Mongolia apologises after China raises security concerns about protesters at oil camp

Beijing’s embassy demands stronger protections for personnel following camp raid at Kherlen Tohoi oil block

A senior Mongolian official has apologised after the Chinese embassy raised concern that Mongolians “harassed the camp” of a Chinese-invested oil exploration company.

According to Mongolian media reports, protesters went to the Kherlen Tohoi XXVIII oil exploration area and tried to stop exploration work by Mongolia Foison Energy last Friday.

They live-streamed the event, with social media footage showing two women dumping items belonging to Chinese workers onto the ground.

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Two Mongolian citizens involved in the incident have been detained, according to local authorities.

Chinese chargé d’affaires Cao Li raised “serious concern” over the incident with Buriad Dashpurev, state secretary of Mongolia’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, during a meeting on Tuesday, according to the embassy.

“We urge the Mongolian side to continue taking concrete measures to protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese enterprises and the personal and property safety of Chinese employees, and prevent similar incidents from happening again,” the embassy said.

According to the embassy, Dashpurev apologised over the incident and said Mongolia would not tolerate interference with the lawful operations of Chinese companies.

Dashpurev described such acts as damaging to Mongolia’s national interests and economic security, adding that police had opened an investigation and that those involved had been detained, it said.

Chinese chargé d’affaires Cao Li (third from right) raised “serious concern” over the incident with Buriad Dashpurev (left), of Mongolia’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources. Photo: Chinese embassy in Mongolia

Mongolia Foison Energy is registered in Mongolia as a foreign-invested company and is owned by Hong Kong-registered Foison Energy Holdings Limited. It signed a production-sharing agreement with the Mongolian government for the Kherlen Tohoi XXVIII block in 2024, with plans to spend about US$50 million on exploration over eight years.

The incident came two months after another resources-related protest disrupted exports to China.

In June, members of a group called Mongolia’s Radical Reform Movement blocked a road used to transport copper concentrate from the Rio Tinto-controlled Oyu Tolgoi mine towards the Chinese border, demanding a greater share of mining revenues for Mongolians.

The landlocked country relies heavily on oil imports, exporting nearly all its crude to China while sourcing more than 95 per cent of its refined oil from Russia.

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