Market rumours point at South32 as the most likely buyer, since the miner decided last month to ditch its $200 million acquisition of Peabody Energy’s coal mine in New South Wales.
"If BHP continues with its plans for open cut mines, it will be a disaster for the local people, and it will be a disaster for these fragile ecosystems."
Exploration companies operating in the Asian nation have become collateral damage in a criminal case involving former senior government employees at Mongolia's mining regulator.