Next shareholders meeting for Oyu Tolgoi scheduled
Shareholders sat behind the negotiation table on February 27th and 28th for the second time where the issue of project cost increase was raised. During the second meeting shareholders passed the budget for March for Oyu Tolgoi LLC.
Three board members representing the Mongolian Government demanded transparency on the cost increases of the project for this month.
Oyu Tolgoi, 34 percent owned by the Mongolian State and controlled by Rio Tinto, is the largest untapped copper deposit in Mongolia. The cost of the first-phase of the mine was 5.7 billion US dollars according to a feasibility study in 2010. But now the cost has increased by around $2 billion more than originally expected.
Rio Tinto is currently seeking loans from the World Bank and other financial institutes for the financing of the second phase of the project. This is eventually expected to produce 425,000 tons of copper and 460,000 ounces of gold a year once it goes into full operation.
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