Bharinto Ekatama suspends operation due to villagers protest

Coal mining company PT Bharinto Ekatama, which is based in West Kutai regency, East Kalimantan, has been forced to suspend operation for about one month due to the protests by villagers who accused the firm of mining beyond the East Kalimantan provincial territory.

The villagers who all reside in the area which is part of the Central Kalimantan province, demanded the firm pay ?tens of billions of rupiah? in compensation, East Kalimantan-based daily Kaltim Post reported on Wednesday.

West Kutai Council Speaker FX Yapan defended the firm, saying the mine developed by the firm is still part of the East Kalimantan province.

?As a matter of fact, the mine developed by PT Bharinto Ekatama is located within East Kalimantan territory and does not cross the border that has been agreed upon by the East Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan provincial administrations. The villagers however claimed that it has crossed the border into Central Kalimantan. That means the agreement is useless since the villages do not accept it,? he said.

He said both the West Kutai regency and East Kalimantan provincial administrations do not have authority to help solve the issue.

Meanwhile, Dedy Sugiharto of PT Bharinto Ekatama confirmed that the mine has been shut down due to the protests.

?Our mining operation has been suspended for almost one month. Only employees handling administrative affairs still work. The first protest occurred in October 2013. They resumed the protest in early November and continued the protest until now,? Dedy said.

With regards the villagers? demand for compensation, he said that matter is being reviewed by the firm?s management in Jakarta . ?It is still being discussed. Hopefully, the review can be quickly finalized,? he said.

Bharinto Ekatama is a coal unit of Indonesia-listed coal miner PT Indo Tambangraya Megah (ITM), a third generation Coal Contract of Work (CCoW) holder. According Indonesian Coal Book 2012/2013, published by Petromindo, the firm?s concession stretches from West Kutai regency in East Kalimantan and to Barito Utara regency in Central Kalimantan, covering an area of 22,000 hectares adjacent to ITM?s other mine PT Trubaindo Coal Mining, which is already in production stage. (*)