WSHPDR_2013_Final_Report-updated_version

3.2.5 Mongolia
Dursan Basandorj, Mongolian University of Science
and Technology, D. Sod, Mon-Energy Consult Co., Ltd,
Mongolia
Key facts
Population 3,179,997 1
Area 1,564,116 km 2
Climate Hot in summer and extremely cold in
winter, with January averages dropping
as low as −30°C (some areas are at -
45°C)
Topography Varied geography, with mountainous
forests, vast steppes and the Gobi
Desert (highest point: Khüiten Peak,
4,374 m)
Rain
pattern
Annual rainfall can be as low as
100 mm in the desert and even the
maximum of 360 mm in the north is
little. Lakes, rivers and glaciers are thus
integral to the water supply
Electricity sector overview
The electricity consumption of Mongolia in 2010 was
4.22 TWh, and the total installed capacity in 2011 was
923 MW. 2 Mongolia is a net electricity importer (i.e.
from Russia) with fossil fuels dominating the
Diesel
0.41%
Table 1
Overview of energy systems in Mongolia
Grid Electric power plants Installed
capacity
(MW)
CES 5 coal fired TPPs 814
WES 12-MW Durgun HPP and some diesel
generators
12 + (1.9 +0.5
+ 2.7)
EES isolated coal-fired TPP 36
Ulistai- 11 MW Taishir HPP and 2 MW SHPP, 13 + (5 + 8)
Altai some diesel generators in reserve
Note: TPP – thermal power plant, HPP – hydropower plant, SHPP –
small hydropower plant.
Additionally, the South-Gobi province has a 6 MW
isolated thermal power plant. Apart from this, Ukhaa
Khudag, a coal mining site in the Umnugovi province,
has its own 18 MW thermal power plant with 12 MW
diesel generators in reserve. All provincial and Soum
centres have electricity supply of some sort. Oyutolgoi
is the largest mine in Mongolia, which owns 26 MW
capacity of diesel generators, however the mine
needs a 60-MW power source for its operation.
The hydropower potential was estimated to be
6,417.1 MW or 56.2 TWh per year. Identified
hydropower sites include 220 MW Egiin hydropower
plant, as well as hydropower pump storage such as
100 MW Orkhon site, 150 MW Artsat site, 300 MW
Shuren site and a 50 MW pump-storage plant at the
Tuul river at Ulan Bator.
generation mix (figure 1). 3 92.70%
Hydropower
Imported electricity
1.10%
5.79%
Small hydropower sector overview and potential
Fossil fuels
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Figure 1 Electricity generation in Mongolia
Source: Energy Regulator’s Regional Association 3
Note: Data from 2011.
Mongolia’s Aimag centres are the largest permanent
settlements in the rural areas and are divided into
Soums. The electrification in cities, Aimag and Soum
centres is 100 per cent. However, 10.6 per cent
(17,000) of the 160,000 herd families who led a
nomadic life had no access to electricity as of 2011.
Among the nomadic households that do have access
to electricity, most have a small 50-100 W solar (PV)
supplied under the ‘100 000 solar homes’ project or
small wind systems. Some (less than 10 per cent) own
small imported electricity generation engines.
There are four integrated power grids in Mongolia:
Central Energy System (CES), Western Energy System
(WES), Eastern Energy System (EES) and Altai-Uliastai.
An overview of installed capacity in each grid is shown
in table 1 below.
SHP installed capacity
SHP potential
28 MW
53 MW
estimate
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Figure 2 Small hydropower capacities in Mongolia
Table 2
Classification of small hydropower in Mongolia
(Megawatts)
Definition
Installed capacity
Small 1-10
Mini 0.1 – 1
Micro 0.05-0.1
Pico < 0.05
All small hydropower plants in Mongolia are
government-owned because the private sector has
insufficient resources for small hydropower
development. The capacities of existing small
hydropower plants (see table 2 for classification) are
from several hundred kW and above. The total
installed capacity of small hydropower is 28.40 MW
(figure 2). Most small and mini hydropower schemes
have capacities ranging between 90 kW and 2,000 kW,
scattered around the country and far from energy
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