Gaming | Mongolia considering casinos to diversify economy from mining

A statue of Damdin Sukhbaatar, right, stands in front of Blue Sky Tower in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Mongolia’s parliament is considering allowing casinos in the country to attract more tourists and reduce the economy’s dependence on mining revenue.
Mongolia, which has a population of 3 million in an area about the size of France that’s landlocked between China and Russia, had USD5.8 billion in exports last year and 83 percent of that was copper, coal and other minerals. The economy is expected to slow this year as disputes over mining projects have reduced foreign investment.
The casino law will be submitted to parliament for review in the spring session scheduled to begin April 6, Margad Banzragch, tourism department head at the Ministry of Environment, Green Development and Tourism, said in an interview Tuesday in the capital, Ulaanbaatar.
“What is most important is how the casinos can help boost the economy,” she said. No more than two casinos will be allowed under the law, said Margad, and to prevent gambling from becoming a social problem, Mongolians won’t be permitted.
While the law doesn’t specify where the casinos would be built, likely locations include Ulaanbaatar and near the new international airport, said Margad. The airport is being built 54 kilometers (34 miles) south of the capital. Other possibilities are Altanbulag on the Russian border or Zamyn-Uud on the Chinese border, she said.
“The key issue here is what happens to the revenue that the government earns from this casino,” Jargalsaikhan Dambadarjaa, a political and economic commentator, said by phone from Ulaanbaatar. “It needs to be used to decrease inequality in the country, for education or social infrastructure.”
A one-time license fee of 35 billion tugrik ($17.6 million) would be required of any investor planning to build a casino, said Margad, in addition to taxes that will be determined at a later date.
Another provision would require that the casino make up 15 percent of the complex. Hotel and commercial space will make up the remaining 85 percent, she said. The casinos could create more than 2,000 jobs a supply chain of new business opportunities, said Margad.
Mongolia also plans to adopt a horserace betting law, which is now in draft form, said Margad.
“We’ll use the advantage of our location between countries, and our new airport to attract visitors,” she said. Michael Kohn, Bloomberg