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Energy ministry temporarily halts nickel mining operations in Raja Ampat
Following a peaceful protest by Greenpeace at a minerals expo on Thursday, the energy ministry announced it had temporarily suspended Gag Nikel's mining operations in Raja Ampat to conduct field verification.
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This aerial handout picture taken on December 21, 2024, and released on January 31, 2025 by Auriga Nusantara shows a general view of deforestation at an area on Kawei Island in Raja Ampat, Southwest Papua province. (AFP/Handout)
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he Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry has temporarily suspended nickel mining operations on Gag Island in Raja Ampat pending a field verification, following public concerns over their proximity to a marine conservation area.
“We are halting operations temporarily for field verification. We will investigate,” Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said on Thursday in Jakarta.
“Raja Ampat has many conservation and tourism zones, but there are also areas designated for mining. This is what we are currently verifying on-site,” he said.
Other institutions, including the forestry and the maritime affairs ministries, are also proceeding with verification to identify any potential violations in the area.
Southwest Papua’s archipelagic regency of Raja Ampat is a designated UNESCO Global Geopark and one of the country’s top tourist destinations for diving and snorkeling.
Gag Nikel operates a mine on its namesake island, which is estimated to have nickel ore reserves of over 42 million dry tonnes, according to Antam’s 2023 annual report. The mine also contains the company’s third-largest volume of limonite and saprolite ore.
Operations began in 2018 after the miner obtained a contract of work in 1998 and an environmental permit in 2014. It also holds an operating license that covers the entirety of Gag Island, which is a protected tropical rainforest.
