The Mongol-Soviet Joint-Stock Society Ulaanbaatar Railway JVC (UBTZ) announced an open tender on January 3 for the “Lease of Locomotives for Freight and Passenger Trains.”

The tender, with a budget of 6,570,000,000 MNT (Six billion five hundred seventy million Mongolian Tögrög), included two packages:

●     Leasing locomotives for freight trains, for trains weighing 2,800–3,000 tons, 2 locomotives, for 365 days.

●     Leasing locomotives for passenger trains, capable of pulling up to 27 wagons, 1 locomotive, for 365 days.

When asked about the rolling stock of Ulaanbaatar Railway JVC, J. Delgersaikhan, Minister of Road and Transport, stated:

“Currently, there are a total of 15,000 leased wagons on the Ulaanbaatar Railway JVC network. Just like road traffic in the capital, there is congestion on the railway lines. Every station and junction is crowded with wagons. When a working group from the Ministry of Road and Transport inspected them, they found that many wagons are very old, their lifespan has expired, and they are due for maintenance. Therefore, once the lease period expires, I will remove them and will not bring them back. Some private companies are dissatisfied with this order. Ulaanbaatar Railway JVC is not a junkyard.

If national companies bring new wagons, they will be immediately accepted. However, leased trains will not be allowed. The reason is that Ulaanbaatar Railway JVC has been exploiting the shortage of wagons to rent them, resulting in money flowing out. I have gradually stopped this; it was not an abrupt decision. This decision has not caused any economic loss to anyone; simply, if the lease or maintenance period has expired, it will not be extended.”

He also added that old wagons could cause accidents, which is why the Ministry of Road and Transport decided not to lease them.