Ulaanbaatar-5 power station

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Ulaanbaatar-5 power station is a cancelled power station in Ulaanbaatar, Bayangol, Mongolia. It is also known as CHP-5, Ulaanbaatar Thermal Power Plant No. 5.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Ulaanbaatar-5 power station	Ulaanbaatar, Bayangol, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia	47.925948, 107.049494 (approximate)

The map below shows the approximate location of the power station.

Loading map...

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Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology
Unit 1	cancelled	coal: subbituminous	150	subcritical
Unit 2	cancelled	coal: subbituminous	150	subcritical
Unit 3	cancelled	coal: subbituminous	150	subcritical

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner	Parent
Unit 1	Thermal Power Plant-3 SSH Co; Inter RAO PJSC	Inter RAO PJSC; Thermal Power Plant-3 SSH Co
Unit 2	Thermal Power Plant-3 SSH Co; Inter RAO PJSC	Inter RAO PJSC; Thermal Power Plant-3 SSH Co
Unit 3	Thermal Power Plant-3 SSH Co; Inter RAO PJSC	Inter RAO PJSC; Thermal Power Plant-3 SSH Co

Project-level coal details

• Coal source(s): Baganuur and Shivee Ovoo coal mines

Background

Project

The power station was proposed to be built on the eastern side of the city of Ulaanbataar. The cost was originally estimated at US$650 million. In a May 2008 briefing on energy developments in Mongolia, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Fuel and Energy stated that "the international bidding is planned to be announced in the near future."

In a July 2010 presentation, a Mongolian government official stated that the current heating demand in Ulaanbaatar was only marginally more than demand. Electricity generation capacity was 690 MW while peak demand in 2010 reached 711 MW. He also explained that the small existing combined heat and power stations, the 21 MW CHP‐2 and the 48 MW CHP-3, are old and will be "out aged by 2015". He also projected that by 2020 heat demand would increase substantially and electricity demand would grow by 700 MW. "These factors show that there will shortage of heat and electricity capacity in [Ulaanbaatar] from 2011 and necessity of construction CHP‐5," he argued.

For its part, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) noted that the proposal was most likely to be for a 300 MW owned and operated by a private operator. "The government will allocate the land and determine coal standards for the plant operations. Whether the prices at which the [Government of Mongolia] will buy the outputs would justify investment (estimated cost is 1 million USD per 1 MW of capacity109) remains to be seen," the ADB stated.

In June 2014, POSCO Energy announced that it had "has won the license to build and run" CHP-5 which was described as a 450 MW plant. POSCO announced that construction of the project would commence in 2015 and that the build-operate-transfer contract would run for 25 years at which time the plant would be transferred to the Mongolian government free of charge. The estimated cost was US$1.2 billion and the project was to be completed by 2017.

In July 2015, Posco Energy of South Korea and partners Engie (formerly known as GDF Suez SA) of France, Sojitz Corp. of Japan, and Newcom Group of Mongolia signed a PPA with the Mongolia government for the plant. Under the agreement, the Engie-led group would pay for and build the plant, operate it for 25 years, sell its power to the central grid, and then transfer the facility to the government. The power station was planned to be operational by 2020.

In October 2015, ADB released the draft Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) for CHP-5. In April 2016, the companies submitted a revised edition of the ESIA to ADB.

According to Bankwatch (April 2017), the project is on hold due to ongoing negotiations between the government and the sponsors on the tariffs for electricity and heating.

According to the UB Post (February 28, 2018), the consortium for the project was disbanded. China Energy Storage Network News reported that public opposition due to the poor air quality in Ulaanbaatar led to the suspension of the coal project in favor of clean energy projects.

A January 2022 news article stated: "Since the feasibility study was prepared, the construction of Thermal Power Plant 5 has been stalled for almost 10 years. It is already scheduled to be commissioned, but not a single brick has been laid to date." A report published in August 2022 described the project as having "never materialized".

International consortium

POSCO Energy held a 30% stake in the project consortium. Other members of the joint venture were Engie, Sojitz Corporation, and Newcom.

Funding

The project sponsors were seeking finance from the Asian Development Bank private sector arm, the Japanese Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI). An IJGlobal report from 2015 also identified Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-Sure), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and private banks Credit Agricole, HSBC, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and MUFG as potential funders.

Plant No. 3 infrastructure

In 2021, it was reported that there were plans to "establish Ulaanbaatar’s Fifth Thermal Power Plant based on the infrastructure of the Third Thermal Power Plant. Minister of Energy N.Tavinbekh said, 'Most of the plant’s main infrastructure is becoming outdated. As the Third Thermal Power Plant was put into operation in 1966-1968, it is possible that the plant’s operations could come to a stop at any given moment.'"

At a Cabinet meeting on October 20, 2021, Minister of Energy N.Tavinbekh "introduced the progress of the construction project for Ulaanbaatar’s fifth thermal power plant which planned to be established based on the infrastructure of the Third Thermal Power Plant." As project implementing bodies, ‘Thermal Power Plant-3’ JSC of Mongolia and ‘Inter RAO-Export’ company of Russia signed a memorandum of cooperation, and reached an agreement on the volume of works to be carried out by both sides. The Russian company agreed to submit a feasibility study of the project in 180 days. Based on the study, the matter concerning export loans from the Government of Russia could be introduced by the first quarter of 2022. Despite its location and being one of the main sources for heat supply in Ulaanbaatar, the operations of the Third Thermal Plant were reportedly "at risk" due to outdated core equipment.

The Ulaanbaatar-3 power station wiki page provides additional information about the site and 2021 proposal.

Website

CHP5 Energy For Tomorrow (former)

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.