TORONTO, March 5 (Reuters) – A moratorium on new mining
exploration licenses in Mongolia could be lifted during the
spring session of parliament, Mongolia’s mines minister said, as
the Asian country works to lure back foreign investment after a
slump last year.
A ban on the issuing and processing of licenses has been in
place since June 2010, leaving in limbo many projects in the
mineral-rich country wedged between China and Russia.
But that could change for some if parliament addresses “many
discrepancies” in previous mining laws next month, Mines
Minister Gankhuyag Davaajav said late on Tuesday.
“I do believe that … in the spring session we should be
able to have this resolved,” Davaajav told Reuters following a
Mongolia business conference in Toronto.
Foreign direct investment in Mongolia has dropped for the
past two years, coinciding with a string of moves by the
government that discouraged stakes in copper and coal.
In an about-turn, the parliament last November passed an
investment law that gives equal treatment to foreign and local
investors to try to tempt back investors.
Davaajav said Mongolia had made mistakes in the past but
that it would “never repeat” them. His speech at the seminar was
entitled “Mongolia is open for business”.
He did not, however, directly address the issue of 106
exploration licenses that were annulled last year as part of an
investigation into mining sector corruption.
Canadian mining company Centerra Gold Inc. said in
January that it was “quite optimistic” it would be able to get
back to work soon on its Gatsuurt exploration project in
Mongolia, which has been suspended since 2010.
Gatsuurt has been included on a list of mineral deposits of
“strategic importance” for the Mongolian government to consider.
Centerra is hopeful that parliament will approve the list this
year, opening the door for it to resume exploration on the
property.
