President of Mongolia Khurelsukh Ukhnaa, accompanied by government officials and members of Parliament were welcomed by Rio Tinto Group’s Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm and Oyu Tolgoi senior leaders to the Oyu Tolgoi underground mine.
As Oyu Tolgoi advances on its unwavering path to becoming a global leader in the copper industry, the visit of Mongolia’s President, Khurelsukh Ukhnaa, to the mine stands as a milestone of great importance. With production increase by 50% compared to 2024, the ramp-up will continue over the next four years to produce 500,000 tonnes of copper (100% pure metal) per year, on average, from both the open-pit and underground mines, positioning Oyu Tolgoi as it as the world’s fourth-largest copper mine by the end of this decade.
During his visit, President U.Khurelsukh emphasized, “I take great pride in the 20,000 Mongolian people who are tirelessly working to transform the natural resources of Oyu Tolgoi into national wealth and prosperity. I also want to express my heartfelt gratitude to the foreign specialists who are sharing their expertise and working shoulder to shoulder with Mongolians.”
Rio Tinto Group CEO Jakob Stausholm highlighted that, “It is Mongolia’s valuable contribution to the global green transition, and the green projects we implement here are tangible examples of support for many environmental initiatives launched under your leadership, Mr. President.”
Oyu Tolgoi supports national movements and programmes initiated by President U.Khurelsukh through its “100 million trees for the Future”, “Care Deeply” water awareness campaign, and “Made in Mongolia” programme.
For instance, in alignment with the goals of the “Blue Gold” water sector national forum, Oyu Tolgoi has been collaborating with the Government’s Implementing Agency, the Water Authoruty of Mongolia and other sectoral organizations on its “Care Deeply” water awareness campaign, promoting responsible water consumption, reuse, and the importance of groundwater conservation to safeguard water resources.
Furthermore, Oyu Tolgoi’s “Made in Mongolia” programme aimed at replacing imported goods with locally produced alternatives along with our commitment to supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, aligns with the President’s “White Gold” national programme. These initiatives focus on improving the safety, quality, and environmental standards of national suppliers while playing a major role in job creation, fostering value-added production, and introducing new technologies to Mongolia.
As part of the “One Billion Trees” national movement, Oyu Tolgoi launched the “100 million trees for the Future” program in 2022. This initiative goes beyond tree planting—it builds a foundation for long-term reforestation through workforce training, tree nursery development, and infrastructure enhancement.
Under its “Creating Prosperity. Together” strategy aligned with global megatrends, the changing world order, climate change and economic uncertainty, Oyu Tolgoi is building a world-class, safe, and sustainable copper business, generating value for its shareholders and stakeholders while making a long-term contribution to the social and economic development of our nation.
Notes for editors:
Production and Future Prospect:
- With ongoing investment in essential infrastructure and mining development, production continues to accelerate: in 2024 our underground mine achieved all ramp-up milestones with construction of Panel 0 completed, including Shaft 3 and 4 ventilation, 124 drawbells blasted ahead of schedule, and first test ore on the new Conveyor to Surface achieved in October.
- As the world transitions to green energy, Mongolia plays a vital role in supplying copper—an essential raw material for electric vehicles and renewable energy—supporting the global fight against climate change. At peak production, Oyu Tolgoi will produce enough copper each day to manufacture approximately 17,000 electric vehicles.
Oyu Tolgoi’s Environmental Programmes and Initiatives:
- Oyu Tolgoi impacts beyond the mine, creating positive benefits across Mongolia.
- To date, Oyu Tolgoi’s “100 Billion Trees for the Future” programme has already achieved over 20% of its target. Since 2022, Oyu Tolgoi has successfully planted and nurtured over 20.5 million trees or their equivalent. This includes 1.3 million trees planted for reforestation and investments equivalent to 19 million trees dedicated to developing forestry infrastructure.
- Oyu Tolgoi is now in its fourth year of implementing the “Care Deeply” campaign in collaboration with The Water Authority, a government implementing agency of Mongolia, the Mongolian Hydrogeology and Geoecology Association, the Galba-Uush-Dolood Gobi River Basin Administration, and the School of Geology and Mining at the Mongolian University of Science and Technology. This initiative promotes responsible water consumption, recycling, and groundwater conservation while also raising awareness of hydrogeology as a profession and supporting the training of skilled professionals in this field.
- At the “Blue Gold” 2025 National Forum, scheduled for March 21, the “Care Deeply 2025” Water Excellence Award will recognize the most impactful solutions for water conservation, sustainable use, and pollution prevention.
- Oyu Tolgoi recycles an average of 87% of its industrial water usage and reuses 97% of domestic water for dust suppression and equipment washing at the mine site.
- Oyu Tolgoi uses approximately three times less water per tonne of processed ore than the global average. In Q4 2024, the company used an average of 0.34 cubic meters of water per tonne of ore processed.
- Since 2013, Oyu Tolgoi has paid a total of MNT193 billion in water usage fees as of the fourth quarter of 2024.
- The groundwater used in the Oyu Tolgoi concentrator does not meet drinking water standards and has no negative impact on the local community’s drinking water sources.
- Oyu Tolgoi remains committed to protecting and enhancing biodiversity.
- As of 2024, 63% of total waste generated was recyclable or re-usable, and Oyu Tolgoi is collaborating with 17 national companies in this effort. A prime example of waste reuse is the compost production from food waste, which is used for land rehabilitation, landscaping, and tree planting at the mine site.
- In line with global efforts to combat climate change, Oyu Tolgoi is actively reducing greenhouse gas emissions, aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050.
- Oyu Tolgoi and Rio Tinto are developing a 180 MW renewable energy project, which will meet 30% of Oyu Tolgoi’s long-term energy demand (600,000 MWh). In the long run, the goal is to source 70% of the mine’s energy from renewable sources.
Economic and Social Impact (As of the End of 2024)
- As of 2023, Rio Tinto has invested a total of USD16.8 billion in Oyu Tolgoi.
- Since 2010, Oyu Tolgoi has contributed USD4.8 billion in taxes, fees and other payments to the state budget.
- Since 2010, Oyu Tolgoi has spent US$18.9 billion in-country in the form of salaries, payments to Mongolian suppliers, taxes and other payments to the Government of Mongolia. In Q4 2024, over 1,044 suppliers provided products and services to Oyu Tolgoi.
- 30 of Mongolia’s Top 100 companies are Oyu Tolgoi’s suppliers, and the company has consistently ranked among the leading enterprises contributing to the country’s development.
- Every USD1 invested in Oyu Tolgoi generate USD1.43 in Mongolia’s economy. (The National University of Mongolia, 2018)
- One-third of Mongolia’s GDP growth driven by investment is attributed to Oyu Tolgoi. (The University of Finance and Economics, 2024)
- Through Oyu Tolgoi, Rio Tinto’s block-caving technology and 150 years of management expertise have been introduced to Mongolia. This has not only advanced the mining sector but also enhanced the planning and management capabilities of many partnering companies.
- 97.5% of Oyu Tolgoi’s workforce consists of Mongolian nationals, with over 20,000 employees currently working at the company. Oyu Tolgoi is playing a key role in developing world-class professionals for Mongolia’s mining sector.