Page 12 - AsiaElec Week 06 2022

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Mongolia gives nod to

Australian investors’

Gurvantes CBM project

MONGOLIA AUSTRALIA’S Talon Energy as well as Telmen major milestone in the potential establishment
Resource, Talon’s partner in the Gurvantes of a world-class gas project adjacent to one of the
XXXV coalbed methane (CBM) project in Mon- world’s most important gas markets, in China.”
golia, have received government approval for The project covers 8,400 km2. It is located
the project’s environmental impact assessment around 20 km from the Chinese-Mongolian
(EIA), Talon has announced. border, close to the northern China gas trans-
As a result of the EIA approval, Telmen will mission and distribution network.
mobilise to site within the coming weeks to com- The exploration programme is majori-
plete final site preparations, with the maiden ty-funded via a farmout agreement between Tel-
Gurvantes XXXV drilling programme expected men and Talon. The agreement requires Talon to
to start in late February to early March. spend $4.65mn to earn a 33% working interest
The drilling programme will include the in the production sharing contract. Telmen will
completion of four fully tested cored holes remain the operator under the farmout agree-
within the western portion of the Gurvantes ment terms.
XXXV project area. Sydney-listed Tamaska Oil and Gas signed an
“The drilling is the first step in the process agreement in December to acquire Telmen. ™
of upgrading the independently certified 5.96
trillion ft3 gross prospective resource to con-
tingent resources,” Talon said. “This will be a

Mongolia’s 2021 coal exports fall

46% but profit rises to $2.7bn

MONGOLIA MONGOLIA exported 16.1mn tonnes of coal in 4.1 trillion ($1.4bn) was recorded in 2021, the
2021, marking a 46.3% y/y decrease, but earn- ministry said, noting that the sum accounted for
ings were up, according to the country’s ministry 29.6% of last year’s total state budget revenue of
of mining and heavy industries. MNT 13.3 trillion.
Gross profit on exported coal increased to Mongolia’s mining sector accounts for 24% of
$2.7bn in 2021 from $2.1bn in 2020, a year in the country’s GDP, compared to the industrial
which shipments amounted to 28.6mn tonnes. sector’s 69%, foreign direct investment’s 77% and
“Although the volume of mineral exports has combined exports’ 93%.
declined, export earnings in 2021 are at the same Around 85% of the country’s coal exports
level as in previous years as a result of high com- transit through the Gashuunsukhait and
modity prices and measures taken during the Shiveekhuren land ports in Umnugobi province
pandemic,” the ministry said in a report, refer- in southern Mongolia. Most of the remainder
encing how coal prices rose as China struggled to leaves Mongolia through other southern ports,
source enough coal to serve consumer demand with China, to the south, by far the biggest buyer
and industry. China gave itself an added prob- of Mongolia coal. Sydney-listed Tamaska Oil
lem by banning imports of Australian coal amid and Gas signed an agreement in December to
a spat with Canberra. acquire Telmen. ™
From the Mongolian mining sector as a
whole, a net profit of Mongolia tughrik (MNT)

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 06 09•February•2022