🏭 Mongolia Starts Domestic Ammunition Production

Mongolia’s Two-Week Fuel Crisis: A Timeline

August 10, 2026 • Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

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Good morning! How do you start your Monday? For most of us, it’s probably coffee first, questions later. To make your Monday a little more interesting, we’re sharing a cool, adventurous video that takes you through Mongolia’s wild landscapes and travel experiences. Click HERE to watch. 🎥 

What’s inside today’s edition…

  • 💰 Foreign Exchange Reserves Hit Another Record

  • ⛽ Two Weeks of Fuel Crisis: A Timeline

  • 🛡️ Mongolia Begins Domestic Ammunition Production

We’ve got a lot to cover, so let’s get moving. 🐐

MARKET

MNG: Foreign exchange reserves hit a record $7.9 billion in July, rising 13.67% since the start of the year.

UNDP: Lionel Laurens has been appointed as UNDP’s new Resident Representative in Mongolia.

UB: Ulaanbaatar city to implement air pollution reduction and public health project in partnership with Chinggis Khaan Wealth Fund Consortium LLC.

💔 Mongolia’s Two-Week Fuel Crisis: A Timeline

2 weeks into Mongolia’s fuel shortage, the government has been making decisions at full speed. From rationing to new imports, here’s a timeline of what happened, and how fast things moved. 

⏰ Timeline

  • 31 July: Mongolia agreed with South Korea on monthly supplies of 20,000 tons each of AI-92 gasoline and diesel, plus 10,000 tons of aviation fuel, with deliveries targeted for August. A separate deal secured 6,000 tons of gasoline from China.

  • 3 August: The Emergency Headquarters introduced temporary rationing in Ulaanbaatar, fuel sold by even and odd license plate numbers, limited to ₮50,000 or $13.9 per fill-up, and portable containers banned. 

  • The same day, the first 1,000 ton shipment of aviation fuel from China arrived at the Zamyn-Uud border checkpoint. China’s Chargé d’Affaires confirmed more volumes would follow.

  • 4 August: The U.S. Embassy in Mongolia advised American citizens to postpone or cancel non-essential travel to Mongolia due to the shortage. 

5 August

  • At a Cabinet meeting the government abolished special excise and customs duties on gasoline and diesel until 1 February 2027, simplified import permits, and allowed limited private imports. Austerity measures were also introduced across government, cancelling non-essential events and travel.

  • The government announced that it has secured contracts to import 86,460 tons of AI-92 gasoline, 1,280 tons of AI-95, 178,650 tons of diesel, and 7,000 tons of jet fuel from Russia, China, and South Korea in August.

  • A local developer launched benzin.mn, a real-time platform tracking fuel availability at gas stations across Mongolia.

7 August 

  • Plans to raise the ₮50,000 limit to ₮100,000 were postponed. Tourism companies were allowed to purchase fuel without restrictions.

8 August

  • PM N.Uchral met the head of PetroChina Daqing Tamsag and requested a stable monthly supply of 12,000–15,000 tons of AI-92 from China. 

  • Authorities intensified checks on black-market reselling, warning 7 stations of possible fines or license revocation.

  • The PM and ministers inspected new fuel storage construction sites. Of the 22 tanks being built with government soft loans, San Petroleum’s 8,000 m³ facility is due to open on 20 August and is expected to cover about 13 days of Ulaanbaatar’s AI-92 demand.

9 August

Industry and Mineral Resources Minister G. Damdinnyam made his 9th official trip to Russia since taking office a year ago, as efforts continue to secure stable fuel supplies.

In the end, the fuel shortage became something of an adventurous drama across Mongolia, citizens hunting for open stations, sharing real-time tips, and adapting to new rules day by day. As this new week begins, many are hoping the situation will finally start returning to normal. Whether that hope materializes quickly remains to be seen.

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POLITICS

  • Mongolia and Singapore Expanded Cooperation Against Cyber Fraud. (InDiplomacy)

  • Indian Envoy Visits UNCCD COP17 Venue in Mongolia. (TheTribune)

  • Mongolia and Finland Expand Cooperation in the Field of Education. (Montsame)

  • Silk Road Caravan Arrives in Mongolia. (Kazinform)

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  • Each District In Ulaanbaatar Will Have A Specialized Upper Secondary School Starting This Academic Year. (MOE)

  • Mongolia’s Next President? Race to Succeed Khurelsukh Reshapes Political Landscape. (IntellNews)

CULTURE & LIFESTYLE

  • 13th Century Mongolian Courier Sim The Legend of Khiimori Becomes a Battle Against Supernatural "poison of the earth spirit". (RockPaperShotgun)

  • Mongolian Proverb of the Day: 'While Your Horse is Strong, Travel to See Places' — Meaning and Life Lesson Explained. (TheEconimicTime)

  • Mongolian Athlete Wins Four Medals at Jiu-Jitsu World Championship. (TheStar)

🇲🇳 Mongolia Starts Domestic Ammunition Production

Mongolia has commissioned the “Zev” ammunition plant, which has started producing and supplying 3  types of ammunition for domestic use.

  • 👉🏻 The move marks Mongolia’s first major step toward building a domestic defense manufacturing base and reducing its reliance on imported ammunition. The government has not disclosed the plant’s production capacity or what share of domestic demand it can currently cover.

🏭 Building the Supply Chain

The “Zev” ammunition plant was established through a military-technical cooperation agreement between Mongolia’s Ministry of Defense and Turkey’s state-owned defense company MKE. The government is now preparing to launch an ammunition components plant, a move that could further reduce dependence on imported inputs and strengthen the local supply chain.

  •  👀 The strategy goes beyond ammunition. Mongolia is also working to establish a drone manufacturing facility as part of plans to create a dedicated drone force. Domestic research institutes have meanwhile developed prototypes of military vehicles, shortwave radios and electronic equipment.

🛡️ Why It Matters

Recent conflicts have highlighted how quickly military supplies can be depleted and how critical resilient supply chains have become. For Mongolia, domestic production could reduce exposure to import disruptions, geopolitical risks and foreign suppliers, while strengthening military readiness. It could also create demand for local manufacturing, engineering and defense-related R&D.

But the bigger test is scale. Starting production is one thing, producing ammunition reliably and at sufficient volume to cover a meaningful share of domestic demand will determine whether Zev becomes a strategic defense asset or remains a limited domestic supplier.

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Publisher: Ts.Ankhbayar
Writer: M.Khulan
Graphics by: Ts.Tselmeg

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