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tate-Owned Enterprises Minister Dahlan Iskan has expressed his support for diversified mining company PT Aneka Tambang in the company’s dispute regarding a permit for a mining area within the North Konawe Regency in Southeast Sulawesi.

“I have told Antam’s board of directors to continue their struggle in taking back what is supposed to be state property. This is for the country’s interest,” he said during a discussion held by Indonesian Resources Studies (Iress) in Jakarta on Tuesday.

He said he discussed with the board an analysis of motives behind the issuance of permits on Antam’s mining areas by the North Konawe regent.

“We will bring the case to the Corruption Eradication Commission [KPK] because we find indications of violations against prevailing regulations,” Dahlan said.

The company has been granted the right to exploit nickel in Tapunoka and Bahubulu islands in Konawe regency, Southeast Sulawesi, through a letter of authorization in 2003 which has been validated for 23 years.

The new regency of North Konawe was formed in 2007.Antam’s mining area was included in the new regency’s area. Aswad Sulaiman, North Konawe acting regent at that time, issued two letters in 2007 and 2008.

The 2007 letter granted a 2,000 hectare mining area to PT Duta Inti Perkasa Mineral, owned by conglomerate Lim Haryanto, which overlapped Antam’s area of 6,213 hectares while the 2008 letter stipulated Antam’s mining area was reduced from 6,123 hectares to 5,000 hectares.

Antam filed a lawsuit with the Kendari State Administrative Court in June 2008 to revoke the letters. The court upheld Antam’s request and decided that the letters were no longer valid because the letters were legally flawed and caused overlapping mining permits.

In the appeal, Antam’s lawsuit was rejected and in the Supreme Court, the company also lost its battle in 2009. In 2010, the Supreme Court rejected Antam’s request for an appeal. With that, the 2007 and 2008 letters issued by the North Konawe acting regent remained in place.

The newly elected regent, Herry Siloande, issued three letters in favor of Antam in 2010. The first letter ordered Antam to continue mining activities in Tapunopaka. The second letter revoked mining permits which overlapped Antam’s existing area. The third letter granted a new IUP to Antam, which valided operations for 20 years starting January 2010.

Duta Inten then filed a lawsuit over the three letters with the Kendari State Administrative Court. The suit was granted and the court declared the letters that apparently were not valid.

Aswad Sulaiman came back to the regent chair and in 2011, he issued a letter to re-enact the 2007 and 2008 letter he used to issue. In response, Antam filed a lawsuit with the Kendari State Administrative Court. The legal process is currently still underway.

Antam president director Alwinsyah Lubis told The Jakarta Post in a recent interview that his company might potentially lose Rp 42.29 trillion (US$4.567 billion) from the value of mineral in the overlapping working area and Rp 272.68 billion from all activities it had conducted in the area.