Interview: M. Sonompil What steps are likely to be implemented to liberalise the electricity sector in 2013? M. SONOMPIL: Discussion about electricity sector liberalisation has been ongoing for 20 years and the topic has become even more important over the last decade. Today the Mongolian energy sector operates at a significant loss because the government is subsidising a large part of consumers’…
Interview: Willem van Twembeke What should be done to attract more investment in the energy sector and offset growing demand? WILLWM VAN TWEMBEKE: A successful first project will set the standard for future energy projects in Mongolia. The government has chosen a bidder, and negotiations are now under way, aiming at a commercial operations date in 2016. Completion of the project will send a positive…
Interview: A. Gansukh In your opinion, what are the top three policy priorities for the transport sector in 2013? A.GANSUKH: The top three priorities are the development of the road infrastructure, the railway and the civil aviation sector. In terms of roads, we are aiming to connect 12 provincial centres to Ulaanbaatar by building an additional 4917 km of roads by 2016. We also expect to expand…
Interview: Cameron McRae With Oyu Tolgoi’s production start date approaching, what have been the main challenges in terms of staying on schedule and on budget? CAMERON MC RAE: Oyu Tolgoi will have two different operations: open pit and underground. We anticipate our commercial production will start within the first half of 2013 and our first underground production will begin by 2016 – to be ramped…
Interview: J. Od What can be done to make affordable housing projects viable for the government and developers? J. OD: There is definitely a market for affordable housing in Mongolia. At the same time, construction projects have various fixed costs, all of which are going up, including wages. In terms of housing programmes, it is important for the government to be consistent on the infrastructure…
Interview: U. Jalsa What do you believe still needs to be done to promote Mongolia more effectively? U. JALSA: There are agencies like the National Tourism Organisation and the Mongolian Tourism Association, as well as the newly appointed minister of tourism. It will be important to increase communication between the different entities in order to benefit from each other’s learning curves and come…
Interview: B. Chuluunbatar Which ongoing specific legislative reforms will help improve the investment climate in Mongolia for both the domestic and foreign private sectors? B. CHULUUNBATAR: Because of increasing foreign investment, there has been a growing demand for an updated legal framework that better reflects the current economic situation. For example, the corporate tax law, which was drafted…
Interview: B. Byambasaikhan,D. Bolor,R. Ganbold With mobile penetration increasing, what are the prospects for new revenue streams in value-added services (VAS) such as mobile data? B. BYAMBASAIKHAN: We are expecting the mobile phone market to be saturated in Mongolia in the future, but that doesn’t mean the industry will not grow. It will expand by diversifying into VAS. Mobicom has…
Interview: Ts. Oyungerel In what way is the government promoting development of the tourism sector? TS. OYUNGEREL: Generally speaking, the government is aiming to encourage a combination of private and community investment. The action plan of the current administration specifies that Mongolia will aim to develop “special-interest tourism” over the next four years, specifically tours related to…
Interview: D. Battur How can the urban planning process be improved? D. BATTUR: The public institutions working in relation to the urban development sector should be made more stable. Due to the current election system, the personnel in these institutions are constantly changing and there is a lack of continuity in policymaking. If you change the staff, the objectives change and the policies change.…
