Miners begin lawsuit against government

Miners in the country including foreign firms have started to file lawsuit against the government following the revocation of so-called non-clean and clear (non-C&C) IUP mining permits.

Head of Legal Division at the Directorate General of Mineral and Coal of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Heriyanto (one name), said over the weekend that a number of mining companies have filed lawsuit with the State Administrative Court (PTUN) over the government policy of revoking problematic IUP mining permits. ?The companies include coal miners and metal (mineral) mining firms,? he said, but declined to disclose their names.

He added that a number of foreign firms have also informed the directorate they would file lawsuit with international arbitration over the policy.

The government is currently facing a lawsuit filed by India Metal and Ferro Alloys Limited (IMFA) at the arbitration court in The Hague after the coal firm failed to carry out mining operations at its concession in Kalimantan due to overlapping permits. The Indian firm also demanded compensation worth US$581 million (about Rp 7.7 trillion).

The central government has instructed provincial administrations to review non-C&C IUP mining permits including revoking those which clearly would be unable to meet existing regulations.

As per February of this year, there are a total of 10,331 IUP permits, of which 3,787 are classified as non-C&C either because the miners have failed to pay financial obligations to the state properly or their permits overlap with other firms or forest areas.

Director General of Mineral and Coal Bambang Gatot Ariyono said last week that governors have started to revoke several non-C&C IUP mining permits recently. He declined to provide further details, but hoped that the move would not trigger miners to file lawsuit. (*)