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View all search resultsControversial power plant project's permit revoked after Sumatra floods
PT North Sumatera Hydro Energy, the developer of Batang Toru hydropower plant in South Tapanuli regency, North Sumatra, has had its business permit repealed as the government takes action against companies allegedly linked to deforestation that exacerbated northern Sumatra's floods and landslides.
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Shut it down: Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq (right) oversees the installation of a warning sign by the Environment Ministry during an inspection at a company site in the Batang Toru watershed, North Sumatra, on Dec. 5, 2025. (Antara/Handout/Environment Ministry)
T
he initial construction of Batang Toru hydropower plant in South Tapanuli regency, North Sumatra, was met with international opposition due to the project’s potential threat to the endangered Tapanuli orangutan, whose habitat is close to the plant’s location.
The plant has since been in the national headlines again after being included among 28 companies whose permits were revoked by the government, as they were allegedly linked to the deadly floods and landslides that hit northern Sumatra late last year.
On Tuesday, State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi announced the government’s move to revoke the permits following a virtual meeting with President Prabowo Subianto, who was in London, and representatives of several ministries and a government-sanctioned forestry task force.
“The President decided to revoke the permits of 28 companies proven to have committed violations,” Prasetyo said in a press briefing on Tuesday.
He added that the decision was made based on audits and an inspection by the task force of extractive companies operating in Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra.
The three provinces suffered extensive landscape damage after being hit by cyclone-induced floods and landslides in late November. Environmentalists pointed to deforestation caused by extractive activities as a factor that exacerbated the disaster, which killed 1,200 people, according to official figures.
Read also: Environmental degradation in spotlight in Sumatra floods
