Oyu Tolgoi Commissions New Infrastructure to Strengthen Mongolia’s Energy Sector
On 03 August 2026, the strategically important 220kV Zes-Oyu switchyard has been commissioned to enhance the reliability of Mongolia’s power system and support the country’s growing demand for electricity. Funded by Oyu Tolgoi, the facility provides the techinical capability for Mongolia’s Central Energy System to operate in parallel with the power grid of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. This will enable Mongolia to import up to 80 MW of additional electricity during periods of peak winter demand and supply some areas of the Southern Region, easing pressure on the Central Energy System.
At the official opening ceremony, Minister of Energy B.Naidalaa highlighted “This facility is a strategically significant development that will strengthen the reliability of Mongolia’s energy system, support electricity supply to consumers in the central region during peak winter demand, and elevate regional energy cooperation to a new level.”
Oyu Tolgoi Chief Executive Officer S.Munkhsukh added, “I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all parties who collaborated to successfully deliver this project. We believe that Oyu Tolgoi should contribute to Mongolia not only through economic benefits, but also by creating meaningful value in areas such as energy, infrastructure, transportation, and human resource development. We are therefore pleased to have taken a leading role in the construction of this facility and to have worked together with our partners to bring it to completion.”
Mongolia’s electricity demand is growing by 6-8 percent annually. Peak demand reached approximately 1,700 MW in 2025 and is expected to continue rising. By enabling additional electricity imports through newly built infrastructure, the project will help reduce the power restrictions and support the reliable and stable operation of the central grid. To put the scale of the additional import capability into context, the combined electricity demand of consumers in Ulaanbaatar’s Chingeltei and Nalaikh districts is 84.7MW, while 55,000 consumers in Sukhbaatar district have combined demand of 90.4 MW.
Following the signing of the Electricity Supply Agreement in 2022 to supply Oyu Tolgoi from Integrated Power Grid of Mongolia, the Ministry of Energy requested in May 2023 that Oyu Tolgoi fund the switchyard project. The National Power Transmission Grid SOE was selected as the main contractor for the construction and installation works, with construction commencing in 2024. Located within the Oyu Tolgoi mining complex, the completed facility comprises a six-bay 220 kV switchyard and a 3 kilometers overhead transmission line. It provides a critical link between Oyu Tolgoi’s power supply infrastructure and Mongolia’s intergrated power system. Its completion marks another step towards meeting the commitment under the Oyu Tolgoi Investment Agreement to source the mine’s electricity demand from domestic source. Designed to accomodate future expansion and connection to new power generation sources, the facility will also support the long term development and sustainable growth of Mongolia’s energy sector.
The Zes-Oyu switchyard project was successfully delivered through close colaboration among the Ministry of Energy, the National Power Transmission Grid of Mongolia, the National Dispatcher Center of Mongolia, Oyu Tolgoi LLC, the Inner Mongolian Power International Cooperation Company, national contractors and specialists’ teams. More than 20 national companies and over 2,000 engineers and technical personnel contributed to the construction, completing more than 600,000 man/hours without a safety incident or injury.