ULAN BATOR, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Mongolia's decision not to auction a stake in the massive Tavan Tolgoi coal project will allow the nation a greater return on the deposit, Prime Minister Sukhbaatariin Batbold said on Monday, confirming an earlier Reuters report that the sale would be cancelled.

The government had previously planned to sell a 49 percent share in the Tavan Tolgoi deposit, billed as the world's largest untapped coking coal resource, but sources said last week that the $2 billion auction had been cancelled in favour of a plan to keep 100 percent in state hands.