Hogan Lovells has been formally appointed as legal adviser to state-owned mining company, Erdenes, the sole owner of the mining operations for the Tavan Tolgoi project in Mongolia. Often called the world’s biggest untapped coking coal deposit, Tavan Tolgoi holds a coal reserve of 6,500 Mt.

The successful implementation of the Tavan Tolgoi project will be pivotal to a number of other projects in Mongolia, particularly in the rail and power sectors, and the proposed development of a major industrial park. It is also a cornerstone in the Government’s ambitious plans to develop the country’s economy and achieve per capita GDP that will be among the highest in Asia.

As part of the appointment Hogan Lovells will assist Erdenes to establish draft Mining Agreements which can be used for the development of the Tavan Tolgoi deposit area and other future coal mine developments in Mongolia.

The Mining Agreements together with the leasing and bidding regime shall regulate issues such as: fiscal obligations of the lessee or contractor; the allocation of risks including operating and price risks between the parties; integration of the agreement with existing tax and mining law; stabilisation of fiscal provisions; environmental protection; rural development; infrastructure development; regional planning; water rights; land utilisation; and coal transit and marketing.

It is expected that Hogan Lovells will also assist in the negotiation and finalisation of the Mining Agreements as between Erdenes and the international private sector participants to the project. The Hogan Lovells team will be led by Ulaanbaatar based partner Michael Aldrich with an international partner team comprising of John Copper in London, Joseph Bell in Washington D.C., James Harris in Singapore and Jamie Barr in Hong Kong.