Mongolia: Open for International Business

Join us for a business and investment conference to explore new and growing opportunities in Mongolia. HE Saikhanbileg Chimed, Prime Minister of Mongolia, will provide keynote remarks alongside the Rt Hon Hugo Swire MP, Minister of State at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and Jean-Sébastien Jacques, Chief Executive, Copper & Coal for Rio Tinto.  Conference delegates will also have an opportunity to hear insights from business leaders and experts.

The announcement in May 2015 that the Mongolian Government signed an agreement with Rio Tinto and Turquoise Hill Resources on the pathway for the development of the underground mine at Oyu Tolgoi signals that a new round of foreign investment could flow into the country. Whilst Mongolia hosts 10 per cent of the world’s known coal reserves and has significant copper deposits, FDI plunged from $US4.45bn in 2012 to $US507.6m in 2014.

HE Saikhanbileg Chimed, who was appointed Prime Minister of Mongolia in November 2014, is visiting the UK to re-engage with existing and potential foreign investment partners.

The Mongolian Government recognises the importance of welcoming FDI not only in the natural resources sector, but also across the increasingly sophisticated energy, construction and infrastructure industries, to deliver the growth and diversification needed for a resilient and stable domestic economy.

Keynote remarks from:

His Excellency Mr Saikhanbileg Chimed, Prime Minister of Mongolia

HE Saikhanbileg Chimed was appointed Prime Minister in 2014. Prior to this he was a Member of the State Great Hural (Parliament) and Leader of the Democratic Party caucus in 2012. He has held various government posts including Minister of Education and from 2012 to 2014 he served as Chief Secretariat to the Cabinet. Before entering politics he was a Director of private law firm E&T.

The Rt Hon Hugo Swire MP, Minister of State at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office

The Rt Hon Hugo Swire MP was appointed Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 4 September 2012. Mr Swire was elected as the Conservative Member of Parliament for East Devon in June 2001. He served in David Cameron’s first Shadow Cabinet as the Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport between 2005 and 2007. He was appointed Minister of State for Northern Ireland in the coalition Government in May 2010.

Jean-Sébastien Jacques, Chief Executive, Copper & Coal at Rio Tinto

Jean-Sébastien Jacques is the chief executive officer of Rio Tinto’s Copper & Coal group. In this role, he oversees all operations and projects globally. He is also a member of the Rio Tinto Executive Committee. Jean-Sébastien joined Rio Tinto in October 2011 as the president, International Operations Copper group, where he led a senior team and effectively managed interests in the Palabora Mining Company in South Africa, Northparkes Mines in Australia, Kennecott Eagle Minerals in Michigan, Pebble Mine in Alaska and Sulawesi in Indonesia.

Speakers include:

Gankhuyag Chuluun, General Director, Ard Holdings Group

Gankhuyag Chuluun joined the Central Bank’s Supervision Division after graduating from the Budapest University of Economic Sciences in 1997. He worked for UNDP’s MicroStart Project in 1998, before becoming Executive Director of Mongolia’s first non-bank microfinance company, XAC (Golden Fund for Development) in 1999. He has held the position of CEO of XacBank since its founding in 2009. Gankhuyag also now leads the holding company of XacBank TenGer FG. He is a Member of the Board of the Microfinance Centre for CEE and NIS, and is currently General Director of Ard Holdings Group and Director of Board of Ard Daatgal.

Masaru Honma, Director for Central Asia and Mongolia, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)

Masaru Honma joined the EBRD in August 2002 as Director for Central Asia, based in London. After his graduation from Kyoto University, Mr Honma joined the Ministry of Finance of Japan where he dealt with economic policy, banking supervision, taxation and state property management. Later, he held various positions relating to transition economies, including that of Head of Outreach Unit for Financial Sector Reforms in the OECD. From 1998 to 2002, Honma was engaged in financial supervision including as Director for Inspection Division and Chief Public Relations Officer of the Financial Supervisory Agency and Director General in charge of strategic planning, budget and human resources of the Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Gordon Turley, Development Director – Major Projects, Mott MacDonald

Gordon Turley is Major Projects Director for the Mott MacDonald Group with over 30 years’ experience of managing large infrastructure, transport and development projects worldwide.  Prior to taking up his present position in Group Head Office, Gordon was Regional Director of Mott MacDonald for the Middle East. Mott MacDonald have been working in Mongolia since 1992 on projects within the transport, infrastructure, power, environmental and educational sectors for a variety of clients including government agencies, multi-national companies and international financial institutions.

 Byambasaikhan Bayanjargal, CEO, Erdenes Mongol

Byambasaikhan Bayanjargal was appointed CEO of Erdenes Mongol in February 2015. He currently serves as Adviser to the President of Mongolia and Chairman of the Mongolian Economy magazine advisory board. Byambasaikhan has a background in infrastructure project financing and business managing investments for public and private sector clients.

We look forward to welcoming you to Asia House for an insightful discussion. For more details and to register an interest in attending please contact the Business & Policy Team via business.policy@asiahouse.co.uk or +44 (0) 207 307 5454

To read the media release on this conference, click here.