Ulaanbaatar
Government of Mongolia Starts Negotiations with Rio Tinto over Oyu Tolgoi Interest Rate
Politics
Ulaanbaatar, October 30, 2025 /MONTSAME/. The Government of Mongolia has begun negotiations today to reduce the interest rate on the Oyu Tolgoi project loan.
Representing
the Government of Mongolia in the talks are Minister of Finance Javkhlan Bold and Minister
of Industry and Mineral Resources Damdinnyam Gankhuyag, joined by executives
from Erdenes Mongol LLC and Erdenes Oyu Tolgoi LLC. They are holding
discussions with representatives of the Rio Tinto Group.
During the negotiations, the government is pushing to increase Mongolia’s share of benefits from Oyu Tolgoi to more than 50 percent, reduce the shareholder loan interest rate, revise the current practice of reviewing that rate only once every seven years, and reconsider the use of compound interest.
Minister Damdinnyam highlighted the significance of the talks, saying, “Reducing the interest rate on the Oyu Tolgoi loan will increase Mongolia’s returns. In other words, it will enable us to receive dividends earlier. This means that funds will flow into the National Wealth Fund sooner and directly benefit the people. Our team is working to ensure a decision that is favorable to the Mongolian people.”
