The Indonesian Government is widening access to mining opportunities for regional businesses as it seeks to distribute more of the sector’s economic benefits beyond Jakarta.
Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia says revised rules will give greater priority to cooperatives, small and medium-sized businesses, and region-owned enterprises seeking access to mineral and coal mining areas.
The reforms will also encourage mining contractors to involve businesses based in producing regions, according to an Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry statement.
Bahlil says many mining permit holders are headquartered in Jakarta, despite Indonesia’s principal nickel deposits being located in Sulawesi and Maluku and much of its coal production coming from Kalimantan and Sumatra.
“We want people in the regions to become both participants in and beneficiaries of development through the management of local natural resources,” Bahlil says.
Ministerial Regulation 12/2026, which took effect on 13 October, amended the rules governing mineral and coal mining businesses. It followed changes to Indonesia’s mining law allowing certain mining areas to be awarded through a priority process rather than conventional tendering.
Priority applicants must still be assessed using clear, objective, transparent, and accountable criteria following rulings by Indonesia’s Constitutional Court.
The ministry has not identified which mining areas may be offered under the revised framework or established targets for regional participation. The policy also does not require mining companies to relocate their headquarters or specify how much additional revenue should flow to producing regions.
Separately, Indonesia is reviewing five copper and gold concessions that President Prabowo Subianto says contain deposits with an estimated in-ground value of $426.7 billion, as previously reported by Mining.com.au. The government has not identified the concession holders or released the underlying reserve reports.
Indonesia is the world’s largest nickel producer and a major coal exporter, with much of its mineral production concentrated outside the capital.
Write to France Pinzon at Mining.com.au
