Potential for Electrification in the Mining Industry, Regulator Highlights This

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The Supervisory Board of the Indonesia Mining Association, Raden Sukhyar, views the importance of trial processes in applying electrification to the mining industry. This is because mining operational areas in Indonesia have varying terrains and landscapes.

“There are flat slopes and inclined ones, so trials are necessary. Usually, trials last six months or more. What we’ve seen as permanent implementations include not only the trucks we know on the surface but also electrification in underground mines,” he said at the EV Transition in Mining Industry Outlook 2026 “The Future of EVs in the Mining Industry: Between Efficiency and High Investment” event on Wednesday (29/4/2026).

For example, PT Freeport Indonesia has been using electric lorries to transport mined mineral products. Additionally, several other mining companies are commercially using electric vehicles (EVs) such as electric trucks.

Fundamentally, adopting EVs can provide benefits like fuel savings and reducing carbon emissions. In other words, using EVs in the mining industry will lower the negative environmental impact around operational areas.

Raden Sukhyar stated that they are also urging the government to reduce or exempt taxes on imports of mining electrification equipment. This is believed to reduce the investment burden for purchasing electric vehicles or heavy electrification equipment borne by mining companies.

“And the challenge we face is perhaps an appeal to the government; one company faced an import tax of 50%, but then it suddenly dropped to 26.6%. What does that mean? If we look at the financial regulations, I’m not sure— this can be checked— whether for electric vehicles like this, the tax is exempted,” he explained.

Additionally, the IMA is also urging that supporting electrification infrastructure be continuously improved. Especially since the Indonesian mining industry will eventually enter the phase of autonomous electrification.

For that reason, he stressed that there should be no blank spots in the implementation of electrification in the mining sector to ensure operational smoothness remains guaranteed. Ultimately, all stakeholders must commit to promoting electrification in mining operations in the country.