Provincial Government Says Central Government Approves 11 Community Mining Sites in Banten
Head of the Banten Provincial Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Office, Ari James, stated that the central government has approved 11 community mining areas in Banten Province. However, the technical management details are still awaiting guidance from the Ministry of ESDM.
Ari James explained that Banten initially proposed more than 1,000 hectares or 32 Community Mining Area (WPR) points. The central government only approved 11 points, comprising approximately 528 hectares of WPR in Lebak Regency and 26 hectares of WPR in Pandeglang Regency.
"These are clear and clean. They are not on top of other company mining permits, nor in conservation or protected areas," Ari said on Friday (26/6/2026).
Nevertheless, implementation is still awaiting technical guidelines from the ministry, expected by the end of this year. Following that, a Regional Regulation (Perda) will be enacted, a process currently in the stage of drafting the Academic Paper (Naskah Akademik), conducting focus group discussions with relevant stakeholders, and subsequently establishing the type of business entity.
"So if anyone is encouraging the public to form a cooperative business entity for this WPR, I can confirm that is not from us, because we are also still waiting for technical guidelines from the ministry," he clarified.
Meanwhile, Governor Andra Soni also stressed that the public cannot yet form business entities to manage the WPR. The Banten Provincial Government is still awaiting direction from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.
Andra Soni received complaints that some residents around the mines in South Banten were being asked to form cooperatives by certain parties. Andra wanted to clarify this information.
"This needs to be straightened out. The province has not issued any appeal to the public to form such business entities for WPR management before the technical guidelines are issued by the ministry," Andra Soni said.
Andra urged the communities around the mines to remain calm. He appealed to residents not to be provoked by unverified information.
According to Andra, President Prabowo Subianto’s policy aims to ensure that communities around mining areas can achieve equitable economic justice. Furthermore, the public can be directly involved in managing the natural resources in their respective regions.
"The priority for communities around the mines is not to become rich and have a lot of money. They simply want to survive and have a steady livelihood from the land they inhabit," he explained.
He committed to overseeing the mining policy to ensure it is truly on target, in line with President Prabowo’s objectives. Regarding the formation of cooperatives, Andra will investigate further.
"Concerning the obligation to form cooperatives, we will check the situation on the ground. This may include setting up a special desk in the future to provide information and serve as a public complaint centre related to WPR," he explained.