Mongolia’s coal production drops for 3rd straight month in Aug’26 but remains higher y-o-y

• Mongolia’s August coal output falls 3% m-o-m but remains 37% higher y-o-y
• 2026 coal export target at 115 mnt amid ongoing mine expansion

Mongolia’s production of coal for all uses dropped for the third consecutive month in August to 10.84 million tonnes, down by another 3% from July, according to the latest data from Mongolia’s National Statistical Office (NSO).

Despite the on-month decline, the August volume was still higher by 37% from the previous year, extending the country’s robust coal production seen so far this year.

By type, Mongolia’s output of hard coal (including coking and thermal coal types) reached 9.93 million tonnes in August, down 2.9% from July but up 40% on year. Lignite coal output totaled 912,000 tonnes, down 3.6% on month but up 5.9% on year, Mysteel Global calculated based on the NSO’s monthly bulletin.

According to the NSO’s data, over the first eight months of this year Mongolia’s cumulative production of coal for all uses totalled 84.49 million tonnes, up by about 50% from January-August last year.

Mongolia is also actively strengthening its mining capability. During a mining industry convention held in Ulaanbaatar over September 16-18, State Secretary of the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, Buryadin Dashpurev, noted that the country would continue to explore coal reserves and set up new mines, according to a statement on the ministry’s website.

Dashpurev also expected Mongolia’s coal exports to reach 115 million tonnes by the end of the year, adding that the country had so far exported about 90 million tonnes of coal. However, according to data from Mongolia’s Customs General Administration, its exports over January-August stood at only 77.77 million tonnes, all bound for China, as Mysteel Global reported.

Note: The article is published as part of a content sharing agreement between Mysteel Global and BigMint.