The government announced Friday it had terminated 111 mining contracts since 1999 due to companies' failure to meet contract requirements. In a press statement, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry said 64 of the terminated contracts were for mining firms and the remaining 47 were coal firms.

After securing a gas supply of 1.5 million tons from the Bontang field in East Kalimantan, the government is eying another 1 million tons from the Tangguh block in Papua to meet domestic market demand, an official says. Chairman of upstream oil and gas regulator BPMigas, Kardaya Warnika, said Friday the government had requested the operator of the Tangguh block -- British energy giant BP Plc -- to build another gas processing unit at the plant for the local market.

The Jakarta Post Pacitan, East Java Farmers in Pacitan regency's villages of Mantren and Pringkuku in East Java are in high spirits after planting a new variety of local soybean that researchers say produces a high yield. With the support of Yogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University (UGM) and consumer good company PT Unilever Indonesia, the farmers officially began planting a newly developed black soybean variety earlier this month.

Serang, Banten (ANTARA News) - Vice President Jusuf Kalla affirmed that the government would not provide land to the French automotive company, Renault SA, for free for investment in Indonesia. The government will not provide land in this way, because other industries would also ask for land, he said after inauguating a ceramic factory of PT Arwana Citramulia in Serang, Baten on Friday. According to him, the government will only provide facilities to companies wishing to invest in Indonesia.

as if the fiasco of ariawest was not enough, they are coming back for more!