Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) is providing overseas investment insurance for a new airport in Ulaanbaatar. A joint venture has been established to run the New Ulaanbaatar International Airport (Chinggis Khaan International Airport) for a period of 15 years under a concession agreement with New Ulaanbaatar International Airport LLC. This is the first time that the operation of a Mongolian airport has been entrusted to a private enterprise.

The joint venture is composed of a Mongolian state-owned enterprise and a group of Japanese companies, namely Mitsubishi Corporation, Narita International Airport Corporation, Japan Airport Terminal Co, and JALUX Inc.

The airport, located in Tov province in the suburbs of Ulaanbaatar City, opened on July 4. Following an opening ceremony, the first flight from Ulaanbaatar to Narita took off.

The overseas investment insurance provided by NEXI will cover political risk on the equity investment of the four Japanese partners for 15 years. According to NEXI,  Mongolia is foreseeing medium- to long-term growth predominantly in its capital of Ulaanbaatar, which serves as the country's political, economic and commercial core.

The Mongolian government considers the new airport a vital infrastructure project. It is the hub of passenger and cargo transportation in northeast Asia, and is expected to contribute to Mongolia’s development,  particularly in the tourism and distribution industries.

NEXI says the new airport will leverage the expertise and knowledge of the four Japanese companies, with Mitsubishi Corporation having a vast experience in infrastructure projects, including airport construction and management.

Two of the other partners, Narita International Airport Corp. and Japan Airport Terminal, run two major airports in Japan, namely the Narita International Airport and the passenger terminal buildings at Haneda Airport. JALUX is engaged in airport retail businesses, both in Japan and overseas, as well as managing airports overseas.

Support for the new airport is in line with the Infrastructure System Overseas Promotion Strategy 2025 of the Japanese government. This is the first project with the assistance of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in which the Narita International Airport Corporation will be operating an airport located outside of Japan.

According to NEXI, the new airport is a symbol of the bilateral cooperation between Japan and Mongolia, as illustrated by the integrated assistance that the Japanese government has been extending, such as the Official Development Assistance funding from the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

Japanese companies were in charge of construction, and capacity building was provided for various areas necessary for airport operation such as organizational planning, operation and maintenance of facility and fuel supply systems, price setting, management of tenants in the terminal facilities, and customer services.

The old airport, which had been in use since 1957, depended on repeated extensions to the runway and renovations. The transfer of functions from the old to the new airport has been completed.