Heated exchanges at DP meeting over Oyutolgoi shareholding

Heated exchanges among leaders and allegations and counter allegations over issues related to Oyutolgoi marked the DP National Consultative Committee meeting last week. N.Batbayar claimed that Finance Minister S.Bayartsogt had misled the country by saying Mongolia had 34% share in Oyutolgoi LLC, when the actual figure was 6.8%. Bayartsogt denied this and said he had learnt from Minister Kh.Battulga and former PM S.Bayar that Batbayar had also alleged “that I would entirely give Oyutolgoi to China”. He added that when he had asked Batbayar for an explanation, “he said he wanted to make me famous. Thank you, I do not need such popularity.”

Minister Kh.Battulga was angry that his name was being dragged in and left the meeting in a huff.

Bayartsogt then read out a letter to Prime Minister S.Batbold from Ivanhoe Mines CEO Robert Friedland, and Rio Tinto CEO Tom Albanese. It referred to “the distortion of facts by some MPs” regarding the shareholding in Oyutolgoi, and says it is “patently false to suggest that the Government owns anything less than 34%”. Indeed, the two CEOS says the Government will have a right to own 34% of common shares in Oyutolgoi LLC for the life of the project and can even increase its holding.

Batbayar, however, continued to claim he was right in his facts and doubted if the translation of the text of the letter was accurate.