Baganuur JSC E. Nominchuluun, CEO, writes: 

Baganuur JSC has been operating for 41 years, since 1978. Its corporate culture as a state-owned company was formed in what now seems different times, but in 2014, in cooperation with GIZ, we prepared the Strategic Paper on Social Responsibility, which introduced fresh concepts. It is this document that provides the guidelines for the corporate social responsibility activities that we now follow. 

When in 2018 Erdenes Mongol evaluated the progress and performance of the responsible mining system towards reaching five key goals, Baganuur’s rating was 39 percent. Considering that we had started on this only recently this was quite creditable, and since then we have improved our compliance with international standards and requirements.  

In June this year we and seven other companies agreed to join the MNMA initiative of the Voluntary Code of Responsible Mining. It was only natural that we should do so, for our company has been a reliable supplier of energy coal for the benefit of Ulaanbaatar residents for 41 years, an act of social responsibility by a state-owned company. We take our new obligation seriously, and a recent seminar has helped familiarize 80 percent of our total employees with the concepts of responsible mining, divided into 50 sections, 34 sub-sections and 290 clauses. With more and more employees realizing what they should do for responsible mining, no wonder that some time ago, our success rate was found to have gone up from the earlier 39 percent to 55 percent.  

One reason for the rise in our score is that we reported on our activities last year in accordance with the requirements set out for the extractive industry. An assessment by the NRGI of the performance of Erdenes Mongol, its daughter companies and other state-owned companies found operations at Baganuur to be most transparent.  We shall have to do even better, as responsible mining demands that we achieve OHSAS 18001 standards pertaining to OHS officers, and we are confident that everything will be done at our administrative and management level to help us reach the goal. 

As required in the sub-sections on good governance and transparency, Baganuur last year submitted its first Governance Assessment Report, providing details of the professional qualifications of the members of its management team.  The recently adopted gender policy has not called for changes in the present gender ratio at the management level. We are holding internal seminars to make our employees aware of human rights. An Ethics Committee has been established and it has organized seminars for employees. 

Baganuur has a tradition of doing better than other companies in generating a sustainable employment level and also in providing local citizens with jobs. As for environment protection, we have been conducting successful reclamation for 20 years. Since 1999, reclamation has been done over a total area of 102.5 hectares, and 31,000 trees and shrubs have been planted since 2005. 

We give below some highlights of our progress in different spheres in relation to the responsible mining initiative. 

Good Corporate governance and transparency:

l     Submitted our 2018 report in accordance with international standards 
l     Held training seminars for all employees to spread awareness of ethical conduct and set up an ethics committee

Labour relations and workers’ rights: 

l     99.9 percent of the company’s employees are citizens of Baganuur district 
l     Good cooperation with the Confederation of Trade Unions

Environmental protection:

l    Since 1999, reclamation has been carried out in an area of 102.5 hectares.
l    Since 2005, 31,000 trees and shrubs have been planted.

Occupational health and safety:

l    A self-assessment to find out how well the requirements of ОНSAS18001:2012 standards had been met put the success rate at 85 percent.

Local cooperation:

l    Close cooperation is maintained with the Governor of Baganuur district, as called for in the MoU signed with him 
l    It is too early to talk of closure of the mine, but the company has been regularly allocating money into the closure fund 
l    In compliance with the terms of the MoU, the company has taken up projects for the children and youth of the district 
l    An agreement on cooperation with the local community was signed based on the interests and demands of the latter
l    The company is the largest economic entity and job provider in the district, and so it plays a major role in the social and economic life of the district.