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Mining boom in Mongolia


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With huge amounts of unexploited natural resources (gold, copper, coal and more) the Mongolian economy is estimated to grow massively in the years to come. But will it also benefit the people in Mongolia? Our work shows how mining operations lead to pollution and displacement for local herders and exacerbate water scarcity issues.

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dust & displacement | water scarcity | European financing | latest updates | publications

Dust, displacement and intimidation in the Gobi Altai mountains

Nomadic herders in the Gobi Altai mountains are facing pollution and displacement by the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine that receives financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. While the mining company Altain Khuder responds to criticism with intimidation, the EBRD is not doing enough to protect herders’ rights.

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A multimedia story about herders impacted by the Tayan Nuur mine

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Also available in Polish >>

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Dust, displacement, intimidation - Mongolian herders are under pressure by iron ore mine
Blog post | December 9, 2014

Report: Impacts of the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine on nomadic herders' lives in Mongolia
Study | December 9, 2014

Case study on the impacts of the global iron ore sector: Altain Khuder in Mongolia
SOMO case study | December 17, 2014

 

Water scarcity in the South Gobi desert

In the South Gobi desert, the highly intensive mining industry with its immense need for water can pose precarious risks to the livelihoods of herders.

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Spirited away - Mongolia's mining boom and the people that development left behind (pdf)
Study | January 30, 2012

 

EBRD financing for mining in Mongolia

Online debate

Following a discussion in the European Parliament on the EBRD's mining operations, Bankwatch organised a live-streamed google hangout with Mongolian campaigner Sukhgerel Dugersuren.

Watch the recording here >>

By financing several mining projects over the last few years, the EBRD followed other investors' bias towards the natural resources sector in Mongolia. Instead, it should diversify its portfolio in the country to help Mongolia reduce its dependency on commodity exports.

Read more:
The EBRD in Mongolia: Economic diversity is something else >>
Blog post | September 18, 2012

 

Institution: EBRD

Theme: Energy & climate, Social & economic impacts, Other harmful projects

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Latest developments

 

New report shows World Bank tough talk on climate is just a mirage in Mongolia's Gobi desert
Press release | December 14, 2012

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia - Just one week after its grim warning during the UN climate talks in Doha that the world is on a path towards a four degree-rise in global temperatures, the World Bank is set to approve financing for yet another coal plant. The plant will power a giant mining complex in Mongolia’s South Gobi desert, fuelling climate change and violating the Bank’s own policies, argues a new analysis from advocacy groups.

Central Asia, mining
'Comments noted', business as usual continues. The marginal public influence on the EBRD's new mining policy
Blog entry | November 2, 2012

After long delays and more than 3 years of preparation the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has finally completed and published a policy for its operations in the mining sector. Both the consultation process and the final outcome must leave “the consulted stakeholders” disappointed.

Balkans, Caucasus, Central Asia, coal, EU neighbourhood, minerals, mining, policy, resource curse, transparency
World Bank and Others Poised to Invest in Rio Tinto’s Flawed Mongolian Mining Project
Press release | September 24, 2012

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia -- The World Bank Board of Directors has announced plans to consider a copper and gold mining project in the Mongolian South Gobi desert even though the Bank itself acknowledges that there is not enough water in the region to support the life of the Project. Despite ongoing community opposition to Rio Tinto’s Oyu Tolgoi mine and its associated facilities (“OT Project”), the World Bank is considering a financing package of US$900 million in loans and up to US$1 billion in political risk insurance for the OT Project in early November.

Central Asia, mining
The EBRD in Mongolia: Economic diversity is something else
Blog entry | September 18, 2012

Investment data for Mongolia illustrates that without improving the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s plans for the mining sector, the bank may add to the dependence on raw materials exports in resource rich countries.

Central Asia, coal, gold, local impacts, minerals, mining, water
MEPs call for responsible new EBRD mining strategy
Press release | July 12, 2012

Brussels – The new mining strategy of the EBRD risks contradicting the EU Resource Efficiency Roadmap and responsible mining principles, argue 22 MEPs in an open letter to European Commissioners which asks the EC to take a more active role in improving the EBRD mining strategy currently under review. (1)

EU, EU neighbourhood

Publications

The climate crisis and the role of Europe's public banks
Briefing | April 22, 2013

With each passing day, there is less chance that we will manage to keep the planet within the "safe" limit of two degrees Celsius global warming that would avoid disastrous climate change. The European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development can play a pivotal role in leveraging more private investment for sustainable energy. Both institutions are now reviewing their energy lending policies.

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Comments on draft EBRD country strategy for Mongolia (2013)
Policy comments | March 29, 2013

Bankwatch's comments focus on the aspects of mining and economic diversification; modernising infrastructure; energy efficiency, renewables and climate change; environmental, social and gender implications of the bank’s
activities.

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NGOs suggest key recommendations for Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine project in Mongolia
Advocacy letter | February 15, 2013

The letter, signed by 39 organisations, outlines ongoing concerns about the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine in Mongolia, which is currently under consideration for financing by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The project, one of the largest and most complex infrastructure investments proposed by the EBRD, poses a significant environmental and social risk to the local communities, as well as to the country at large.

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More questions than answers as new EBRD mining policy is chiseled out
Bankwatch Mail | December 14, 2012

After long delays and more than three years in the making, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) finally in early November published its new mining sector policy. Yet both the consultation process and the final outcome have left “consulted stakeholders” disappointed.

A useless sham - Review of the Oyu Tolgoi Copper and Gold Mine Environmental and Social Impact Assessment
Study | December 14, 2012

The potentially EBRD supported Oyu Tolgoi copper/gold mine in southern Mongolia project poses significant adverse social and environmental impacts. This in-dept review - based on our own research as well as that of expert reviewers - shows that the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) is a non-starter and deeply flawed. The study is complemented by detailed expert analyses in five annexes.

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Reports

Fact-finding mission report from the Tayan Nuur iron ore mine in the Gobi Altai mountains, December 2014

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Spirited away – Mongolia's mining boom and the people that development left behind

Report from a fact-finding mission to the Oyu Tolgoi gold and copper mine and the Tavan Tolgoi coal mine, January 2012

Download as pdf

Impacts of the global iron ore sector. Case study: Altain Khuder in Mongolia

How do business factors such as the need for infrastructure, mine lifespan and production targets interfere with a meaningful engagement of local communities? A case study by the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations, SOMO.

Download as pdf

 

Images from Mongolia

Tayan Nuur iron ore mine in the Gobi Altai mountains
See it on flickr >>

Tavan Tolgoi (coal) and Oyu Tolgoi (gold, copper) mines in the South Gobi desert
See it on flickr >>