At last Friday’s session of Parliament, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister D.Zorigt replied to a query from MPs Ts.Sedvanchig and D.Enkhbat to Prime Minister S.Batbold concerning gold mining.

According to the minister’s report, 1,200 gold mining licenses have been issued, 466 of which are currently in use. But the sale of gold to Mongol Bank is rapidly declining. For example, 15 tons of gold were sold to the bank in 2005 but just 2.3 tons were sold to the bank in 2010.

The deputy head of the Central Intelligence Service (CIS) said many issues need to be addressed with legislation. The CIS reported that 309 kg (about 680 ponds) of gold was illegally smuggled out of the country between 2006 and 2010, and CIS officials reported that the problem is growing.

Some MPs also raised concerns about the environmental impact of gold mining, saying small mining operations are causing great ecological damage.