Nalaikh Coal Mine

In the early 20th century, during the Qing occupation of Mongolia, the Chinese discovered coal and began mining it by hand in 1912. In the aftermath of the People's Revolution of 1921, the area was nationalized.^[1]

The Nalaikh coal mine was established on 25 December 1922, making it the first mining operation in Mongolia.^[2] In 1938, a railway line was built connecting Nalaikh to Ulaanbaatar's city center to transport coal from the mine.^[3] However, the mine's operations remained seasonal up until the 1950s.^[1]

Between 1954 and 1958, the mine underwent technological upgrades and expansion with the help of the Soviet Union,^[4] becoming the country's first modern mine and a major industrial hub during the socialist era. A settlement gradually grew around the area, granting the surrounding location city status in 1962.^[1]

The Nalaikh mine, during its operational years, supplied brown coal to Ulaanbaatar's thermal power plants and employed around 1,500 people.^[1][5]

With the fall of communism and economic stagnation, the technology required for large-scale underground operations became unaffordable. On 17 December 1990, a fatal methane gas explosion at the site killed 21 people and forced the government to halt production.^[5] On 30 December 1995, the mine was closed permanently.^[1]