The Bukit Soeharto Grand Forest Park (Tahura) within the IKN (Nusantara Capital City) area has been severely degraded by illegal coal mining. A reform of mining governance—from upstream to downstream—is urgently needed.
The police have named three suspects in an illegal coal mining case in the Bukit Soeharto Grand Forest Park, located in Samboja District, Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan. This area falls within the boundaries of the future capital, Nusantara (IKN).
The case was disclosed in a press conference held in Surabaya, East Java, on July 17, 2025. Brigadier General Nunung Syaifuddin, Director of Specific Crimes at the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim), said the case began with the discovery of hundreds of containers filled with illegal coal in several locations.
According to Nunung, 248 containers were found during inspections at Tanjung Perak Port Depot in Surabaya, and another 103 containers were confiscated during a document check at Kariangau Terminal Port in Balikpapan.
Further investigation revealed that the coal came from CV Wulu Bumi Sakti (WBS), which had been operating in Bukit Soeharto Tahura—a conservation area in East Kalimantan. Police said the illegal mining operation had been active since 2016, continuing for nearly a decade.
“The total mining area reached 186 hectares as of 2025,” said Nunung.
The three suspects identified are YH and CH (coal sellers) and MH (a buyer). According to police estimates, this illegal mining activity has cost the state IDR 5.7 trillion.
A Long-Standing Problem
An investigative report by Kompas on December 17, 2018, found that around 71% of the 67,000-hectare Bukit Soeharto Tahura was already in a critical condition. Illegal coal mining and land clearing were cited as major causes. The team found numerous heavy machinery operating inside the park, abandoned mine pits, and mining activities taking place even near law enforcement offices. Local residents reported that such activities were causing floods in the village of Sungai Seluang.
Illegal coal mining has even encroached on Samboja Reservoir, an infrastructure project built by the government near Bukit Soeharto. In October 2019, Civil Servant Investigators from the Kalimantan III River Region Office found illegal mining taking place in the green zone on the western side of the reservoir.
This activity, ongoing since 2016, has been inconsistent but persistent. The park’s management has reported it to the police multiple times. Yet, mining continued and entered the reservoir’s green zone in 2018, persisting until at least 2020 (Kompas, April 2, 2020).
Following the designation of IKN across parts of Kutai Kartanegara and Penajam Paser Utara, the government formed a Task Force for the Prevention and Eradication of Illegal Activities in the IKN Area. This task force includes the IKN Authority, police, prosecutors, and various ministries.
Agung Dodit Muliawan, Head of Legal and Compliance at the IKN Authority, stated that the IKN development targets 75% of the total 252,000 hectares to remain as green zones. He admitted that in reality, many of these green areas have been damaged by illegal activities.
He emphasized that the task force was not solely formed to address illegal mining. “The effort to combat illegal activities in IKN covers more than just mining,” he said.
As of December 2023, the IKN Authority reported that at least 3,000 hectares within the IKN region had likely been mined without permits—most of it for coal (Kompas, December 30, 2023).
Breaking the Chain
The Publish What You Pay (PWYP) Indonesia coalition has urged the government to take responsibility and immediately reform the governance of the mining sector. To prevent recurring and prolonged illegal practices, they called for strengthened oversight mechanisms.
Adzkia Farirahman, a researcher at PWYP Indonesia, stated that illegal mining in IKN is a clear sign of failed oversight in the mineral and coal sector.
“How is it possible that illegal mining can operate for so long in a national priority zone like IKN without early detection?” said Adzkia, also known as Azil.
She urged law enforcement to dismantle the chain of illegal mining operations. According to her, these activities persist because the coal continues to find buyers.
Additionally, illegal operations that are visible and obvious are often left unpunished. In the most recent IKN illegal mining case, PWYP Indonesia observed that perpetrators exploited legal documents from officially licensed mining companies during coal shipments at the Balikpapan terminal.
These documents were used to make the coal appear as if it originated from legal sources. This deception, according to PWYP, indicates a collusion involving multiple actors.
“A thorough investigation is needed into the potential involvement of miners, transport providers, shipping agents, licensed companies, port operators, and possibly public officials,” she said.
The exposure of this illegal mining operation, which had been running for nearly a decade, raises serious concerns. Buyung Marajo, Coordinator of Pokja 30 East Kalimantan, criticized the weak response of law enforcement agencies in the region when dealing with violations by mining companies.
“That includes the East Kalimantan Police, local governments, the IKN Authority, and other law enforcement institutions. The public may begin to suspect foul play, considering it took the National Police Headquarters (Bareskrim) to finally uncover this case,” he concluded.
Source: Kompas