates paper profits are not matched by cash flow. That's because some academic studies have suggested that high accruals ratios tend to lead to lower profit or less profit growth.

Over the twelve months to March 2026, Mongolia Energy recorded an accrual ratio of 0.35. Unfortunately, that means its free cash flow was a lot less than its statutory profit, which makes us doubt the utility of profit as a guide. Even though it reported a profit of HK$472.0m, a look at free cash flow indicates it actually burnt through HK$18m in the last year. We saw that FCF was HK$200m a year ago though, so Mongolia Energy has at least been able to generate positive FCF in the past. However, that's not all there is to consider. We can see that unusual items have impacted its statutory profit, and therefore the accrual ratio. The good news for shareholders is that Mongolia Energy's accrual ratio was much better last year, so this year's poor reading might simply be a case of a short term mismatch between profit and FCF. Shareholders should look for improved cashflow relative to profit in the current year, if that is indeed the case.

The Impact Of Unusual Items On Profit

Given the accrual ratio, it's not overly surprising that Mongolia Energy's profit was boosted by unusual items worth HK$262m in the last twelve months. While it's always nice to have higher profit, a large contribution from unusual items sometimes dampens our enthusiasm. When we crunched the numbers on thousands of publicly listed companies, we found that a boost from unusual items in a given year is often not repeated the next year. And that's as you'd expect, given these boosts are described as 'unusual'. We can see that Mongolia Energy's positive unusual items were quite significant relative to its profit in the year to March 2026. As a result, we can surmise that the unusual items are making its statutory profit significantly stronger than it would otherwise be.

Our Take On Mongolia Energy's Profit Performance

Mongolia Energy had a weak accrual ratio, but its profit did receive a boost from unusual items. For the reasons mentioned above, we think that a perfunctory glance at Mongolia Energy's statutory profits might make it look better than it really is on an underlying level. If you'd like to know more about Mongolia Energy as a business, it's important to be aware of any risks it's facing. Be aware that Mongolia Energy is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis and 3 of those are concerning...

Our examination of Mongolia Energy has focussed on certain factors that can make its earnings look better than they are. And, on that basis, we are somewhat skeptical. But there are plenty of other ways to inform your opinion of a company. Some people consider a high return on equity to be a good sign of a quality business. 

Protection Zones to Be Established for Cemetery Complexes of the Hunnu Nobility www.montsame.mn

Minister of Culture, Sports, Tourism, and Youth Aldarjavkhlan Jukov presented the outcomes of the 48th Session of the World Heritage Committee, held in Busan, Republic of Korea, during today's Cabinet meeting.

Mongolia participated in this session, held from July 20 to 29, 2026, for the first time as a member state of the Committee. The Mongolian delegation was led by Minister Aldarjavkhlan and included Ambassador of Mongolia to the French Republic, Munkh-Orgil Tsend, along with representatives from the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture, Sports, Tourism, and Youth, relevant government and non-governmental organizations, and national experts.

During the session, Mongolia successfully nominated and inscribed the cultural property "The Cemetery Complexes of the Hunnu Nobility" onto the UNESCO World Heritage List under the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. Mongolia previously had six properties inscribed on the World Cultural Heritage List.

Following the inscription, the Government of Mongolia decided to establish state protection zones encompassing the newly inscribed Cemetery Complexes of the Hunnu Nobility located in Mankhan soum of Khovd aimag, Undur-Ulaan soum of Arkhangai Aimag, Bornuur, Batsumber, and Bayantsagaan soums of Tuv aimag, and Bayan-Adarga soum of Khentii aimag. Beyond securing the core heritage sites, official boundary lines for surrounding buffer zones will be designated, strictly prohibiting any land allocation within these protected areas.

In compliance with UNESCO requirements, the Cabinet resolved to finalize and approve an "Integrated Management Plan" covering protection, restoration, and scientific research over the next 5 to 10 years. Furthermore, Minister Aldarjavkhlan was instructed to ensure the regular submission of progress reports, provide necessary funding and access for experts from UNESCO's advisory body, ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites), and raise awareness among local communities regarding the historical and cultural value of these heritage sites alongside conservation efforts.

Ministers Instructed to Advance Power Plant Projects Ahead of Winter www.montsame.mn

 During the regular session of the Cabinet today, Deputy Prime Minister Nomtoibayar Nyamtaishir briefed on winter preparations in Tuv, Arkhangai, Zavkhan, Bayankhongor, and Uvurkhangai aimags, as well as other parts of the country.

Following the briefing, Prime Minister Uchral Nyam-Osor instructed relevant ministers to address pressing issues in each aimag, with a focus on strengthening infrastructure and ensuring reliable public services before winter.

The directives include:

Upgrade power infrastructure in Arkhangai aimag, gradually replace wooden electricity transmission poles in Undur-Ulaan soum with reinforced concrete poles, and provide vehicles for several soum health centers and the aimag’s Veterinary Department.
Expand vegetable storage facilities in Tuv aimag, secure fuel supplies for the harvest season, and allocate a 30-hectare site in Hunnu City for the construction of a new combined heat and power (CHP) plant.
Ensure the uninterrupted implementation of the CHP plant project in Zavkhan aimag, allocate land for haymaking in eastern aimags, provide support for fodder supplies, and supply vehicles to several soum health centers.
Modernize the central wastewater treatment plant in Bayankhongor aimag, ensure the smooth implementation of the CHP plant project, and resolve permits for haymaking areas.
Continue construction of the CHP plant as planned in Uvurkhangai aimag, secure land in Dornod aimag for harvesting hay and fodder, and provide vehicles for several soum health centers.

Vehicle Traffic to be Regulated by Even, Odd License Plate Numbers from August 15 to September 12 www.montsame.mn

During its regular Cabinet session on July 29, 2026, a presentation was given on the capital city's winter preparations and the renovation of schools and kindergartens.

Governor of the Capital City and Mayor of Ulaanbaatar Purevdagva Byaruuzana briefed the press on the matter, highlighting the following updates:

• Winter Preparations: Winter preparation in the capital city is currently at 57 percent. Although efforts were made to avoid cutting off the hot water supply to residents this summer, maintenance and repairs were unavoidable, as 60 percent of Ulaanbaatar’s underground pipeline network has exceeded its operational lifespan.
• Road Construction: Road works are ongoing. Efforts are underway to complete 111 km of new roads and 31 km of road maintenance and repairs by August 15.
• Fuel and Food Reserves: For the upcoming winter, 280,000 tonnes of semi-coke and 120,000 tonnes of refined coal briquettes have been stockpiled. Overall, 573 projects and measures are being implemented to prepare for winter. The stockpiling of reserve meat has commenced, and requests for enterprise loans have been submitted to commercial banks for review.
• Energy Sector: The municipality is collaborating closely with the Ministry of Energy to prevent heat and electricity rationing. As part of expanding energy access, the construction of the 5th Power Plant has commenced. Additionally, the third phase of the Buuruljuut Power Plant will be commissioned next year.
• Traffic and Education: School and kindergarten renovations will be completed by August 15. Furthermore, in connection with the upcoming COP17 conference, a decision has been made to regulate vehicle traffic based on even and odd license plate numbers from August 15 through September 12.