Riau province threatens to revoke 45 mining permits

The provincial administration of Riau has threatened to revoke at least 45 mining permits issued by the local government because the holders of the permits have not carried out exploration activities in their respective mining areas during the three-year time limit given to them, Bisnis Indonesia reported on Tuesday.

?We will issue a warning letter to each of the permit holders. And if they still refuse to conduct exploration activities, until the third warning, their mining permits will be revoked,? the head of the mining department at the Riau provincial office, Abdi Haro said.

He said that the provincial administration and the mining offices in the province?s regencies had recently carried out a joint verification on the use of mining permits issued by the regency authorities.

?Data collected during the verification indicated that only five of 50 mining areas awarded since 2006 have been explored,? he said, indicating that the holders of the other 45 mining areas had failed to abide the terms and condition set in their respective mining contracts.

The permit holders generally have financial problems, he said.

Abdi Haro said that with the issuance of the new mining law, the licensing procedure would be tighter at present. To ensure transparency, all mining areas for example should be offered to investors through a competitive bidding process. In addition, companies which receive mining permits should also deposit cash worth Rp 1 billion to the central bank as guarantee that they have financial supports to carry out mining works. (*)