Weda Bay Nickel Completes 4,140 Hectare Watershed Rehabilitation in North Maluku

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — PT Weda Bay Nickel has completed all mandatory watershed rehabilitation works covering 4,140 hectares across North Maluku on Wednesday, Jan 28, 2026 in Jakarta, reinforcing its commitment to responsible mining and environmental restoration. The program was declared successful by the Ministry of Forestry, supporting ecosystem recovery while integrating long term community benefits.

The Ministry of Forestry, through the Directorate General of Watershed Management and Forest Rehabilitation, confirmed the rehabilitation met all regulatory benchmarks under Ministerial Regulation No. 23 of 2021. Plant survival rates reached at least 95.16%, and the assessment was approved without additional corrective notes.

Forestry Permitting Supervisor Marudut Hutabalian said the rehabilitation program reflected the company’s long term vision rather than a compliance driven exercise. He said environmental recovery was designed to move in parallel with mining operations.

“This watershed rehabilitation is not merely about fulfilling regulatory obligations, but part of our long term vision to ensure mining operations run in harmony with ecosystem recovery,” Marudut said in Jakarta.

As a holder of forest area utilization permits, the company began its rehabilitation obligations in 2020. The activities were implemented in phases across five regencies, including Central Halmahera, West Halmahera, East Halmahera, South Halmahera, and North Halmahera.

The rehabilitation process covered land inventory, technical design preparation, planting, and maintenance during the first and second years. Maintenance activities included replanting, weed control, and fertilization to ensure plant survival and growth.

The program was executed in five phases, starting with 1,075 hectares in Central Halmahera in 2020. This was followed by 866 hectares in West and East Halmahera in 2022, 930 hectares in West Halmahera in 2024, 349 hectares in South Halmahera in 2024, and 920 hectares in North Halmahera in 2025.

Weda Bay Nickel planted a combination of timber species and non timber forest products to balance ecological restoration and future economic value. Timber species included nyatoh, matoa, gofasa, gosale, bintangur, gmelina, sengon laut, and trembesi.

Non timber forest products included nutmeg, durian, candlenut, cashew, duku, and rambutan. The company said these crops were selected to provide potential income streams for surrounding communities in the years ahead.

“The selection of non timber forest products such as nutmeg and durian is intended to ensure local communities can benefit economically from the restored forests in the future,” Marudut said.

With the completion of the rehabilitation obligation, the company expects watershed hydrological and ecological functions in North Maluku to gradually recover. The restored areas are also expected to contribute to national climate mitigation efforts through increased natural carbon absorption.