The Sensation of Discovering 30,000 Tonnes of Gold in Banten, Plundered by Foreigners

One of the most sought-after instruments among the public is gold. This precious metal is regarded as a safe haven, despite its price fluctuations being quite extreme in recent times.

Speaking of gold, it turns out that history records a massive gold discovery in the past in an area near Jakarta. The Cikotok region in Banten is said to have produced a total of 30,000 tonnes of gold. This find not only brought a windfall but also became a crucial milestone that opened a new era in the national gold mining industry.

Initially, the colonial government had long heard rumours of a gold source area south of Batavia (now Jakarta), named Cikotok, located in the Banten administrative region. If calculated, Cikotok is quite close to the centre of Batavia. Only 200 km away.

This news clearly astonished people because it would be highly profitable. Therefore, to avoid it being dismissed as fantasy, the government conducted geological research led by Dutch researcher W.F.F. Oppenoorth.

Since 1919, Oppenoorth and his team set off from Sukabumi to traverse the forests of Java to the point considered the gold source. The survey was accompanied by road and tunnel openings in case gold mining could be carried out.

In short, Oppenoorth’s research yielded results. It turned out to be true; the Cikotok area contained an extremely abundant gold source. However, mining was not easy to conduct. The government had to clear forests and open many new tunnels.

In 1928, a total of 25 tunnels were successfully built. These cut through steep hills, highlands, and narrow valleys.

“Approximately 25 tunnels have now been built, only some of which have a depth of no more than 135 metres,” wrote the Sumatra-bode daily (2 March 1928).

The costs incurred were not insignificant. It was recorded that the government spent 80,000 guilders, equivalent to billions of rupiah, per year.

However, the expenditure proved commensurate with the results obtained. Finally, in March 1928, the long-circulating gold rumours were uncovered. In Cikotok, 30,000 tonnes of gold hidden underground were successfully discovered.

“Up to now, 30,000 tonnes of gold have been found from Cikotok,” wrote Sumatra-bode.

Fallen into the Hands of the Colonisers

Since that discovery, practically all of Indonesia was abuzz because the government would receive abundant profits. Afterwards, the colonial government granted operational rights to NV Mijnbouw Maatschappij Zuid Bantam.

From there, gold mining was carried out on a massive scale. The mine transportation routes were not only accessed from Sukabumi. According to the de Indische Courant daily (25 July 1939), the colonial government built new access from Rangkasbitung and Pelabuhan Ratu.

Additionally, a factory with a capacity of 20 tonnes per day was built. However, the factory could not accommodate all the gold exploitation results because there were so many. Even during the work, the labourers often found gold of varying weights.

“During the work, gold of various weights was often found. The highest reaching 126 grams,” wrote de Indische Courant (25 July 1939).

In 1933, gold mining had already recorded good figures. A 400 km² mining area was recorded in Cikotok. Gold could be obtained by digging just 50 metres. Even the government could obtain much larger gold.

“The amount of gold revealed from exploration totals more than 61,000 tonnes of gold with a value of 3.68 billion guilders,” wrote de Locomotief (29 March 1933).

Nevertheless, the abundance of gold only benefited one party, namely the colonial government. They became increasingly wealthy. Meanwhile, the indigenous population received no benefits or welfare from the gold mining, even though the colonial government had promised welfare for the natives.

In short, the Cikotok gold source became the largest gold mine ever owned by the colonial government, continuing into the Republic of Indonesia government. In the independence era, the Cikotok gold mine was taken over by NV Perusahaan Pembangunan Pertambangan and then continued by PT Aneka Tambang in 1974.

The history of the Cikotok gold mine had to end in 2005 because its gold content was exhausted. Although depleted, the glory of the Cikotok gold mine was continued by a larger gold mine, namely Freeport in Papua.