Revenue Falls 22.8%, Merdeka Copper Gold Narrows Losses and Lifts EBITDA

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk or MDKA reports a 22.8% drop in revenue in the third quarter of 2025 on Saturday, Dec 20, 2025 in Jakarta, but the miner says disciplined cost control and stronger margins helped narrow net losses and lift earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.

The company posted revenue of $1.28 billion in the nine months to September, down 22.81% year on year, while net losses narrowed 48.13% to $34.75 million. Over the same period, EBITDA rose 33% to $295 million, highlighting what management described as improving operational resilience.

President Director Albert Saputro said the results reflected progress across Merdeka’s diversified portfolio despite softer topline performance. “The performance in the first nine months of this year reflects the strength of Merdeka’s diversified portfolio and our continued focus on profitability and execution quality,” Albert said on Saturday.

The EBITDA improvement was supported by higher average realized gold prices, a sharp rise in gold margins to 59%, and efficiency measures across Merdeka’s integrated nickel value chain. Management said tighter operational discipline helped offset the impact of lower revenue.

At its Pani Gold Mine, developed by PT Merdeka Gold Resources Tbk, the company has entered the ore stacking phase, a key milestone toward initial production. Management said the project remains on track to begin gold production in the first quarter of 2025.

Albert said the company was also working to raise throughput beyond earlier guidance. “This approach allows higher processing capacity to be achieved earlier than originally planned and supports the potential acceleration of peak production at the Pani Gold Mine to 500,000 ounces per year,” he said.

The feasibility study for the Pani carbon in leach project, targeted for completion in the first quarter of 2026, is now being prepared based on a processing capacity of 12 million tons. This replaces the earlier plan that would have started operations at 7.5 million tons before ramping up gradually.

Merdeka expects both the Tujuh Bukit Gold Mine and the Pani Gold Mine to contribute meaningfully to higher gold output and cash flow next year. The company said these assets would be central to its near-term growth trajectory.

In the nickel segment, operations under PT Merdeka Battery Materials Tbk continued to show solid momentum. At the Sulawesi Cahaya Mineral mine, saprolite production rose 89% year on year, while limonite output increased 51%.

Production of nickel pig iron was lower, but management said margins remained healthy. Meanwhile, the Acid Iron Metal project operated by PT Merdeka Tsingshan Indonesia is on track to reach full production across its pyrite, acid, chloride metal, and copper cathode facilities by the end of 2025.

In high pressure acid leach operations, PT ESG New Energy Material increased mixed hydroxide precipitate production to 7,181 tons and recorded sales of 7,554 tons in the third quarter. Construction of the HPAL plant at PT Sulawesi Nickel Cobalt, designed for 90,000 tons of nickel per year in MHP form, is progressing as scheduled, with first-line commissioning targeted for mid-2026.

“Going forward, Merdeka will continue to prioritize disciplined capital allocation, operational excellence, and the timely completion of projects,” Albert said. He added that the company’s liquidity position and clear visibility on near-term production growth provided a solid foundation for long-term value creation.