The existing 240km coal haul road between the UHG coal mine and Tsagaan Khaled had been used extensively by heavy coal trucks for two to three years. The road’s pavement conditions deteriorated to a stage that it could no longer sustain and support the increasing coal truck traffic. A new interim coal haul road was built to replace the existing road until the planned railway between Tolvan Tolgoi and the China border was constructed. Once the railway is constructed, the new road will be transferred to the local government for public use. SMEC prepared the feasibility study report for the new interim coal haul road for banking assessment purposes. SMEC's services included: highway engineering and financial and economic assessment works that encompassed a detailed review of the detailed engineering design plans prepared by a local design institute, construction and maintenance costing of two design alternatives, preparation of an Environmental Impact Assessment report, preparation of a Social Impact Assessment report and financial and economic assessments for banking purposes.