MHU says post-mining pit provides clean water for 582 families
Coal mining company PT Multi Harapan Utama (MHU) has stated that the use of a post-mining pond in Sungai Payang Village, Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan, has provided access to clean water for 582 households.
MHU President Director Kemal Djamil Siregar said the use of the post-mining pond, or void, is part of the Community Development and Empowerment Programme (PPM), which is directed at ensuring post-mining assets can continue to provide benefits to the community.
“We do not only see the void as part of the post-mining process, but as an asset whose benefits can be returned to the community,” Kemal said in an official statement received in Jakarta on Monday.
The clean water facility uses three hydram pump units that utilise the kinetic energy of water, allowing them to operate without electricity or fuel, as well as a Water Treatment Plant (WTP) with a capacity of 126 cubic metres.
The water distribution network reaches more than 3.6 kilometres and serves three hamlets in Sungai Payang Village, namely Donomulyo, Sentuk, and Rempanga.
The management of the facility also involves the village-owned enterprise BUMDes Payang Sejahtera as part of efforts to enable the community to play a role in the sustainability of the clean water service.
In addition to managing the water service, BUMDes Payang Sejahtera has developed a number of business units, including catering, laundry, housekeeping, and a compost factory.
MHU recorded that the BUMDes’ turnover increased from Rp4.6 billion in 2019 to Rp27.6 billion in 2023, following business development and mentoring that has been running since 2017.
“Our target is not to make the community dependent on the company, but to build a village economic institution that is able to stand and develop independently,” said Kemal.
The Kutai Kartanegara Regency Government has previously also noted BUMDes Payang Sejahtera as one of the BUMDes implementing a partnership pattern with the business sector.
The Kutai Kartanegara Community and Village Empowerment Agency (DPMD) in 2024 assessed that the partnership has contributed to increasing the economic activity of the local community.
Another empowerment programme is carried out through Rumah Cokelat Lung Anai in Lung Anai Village, Loa Kulu District, which develops the community’s cocoa commodity through processing from beans into value-added products.
Based on MHU data, more than 100 farmers involved in the programme have experienced an income increase of up to fivefold.
Fermented dry cocoa is sold in the range of Rp120,000 to Rp150,000 per kilogram, compared with wet beans which were previously in the range of Rp25,000 to Rp30,000 per kg.
The company recorded that 12 local women are also involved in cocoa processing activities, while the programme development involves the Lalut Isau Farmers Group, BUMDes, the Kutai Kartanegara Plantation Agency, the Yayasan Peduli Desa Nusantara Madani, and the Faculty of Agriculture of Kutai Kartanegara University.
The post-mining clean water programme, the strengthening of BUMDes Payang Sejahtera, the strengthening of KUBE Koetai Harapan Utama, and Rumah Cokelat Lung Anai are part of MHU’s PPM introduced at the Investortrust CSR Awards 2026 in Jakarta on Thursday (27/8).
MHU received the Impactful Program Awards at the event. The organiser stated that the 2026 CSR assessment refers to four pillars, namely measurable impact, resilience, inclusiveness, and the programme’s ability to produce sustainable change.