PT Timah at the Center of Tin Governance Reform in Bangka Belitung: A One-Year Transition
The Board of Directors of PT Timah (Persero) Tbk is set to receive new tasks over the coming year. President Prabowo Subianto has issued Presidential Regulation Number 79 of 2026 concerning the Acceleration of Governance Improvement in Tin Mining within the Bangka Belitung Islands Province. Through this regulation, enacted on August 31, 2026, PT Timah is obligated to ensure that governance reforms are implemented in the field.
One key mandate is to guarantee the legality of commodities purchased from mining production outside the company’s Mining Business License (IUP) area. “This regulation ensures that mining activities run in an orderly manner and provide economic benefits to the community,” said PT Timah’s Production and Commercial Director Ilhamsyah Mahendra in a written statement on Wednesday, September 9, 2026.
The Presidential Regulation grants PT Timah a one-year discretion to purchase tin produced by the community outside the company’s IUP as well as its work plan and budget (RKAB). Based on Article 11 of Presidential Regulation Number 79 of 2026, purchases exceeding this quota must be based on verification covering the legality of contractual relationships between mining service companies and PT Timah, the origin of the commodity, and the production volume.
During the transition period, PT Timah is required to settle IUP technical administration and adjust its RKAB so that subsequent purchases of community tin comply with applicable regulations. Purchases can be made through community groups, registered PT Timah partners, and cooperatives.
House of Representatives (DPR) Commission XII member Bambang Patijaya asked PT Timah to establish clear criteria for each stage to prevent the policy from triggering legal issues. He also reminded collectors and tin business actors not to exploit the transition period to smuggle tin.
“Do not let the current tin situation be exploited by certain parties to carry out smuggling,” said the Golkar politician.
The government began reforming tin mining governance after law enforcement agencies investigated tin trading corruption that caused state financial losses of up to IDR 300 trillion in 2024. In addition, there are issues with legal mines in the Bangka Belitung Islands facing off against illegal companies.
Previously, PT Timah President Director Restu Widiyantoro admitted to being defeated by these companies. This was because illegal companies never paid taxes, royalties, or reclamation fees. Every time PT Timah raised the price of tin to IDR 250,000 per kilogram, illegal companies raised their prices much higher. “We cannot compete,” he said during a working group meeting with Commission VI of the DPR in September 2025.
To crack down on illegal miners, PT Timah will empower cooperatives—ranging from miner cooperatives, employee cooperatives, to fisherman cooperatives. He claimed to have started with 30 cooperatives and is targeting the formation of 100 to 300 cooperatives. Furthermore, PT Timah is partnering with legal entities and will empower collectors willing to be guided.
Publish What You Pay Indonesia National Coordinator Aryanto Nugroho noted that almost the entire scope of the regulation centers on a single entity, namely PT Timah. Under the Presidential Regulation, PT Timah acts as the governance reformer in its own concession, the buyer of ore, the recipient of enforcement yields within the IUP, the verifier of its own production, and the party granted approval to produce above the RKAB quota on Belitung Island.
According to Aryanto, this design may administratively tidy up the supply chain, but poses risks in terms of transparency and public accountability. He also criticized Article 11, which grants PT Timah the flexibility to produce, process, purify, and sell tin above the RKAB quota on Belitung Island for one year.
Hitherto, the RKAB has been the state’s main instrument to control production volume while calculating projected state revenue. If issues with tin production volume exist, the government should use a legitimate RKAB revision mechanism while taking into account feasibility studies and environmental approvals.
He fears this leeway will set a bad precedent for mining governance. If the regulation can grant a company production dispensation above the RKAB quota for a certain period, similar mechanisms could potentially be used for other commodities, such as nickel, bauxite, or coal. “What is at stake is the credibility of the RKAB as a controller of national mineral and coal production,” he said.
At the regional level, the Bangka Belitung Islands Provincial Government previously enacted Regional Regulation Number 3 of 2026 concerning the Implementation of Delegated Authority for Mineral and Coal Mining Management. One part of this regulation governs people’s mining licenses (IPR) to drive economic growth and improve community welfare.
“Through this regional regulation, the public can legally mine tin ore in mining areas designated by the government,” said Bangka Belitung Islands Governor Hidayat Arsani, as quoted by Antara.
In the initial phase, IPRs will be implemented in East Belitung, South Bangka, and Central Bangka Regencies. Hidayat hopes this policy can serve as a solution to various issues in artisanal tin mining, including illegal mining activities and smuggling.
Based on data from the Bangka Belitung Islands Energy and Mineral Resources Office, the area of people’s mining areas (WPR) in those three regencies is approximately 2,150 hectares. Meanwhile, WPR proposals for Bangka, West Belitung, and Belitung Regencies are still being processed at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), with a total proposed area of around 8,000 hectares.
Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Director General of Mineral and Coal Tri Winarno confirmed that tin purchased by PT Timah originates solely from production within the company’s concession. Meanwhile, if smuggling or illegal practices occur, he stated that this falls under the realm of law enforcement.
Tri said that the division of tasks between PT Timah, local governments, and the central government in Presidential Regulation Number 79 of 2026 is already clear. Therefore, he asked all parties to wait for the governance reform process to run for one year. “After a year, there must be governance improvements,” he said when contacted on Thursday, September 10, 2026.
Source: Tempo