TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search results
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search resultsNickel groups push back over ‘unfair’ illegal mining fines
Two nickel associations have formally objected to a potential fine of nearly $400,000 per hectare per year under a new ministerial decree on illegal mining, saying it could lead to industry-wide inequality, considering that the next highest penalty rate was around a quarter less for bauxite miners.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
A nickel mine encroaches on a forest area in East Halmahera on April 16, 2025, where members of North Maluku’s Hongana Manyawa indigenous community conduct regular patrols to monitor mining activities. (AFP/-)
T
he Indonesian Nickel Miners Association (APNI) and the Indonesian Nickel Industry Forum (FINI) have expressed their objection to a new regulation that imposes hefty fines on nickel mining activities in forest areas.
On Dec. 1, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia signed a new ministerial decree that stipulates administrative fines for illegal mining activities in forest areas to extract commodities including nickel, bauxite, tin and coal.
The new regulation sets a maximum annual penalty of Rp 6.5 billion (US$390,027) per hectare for nickel miners, compared with Rp 1.76 billion for bauxite miners, Rp 1.25 billion for tin miners and Rp 354 million for coal miners.
APNI and FINI have sent a letter of objection on the hefty fines for nickel miners to President Prabowo Subianto as well as relevant ministries and institutions.
In their letter, the industry groups say the national nickel industry has fully supported forest protection and regulatory compliance while reaffirming its commitment to responsible mining practices, in line with the country’s environment and energy transition agenda.
“However, we believe the amount of the administrative fines needs to be reviewed to ensure that policy implementation remains fair, proportionate and sustainable in economic and fiscal terms,” APNI and FINI state in their objection letter, as quoted by Kontan.co.id on Tuesday.
They also argue that the steep fine stipulated for nickel miners could lead to unequal treatment across the mining industry as a whole, distort cost structures in the nickel industry and raise concerns over regulatory fairness.
