Environment Ministry Halts Martabe Mine Pending Audit
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JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — The Ministry of Environment and Forestry has temporarily halted operations at the Martabe gold mine on Friday, Dec 12, 2025 in Batang Toru, North Sumatra to conduct an environmental audit following recent natural disasters, a move aimed at assessing ecological risks and preventing further damage.
Deputy Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Yuliot Tanjung said the suspension was part of a broader review of environmental governance obligations and operational impacts in the disaster-prone area.
He said the audit was conducted while parts of North Sumatra were experiencing floods and landslides, prompting precautionary measures.
"All activities are being audited related to environmental management obligations and environmental impacts, so based on the recommendation of the Ministry of Environment, operations were temporarily stopped," Yuliot said at the Energy Ministry headquarters in Jakarta on Friday, Dec 12, 2025.
Yuliot said the audit also involved the Directorate of Environmental Engineering at the Directorate General of Minerals and Coal to examine on-site mining operations.
"So the environmental engineering team from the Energy Ministry and environmental officials are on the ground to observe how operations are being conducted, especially mining activities in disaster areas," he said.
The Martabe gold mine is operated by PT Agincourt Resources, a subsidiary of listed mining company United Tractors, and is located within the Batang Toru forest area in South Tapanuli, North Sumatra.
The mine was one of three entities ordered to suspend operations in the Batang Toru upstream forest zone, alongside a hydropower project developed by PT North Sumatera Hydro Energy and an oil palm plantation owned by state firm PT Perkebunan Nusantara III.
Earlier, Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq ordered all major companies operating upstream in the Batang Toru watershed to temporarily cease activities after floods and landslides hit parts of North Sumatra, West Sumatra, and Aceh.
"Starting Dec 6, 2025, all companies in the upstream Batang Toru watershed must stop operations and undergo environmental audits, and we summoned the three companies for official examinations on Dec 8, 2025 in Jakarta," Hanif said.
He said the Batang Toru and Garoga watersheds were strategic areas with ecological and social functions that could not be compromised.
The ministry found heavy ecological pressure in the upstream watershed and mandated a comprehensive audit as an emergency measure, particularly as extreme rainfall in the area had exceeded 300 millimeters per day.
Martabe mine operator PT Agincourt Resources said it was premature and inaccurate to directly blame the Martabe Gold Mine for the Garoga flash flood. The company said in a statement on Dec 2, 2025 that the disaster was driven by extreme rainfall and upstream watershed conditions based on field findings and verifiable data, while also saying it moved quickly to support emergency response and relief for affected communities.