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[Honghu News] Experts said that Mongolia has launched a 233 km cross-border railway line between the Tawantolgai coalfield and the Kashuensuhait on the Chinese border, which is expected to promote the coal trade between China and Mongolia.
According to Agence France Presse, Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh was one of the distinguished guests attending the launch ceremony on September 9, ending a decade long transit waiting.
Agence France Presse said that Tavan Tolgoi Railway exports 30 million to 50 million tons of coal to China every year, and quoted Tavan tolgoi Railway Co., Ltd., the state-owned entity that built the line, as saying.
Tavan Tolgoi is rich in coking coal, which is an important component of steelmaking.
According to the railway authority, it is expected that the railway will also reduce the cost of transporting coal to $8 per ton, while when coal is transported by truck, the cost is $32 per ton.
"The launch of railway services will undoubtedly greatly promote bilateral coal trade and reduce costs," Lin Boqiang, director of the China Energy Economy Research Center at Xiamen University, told the Global Times on Monday.
According to Lin, the coal from Mongolia mainly serves the needs of Northeast China. It is expected that with the opening of train services, the local coal price will drop significantly.
The railway will also further boost the country's coal exports to China, as coal has been trucked from Mongolia to China for many years.
According to the industry newspaper China Metallurgy Daily, Mongolia's coal export volume soared by 225.8% every year, reaching 2.36 million tons in June, the highest level since the beginning of 2021. The country's coal exports to China increased 224.2% year-on-year this month to 2.1 million tons.
At the beginning of August, during the visit of State Councilor Wang Yi and Foreign Minister to Mongolia, China and Mongolia reached broad consensus, including strengthening border cooperation, maximizing port opening and railway and road connectivity, and maintaining a stable and smooth industrial chain and supply chain.
The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on the cross-border railway connection plan of Ganzmod Port, which is of great significance to help Mongolia expand opening up and achieve strong growth.
China and Mongolia have complementary economies and huge cooperation potential. China has a broad market, advanced technology and sufficient capital, while Mongolia has rich mineral resources.
China has become Mongolia's largest trading partner and largest source of foreign investment for 18 consecutive years. According to the data of the Ministry of Commerce of China, the bilateral trade volume will reach 9.12 billion US dollars in 2021, with a year-on-year growth of 35.3%.
Reprinted from Netease
