House Member Criticises Slow Mining Plan Approvals for Coal Shortage and Power Cuts
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Deputy Chairman of House Commission XII Bambang Haryadi has criticised the disruption of coal supplies that has led to rolling blackouts in several parts of the country. He attributed the supply disruption to the slow approval process for Work Plans and Budgets (RKAB) at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM). “There is a coal supply shortage of around 22 million tonnes for 2026, or about 2.6 million tonnes per month. We regret this supply shortage because of the slow RKAB process. This also happened in late 2021 and early 2022,” he said in a statement in Jakarta on Tuesday.
According to Bambang, discussions between Commission XII, PLN, and the ESDM Ministry revealed that the coal supply shortage is affecting power plant operations. He explained that the issue arose after most of the authority for managing the mineral and coal sector was centralised under the central government through the revision of the Mineral and Coal Law (UU Minerba). He stated that the RKAB approval process is not yet transparent, and Commission XII has repeatedly asked the ESDM Ministry to explain the basis for cutting or increasing coal mining companies’ RKAB quotas.
He noted that the ESDM Ministry has not optimally implemented the mandate of the Minerba Law, particularly regarding the obligation to consult on coal needs for state-owned enterprises before setting the total national RKAB. “They are obliged to consult on the total RKAB and the needs for state-owned enterprises. This must be followed up with the ESDM Ministry,” he said. On the other hand, he also assessed that the number of human resources at the Directorate General of Mineral and Coal is insufficient to handle the evaluation and approval process of RKABs.
“This supply shortage is also due to the weak or minimal human resources at the Directorate General of Mineral and Coal following the revision of the Minerba Law, which has resulted in slow RKAB approvals,” he added. Bambang stressed that the House had actually anticipated this issue through the revision of the Minerba Law. In the regulation, holders of Mining Business Permits (IUP) and Special Mining Business Permits (IUPK) are required to fulfil the needs of state-owned enterprises that control the livelihoods of many people, including the electricity sector. “If the ESDM colleagues implement this regulation or mandate properly, I think there will be no problem and it will not happen again,” he said.
Previously, the Directorate General of Mineral and Coal at the ESDM Ministry stated that it had approved 664 mineral and coal mining RKABs as of 12 June 2026. Director General of Mineral and Coal Tri Winarno stated that his team continues to make corrections and evaluate submitted documents to ensure mining activities proceed according to plan and adhere to good mining governance principles. “Every approval is granted after all required aspects are declared to have met the provisions,” he said in an official statement confirmed from Jakarta on Friday (17/6). Meanwhile, a number of other applications are still in the evaluation stage, depending on the completeness of documents and fulfilment of applicable requirements. The government ensures that all processes are carried out professionally, transparently, and accountably to guarantee mining activities comply with regulations and support sustainable mineral and coal resource management. Regulations regarding RKAB have been strengthened through Government Regulation Number 39 of 2025 and ESDM Ministerial Regulation Number 17 of 2025. All RKAB submissions are also made electronically through the integrated e-RKAB information system as part of digital transformation in minerba governance. Through this policy, the RKAB matrix has been simplified without reducing oversight of mining safety aspects, fulfilment of Non-Tax State Revenue (PNBP) obligations, use of mining services, community development and empowerment (PPM), and reclamation obligations.