At COP28, Mongolia says yes to nuclear power to develop its own uranium
Mongolia signed a declaration with other countries in favour of the development of nuclear power to reduce greenhouse gases. This is one of the country's latest initiatives to promote its domestic mining industry, which represents an important part of the country’s economy. This will require a reassessment of relations with Russia.
Ulaanbaatar (AsiaNews) – At COP28, more than 20 nations agreed to a declaration to triple nuclear energy capacity, stressing the key role nuclear power can play in achieving zero global greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Supporters include countries like the United States and France, which already have nuclear power plants, but also countries such as Mongolia.
The growing support for nuclear power is no surprise. Despite its risks, it is considered a non-negligible solution for the decarbonisation of those sectors defined as hard to abate, such as heavy industry, shipping, and aviation.
Mongolia's support for the declaration is just one of the latest actions it has taken in favour of nuclear power, which requires important uranium reserves, which it has.
Uranium mining would come on top of extracting other minerals that are essential for the energy transition (like copper) and an important base for the country's economy.
According to the World Bank, the mining sector made up a quarter of Mongolia's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2021 and 80 per cent of its exports.
Under Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene, the sector promises to become one of the pillars for Mongolia’s post-COVID-19 economic recovery.
So far, 10 uranium deposits have been discovered in the country with about 160,000 tonnes; this would place the country first in Asia and 12th in the world in terms of output.
Although mining has not yet started, such quantities could ensure not only the development of Mongolia’s own nuclear power industry (crucial for a country that still gets 80 per cent of its energy from coal burning), but could also place the Asian country in an internationally strategic position.
Partly because of the coup d'état in Niger that is forcing Europe to diversify its uranium supplies, other countries had already shown interest in Mongolia.
In October, France and Mongolia signed a US$ 1.7 billion deal that would see French state-owned Orano operate the Zuuvch-Ovoo mine in southwestern Mongolia. The project will begin next year with production expected by 2028.
However, by opening its resource sector to international players, Mongolia may find itself at odds with Russia, which begun the exploration of the first Mongolian deposits in the 1950s when the country was still within the Soviet sphere of influence.
Since then, Russian companies have played a leading role in Mongolia. Russian scientists have trained Mongolian scientists on nuclear development, while in the 1980s and 1990s the Soviet Union, then Russia was the main buyer of Mongolian uranium. Today, not even China has agreements with Mongolia to mine the metal.
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