Ulaanbaatar, /MONTSAME/ A ceremony ran October 6, 2009 to sign an investment agreement on exploiting the "Oyu tolgoi" deposit, in the Government House, Ulaanbaatar.
Present at the ceremony were Ts.Elbegdorj, the President of Mongolia; S.Bayar, the Prime Minister; D.Demberel, the Parliament Speaker; and other officials.
                The agreement was signed representing the Mongolia's government by D.Zorigt, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy; S.Bayartsogt, Minister of Finance; and L.Gansukh, Minister of Environment and Tourism; and representing the investors by P.Meredith, the Ivanhoe's Deputy Chairman; Bret Clayton, the Rio Tinto's CEO for the copper and diamonds group; K.Marshal, director-general of the "Ivanhoe Mines Mongolia Inc" LLC.
                The same day, a shareholders agreement was signed by B.Enebish, an executive director of the "Erdenes MGL" LLC and J.Foniani, a legal affairs manager of "Ivanhoe Mines Mongolia Inc" LLC. The Minister of Finance S.Bayartsogt signed a contract on prepayment.
                In accordance with the investment agreement, Mongolia's government will own 34 per cent of Ivanhoe Mines Mongolia, which is the license holder of the Oyu Tolgoi project. The deal is seen as a vital step for Mongolia to begin reaping the economic benefits of its vast mineral wealth.
                Australia's Rio Tinto and Canada's Ivanhoe, the development partners for the project, will now move forward with the development phase of the mine, which will produce 450 000 t/y of copper and 330 000 oz/y of gold over a 35 year life-of-mine. Rio Tinto said in a statement that production would start in 2013.
                The key terms of the agreement with Mongolia also included a stable operational and tax environment, provisions dealing with the government's equity participation and financing arrangements.
                Rio Tinto initially made a USD 303-million investment in a 9,95% shareholding in Ivanhoe Mines in October 2006, under the terms of a placement agreement, and had the obligation to invest USD 388-million for a further 9,95% holding at the conclusion of an unconditional investment agreement with the Mongolian government.
                According to a London-based Rio's statement, production will start in 2013. The project may last as long as 30 years and bring in USD 30 billion to USD 50 billion of revenue, President Ts.Elbegdorj said last month.
                The Oyu Tolgoi site contains about 78.9 billion pounds (36 million tons) of copper and 45.2 million ounces of gold, according to company estimates from March 2008.