According to Roelly Fransza, General Manager of Operations and Head of Mining Engineering at BSI, the award reflects the discipline and commitment of all BSI employees in implementing OHS across all operational activities, both at the Tujuh Bukit Gold Mine and the Tujuh Bukit Copper Project, which together form the Tujuh Bukit Operations (TBO).

Throughout 2025, BSI recorded 19.7 million work hours with zero lost time injuries and zero recordable injuries. This means no incidents occurred that required official reporting under mining safety standards.

This performance was further reinforced by a low Serious Potential Incident Frequency Rate (SPIFR) of 0.37—well below the target of <1.47. It demonstrates the company’s strong ability to manage major risks through effective systems, supervision, and disciplined work practices.

These achievements were previously announced during BSI’s National OHS Month ceremony at its operations site on 12 January 2026, two days before the provincial award was received. The 2026 National OHS Month program includes a series of strategic, promotional, and implementation-based activities, such as health webinars, BSI Fun Run, OHS Reflection Day, and the Internal Rescue Challenge.

“No production target is more important than human life,” said Roelly during the ceremony. He emphasized that everyone deserves to return home safely and in good health after work.

In 2026, BSI aims to take its OHS implementation to the next level under the theme On to the Next Level. The company has embedded Safety Beliefs and Duty of Care into its safety management system to further strengthen a safety-driven culture.

With a strong OHS foundation and continued commitment, BSI is determined to ensure that every worker at Tujuh Bukit Operations can work and return home safely.

Artikel Bumi Suksesindo Receives OHS Award from the Governor of East Java pertama kali tampil pada PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk.

PT Bumi Suksesindo (BSI), managing the Tujuh Bukit Gold Mine and the Tujuh Bukit Copper Project in Banyuwangi, East Java, marked the environmental day by planting tree saplings on June 4, 2024, a day ahead of the global celebration.

“Let us actively play our roles in ensuring the environment around the Tujuh Bukit mining operations is well-maintained,” stated Roelly Fransza, General Manager of Operations at BSI. “This includes proper waste disposal, reducing single-use plastics through the 3R approach (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), preventing hazardous material spills, and conserving water and electricity to uphold our shared commitment to energy conservation.”

Since 2016, BSI has reclaimed 75.57 hectares of land in the mining area. In 2023, BSI completed compensatory reforestation totalling 1,990.79 hectares, progressively turning over land since 2020, marking the largest compensation area by a private institution to the government at that time. The June 4 event at BSI also featured upcoming activities: mangrove planting at Candi Purwo, Tegaldlimo on July 5, 2024, and coral transplantation at Grand Watu Dodol, Bangsring on September 7, 2024.

Tree planting continued the next day, June 5, 2024, at the Wetar Copper Mine. On Wetar Island, Southwest Maluku, 85 employees and contractors, including Jimmy B. Suroto, Deputy General Manager, and Hidayat Purwoko, Head of Mining Engineering, planted native trees such as ketapang, cashew, sengon buto, and parna around the new Mining Department Partolang office building. The celebration at Wetar Copper Mine included a beach cleanup around the mining area on June 21, 2024, involving 102 employees, contractors, and Brimob, resulting in 35 kg of collected waste.

In Gorontalo, Sulawesi, the Pani Gold Project celebrated by hosting a seminar on innovative waste management in collaboration with Waste4Change, a social enterprise providing responsible waste management solutions. The seminar, featuring Khairunnisa Yusmalina Humaam, Senior Campaign Executive at Waste4Change, was attended by 104 employees and contractors of the Pani Gold Project.

In Central Sulawesi, PT Merdeka Tsingshan Indonesia (MTI), manager of the AIM (Acid, Iron, Metal) Project operating in the Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park, celebrated World Environment Day by planting 1,200 mangroves in Keurea Village, Bahadopi, Morowali. The planting of the Rhizophora mucronata mangroves was attended by government officials, security forces and representatives from Merdeka Group subsidiaries. The Head of the Morowali Regency Environmental Service, Elyta Gawi, highlighted MTI’s significant role in supporting Morowali Regency. The first Adipura award won by Morowali Regency in 2024 was largely due to MTI’s donation of the most trash cans in 2023. It is hoped that this mangrove planting will inspire other institutions to support environmental conservation efforts.

Meanwhile, at the PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk headquarters in Jakarta, the celebration was carried out through the Corporate Volunteer Program, Bakti Merdeka. This time, Bakti Merdeka partnered with SMP Muhammadiyah 8 Jakarta in a workshop to create biopores as a soil conservation solution. The workshop involved 92 eighth-grade students and 15 selected Merdeka employees, emphasizing environmental awareness among the younger generation—a pursuit aligned with Merdeka’s core value of sustainability.

*

Main photo: planting of saplings at the Tujuh Bukit Gold Mine.

Artikel The World Environment Day Celebrations by Merdeka Group pertama kali tampil pada PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk.

The Tujuh Bukit Copper Project, located beneath the surface of the Tujuh Bukit Gold Mine, is one of the world’s largest untapped copper reserve mining projects. Since 2018, Merdeka has made significant investments in developing this project. These investments include underground exploration of 1,890 meters, resource-defining drilling, geological modeling, and ongoing technical studies.

“The Tujuh Bukit Copper Project is a long-term mining project, spanning approximately 30-40 years. A large and reliable power supply is crucial to support mining activities that are expected to increase Indonesia’s copper production by 10% to 15%,” said BSI Director, Riyadi Effendy, commonly known as Teddy.

“PLN Jatim is ready to support the electricity needs of BSI’s mining operations, which is the largest PLN customer in East Java. The development of the power supply network for the Tujuh Bukit Copper Project will also increase the electricity supply to the communities in South Banyuwangi,” added Agus Kuswardoyo, General Manager of PLN East Java.

PLN Jatim will gradually deliver high-voltage electricity to BSI starting in 2026, with a total connected capacity of 280 megawatts over a span of 23 years.

“PLN is always ready to support the development of strategic industries like the Tujuh Bukit Copper Project, which will generate significant employment and contribute to the economic growth of Banyuwangi Regency,” said Edi Srimulyanti, Director of Retail and Commerce at PT PLN (Persero).

Both parties welcome the collaboration that will ensure a reliable and sustainable electricity supply for the Tujuh Bukit Copper Project, which is expected to bring significant benefits to the development of the mining industry in Indonesia.
*

Artikel 280 Megawatts of Electricity for the Tujuh Bukit Copper Project and South Banyuwangi pertama kali tampil pada PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk.

Currently, Merdeka has chosen to take over a mining operation with good potential. The next success is determined, among others, by the best people.

Camp Baganite looked deserted that day. For the last half-year, the camp, which is located on the back of Mount Pani, Gorontalo, has only been inhabited by four people, whose duties include maintaining the generator, managing water, and cooking. The pandemic left the camps under the Pani Gold Project practically empty. Initially, there was quite a lot of activity in the camp, which is about 30 kilometers north of Marisa City, the capital of Pohuwato Regency. There are about fifty employees who work there every shift, starting with ore, mapping, the environment, to logistics.

After the camp was closed, the activities of the employees changed. Technical personnel such as geologists, for example, are seconded to other sites belonging to the Merdeka Group in Banyuwangi and Wetar. Those who still survive change functions, who were originally medical personnel, for example, take care of the administration at Marisa’s office—which still employs ten people.

The pandemic is not the sole reason for reduced activity at Baganite. The lack of completion of the Merdeka negotiations with J Resources Asia Pacific Tbk (PSAB) until the third quarter of 2021 made the Pani Joint Venture unable to proceed according to the original plan. Previously, Merdeka had intended to work on the Pani IUP which contains mineral resources of 89.5 million tons at a gold grade of 0.82 g/t for 2.37 million ounces of gold separately. Similarly, PSAB through its subsidiary, Gorontalo Sejahtera Mining (GSM), also wants to separately develop the Pani Project which contains mineral resources of over 72.7 million tonnes at a gold grade of 0.98 g/t for 2.3 million ounces of gold. at a nearby location. On paper, the merging of the two projects will benefit both parties, the mineral reserves will be larger because there are no pit wall maintenance constraints. Unfortunately, the negotiations did not go smoothly and even had to continue until arbitration in Singapore.

The bright spot of change in early October 2021 began to occur when GSM was purchased by Andalan Bersama Investama, a subsidiary of Provident Indonesia—which among other things was owned by important shareholders in the Merdeka Group. With this latest situation, Merdeka Group can carry out a more comprehensive plan that can optimize results.

In Baganite, the change will arrive after the switch. The plan, there will be several new activities. It is estimated that 200 people will work in this camp for the initial stage. In other words, Baganite squirmed again.

Merdeka Group President Director Albert Saputro said that the company is always open and looking for new potential. For the Tujuh Bukit Gold Operation, for example, Merdeka took over the ownership of the Tujuh Bukit mine from a company that had previously explored but could not continue development. Likewise, with the Wetar Copper Operation, which was originally a gold mine—the previous company was not interested in developing its copper potential in it. Merdeka then entered the island in Southwest Maluku and carried out the Wetar Copper Operation, then extended its mining life by making the AIM (Acid, Iron, Metal) project. This step was taken because many mineral residues can still be developed to have added value, one of which is pyrite—the raw material for batteries. For this project, Merdeka collaborated with a competent party, Eternal Tsingshan Group Limited, and formed a joint company PT Merdeka Tsingshan Indonesia (MTI).

Merdeka is indeed more looking for something that has described its potential. Merdeka did not explore from the start, because the potential for greenfields in Indonesia itself was very small. Geological exploration in Indonesia has been carried out for a long time. Freeport exploration, for example, has been carried out since the Dutch colonial era. Before Merdeka was established, many had explored metal minerals in almost all corners of Indonesia.

The path that Merdeka has chosen to develop itself is different from that of mining companies in the past. In the past, it was common for a company to finance multiple explorations and it wouldn’t be a problem if many of them failed as long as they could find one resource that was truly champion.

“We chose good assets. So far, what is in Merdeka’s portfolio has proven our foresight. The copper potential in Tujuh Bukit is of the same class as Freeport and Batu Hijau. We also see a significant upward trend in electric vehicles in the future, that’s why we developed the AIM Project to support the development of the domestic electric vehicle industry,” said Albert.

By having these potential areas, Geology Manager BSI, Suyud Nugroho, believes that the company should be able to increase further exploration because this activity is the key to the sustainability of the mining company. For further exploration to be in line with the company’s vision, mission, and business development, there must be adequate human resources and equipment. “We must be able to manage old data with the help of the latest geological software,” said Suyud.

In addition, according to Suyud, companies must dare to invest their capital in human resource development. The ability of employees must be improved. Merdeka geologists need to conduct site visits to other mining areas outside Merdeka to add insight and experience. “Independence must ensure that it has a competent and certified geologist,” said Suyud.

Underground mining is the future of BSI and Merdeka. The porphyry reserves in Tujuh Bukit are massive, inferred ore resources reaching 1.9 billion tons and containing 8.7 million tons of copper and 28 million ounces of gold. Since 2018 until now, studies have been carried out on this potential. The tunnel has been built 1,800 meters long. Through this tunnel, the company takes rock samples for analysis. The drilling depth reaches 1,000 meters. “Currently it is still a pre-feasibility study,” said M. Hafid Rahadi, BSI Porphyry Study Project Geologist.

Currently, the tunnel depth is considered sufficient. The focus of the work is to collect as much data as possible from the underground. This data will determine the direction of the mining plan in Tujuh Bukit in the future. According to Hafid, there are six rigs from Indodrill currently operating. This number is deemed insufficient so the Underground Mining Department plans to increase it to 12 units next year. The addition of this rig is important because it involves accelerating data collection. The sooner the data is obtained, the sooner the project can reach the next stage, namely the feasibility study.

Albert Saputro believes that Merdeka will definitely survive and continue to grow because it has good and productive assets, can increase production competitively, and can reduce operating costs. “A very profitable example is the use of the heapleach method which makes production costs relatively low compared to other gold mines,” he said.

In addition, Merdeka, through the Wetar Copper Operation, is arguably the only company that exports copper, not as a concentrate that still needs to be reprocessed, but as copper plate. “That way the selling value becomes high,” said Albert. “Practically, copper from Wetar is a finished product. The copper plate can be directly processed, melted for various purposes as needed.”

Another reason that makes Albert confident is that Merdeka is always looking for the best people to manage every mining operation. That’s why there are projects that are self-operated and some are partnered. Because Merdeka has experience in the Seven Hills Operation, for example, everything can be handled by himself. However, for AIM Projects, the best option is to join the experts.

The best people that Merdeka recruits are not limited to those who work in the technical field. According to Titien Supeno, Director of Human Resources at Merdeka, the company has dedicated and capable employees. “That’s a big capital for the company to grow better,” said Titien.

Artikel Merdeka’s Potential and Growth pertama kali tampil pada PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk.

The pandemic is not over, operational challenges are always present. For Merdeka, the only option is to keep moving forward.

Twelve large buses crawled out of the gates of Pos 6 site PT Bumi Suksesindo (BSI). The buses contained BSI employees and their family members. “Today, we are going to Krikilan Glenmore Hospital for vaccinations,” said dr. R. Istiko Mahendra, company doctor, in mid-June.

The group arrived at their destination an hour and a half later. They headed straight for the west side of the hospital. In a tent that was set up specifically for this vaccination activity, the hospital has prepared a registration table and staff. Even though there were hundreds of people coming, they didn’t crowd because the chairs were arranged more than a meter apart. They also have to wear masks. In this place, people are asked to submit their ID cards and fill out a registration form.

For those who did not get a seat, the officers asked them to stay away, filling out forms around the area. “Keep your distance, yes,” the hospital official said through the loudspeaker.

Inside the building, the officers were waiting. They are divided into four sections according to their respective tasks: the screening section, the injection section, the certificate printing section, and the drug section. People who have already filled out the form immediately move on to the screening site. Here, officers measure the blood pressure of vaccinated participants and ask about their medical history. If there are no problems, they can be injected with a vaccine and then receive a certificate and medicine. Everyone was given paracetamol after being vaccinated. At Krikilan, employees receive the AstraZeneca vaccine. After this first stage of injection, they will be injected again 12 weeks later.

According to dr. Istiko, BSI collaborated with several agencies to vaccinate employees, including Bhakti Husada Krikilan Hospital, Ar Rohmah Jajag Hospital, Fatimah Hospital Banyuwangi, and the Banyuwangi Kodim. Companies take advantage of unused vaccine quotas because their targets have contraindications, have died, don’t want to be vaccinated, or have moved to another city. “We are targeting 95 percent of employees to be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Head of PT Bumi Suksesindo’s COVID-19 Task Force, Agus Purwanto, said that based on data as of July 28, 2021, 2,582 people had been vaccinated for the first phase, or 63 percent of the target of 4,099 people. In addition, 20 people have received the complete two-dose vaccine. The vaccine recipients consist of employees, contractors, and their families. “Most of them are still in the first stage of vaccination,” he said. Nevertheless, Agus is optimistic that the vaccination target will soon be achieved because the Gotong Royong vaccine has arrived.

The BSI Task Force hopes that this vaccination can contribute to accelerating the creation of group immunity, especially in Pesanggaran. “Because most of the employees and their families live in Pesanggaran,” said Agus.

Vaccination at BSI is a follow-up to the Merdeka group’s serious efforts to deal with COVID-19 for employees and their families. Apart from establishing a task force in each subsidiary, Merdeka also established a Vaccinee Committee Meeting consisting of representatives of the parent company and each subsidiary. This committee is tasked with pursuing vaccinations, one of which is by participating in the Mutual Cooperation Vaccine, a government vaccine program that is funded by business entities and legal entities independently. However, of the vaccines ordered for the needs of 6,668 people, Merdeka only received 2,000 doses of vaccine for a complete vaccination of 1,000 people. Therefore, the committee needs to distribute them carefully, adjusting to the conditions of each site.

In Pohuwato Regency, Gorontalo, the health facility appointed to handle the Peak Emas Tani Sejahtera (PETS) vaccination until the specified deadline in early July 2021 failed to obtain a P-Care application account from the Provincial Health Office. The BPJS Health application, which is used to record the recipients of the COVID-19 vaccine, is one of the conditions for the delivery of the Gotong Royong vaccine by Biofarma, which imports and distributes vaccines. Fortunately, vaccinations by the Gorontalo local government are already running. The Merdeka vaccine committee then directed 40 PETS employees to access the vaccination. However, hastening the vaccination is much better than waiting. Vaccines that cannot be delivered to PETS are transferred to other subsidiaries.

Banyuwangi’s situation is different. The local government vaccination program is already running. Even several hospitals in Banyuwangi still have quite a lot of vaccines that are unused and nearing their expiration date. The vaccine quota was then used by BSI. Considering these conditions, the Merdeka vaccine committee decided to send more vaccines to Batutua Kharisma Permai and Batutua Tembaga Raya (BKP-BTR) on Wetar Island, Southwest Maluku. The location is in remote Indonesia.

On July 4, 2021, Biofarma sent 2,000 doses of vaccines ordered by Merdeka to three locations of health care facilities that collaborate with Merdeka. A total of 176 doses of vaccine can be used for 88 BSI employees to Banyuwangi; 1,600 doses of vaccine (800 employees) for BKP-BTR in Wetar, and 224 doses of vaccine (112 employees) for Merdeka headquarters in Jakarta. The Gotong Royong vaccination is prioritized for employees whose work demands more intense interaction with many parties.

At the Merdeka headquarters, the first dose of Gotong Royong vaccination will be carried out starting July 8, 2021. Apart from relying on the Gotong Royong vaccine, employees of the Merdeka headquarters also access vaccines from various DKI Jakarta government programs. On July 28, 2021, 199 of the 242 employees of the Merdeka head office were recorded to have been vaccinated, either through the Gotong Royong vaccination or other routes. The next day, Merdeka headquarters employees began receiving the second dose of Gotong Royong vaccination.

Meanwhile, BKP-BTR has carried out the first dose of vaccination for a week since 16 July 2021 to all employees and contractors. The vaccination was carried out by the BKP-BTR Clinic paramedic team, in collaboration with Siloam Kupang Hospital and Lurang Health Center. According to Hotmonang F. Sitanggang, Senior Manager Commercial & Human Resources BKP-BTR, and dr. Agus Juanda at the BKP-BTR Clinic, on July 29, 2021, all the Gotong Royong vaccines from Merdeka for 800 people have been used—even not enough because the total vaccine recipients at BKP-BTR are 1,548 people, consisting of employees and contractors at the site. The second dose of vaccination will be carried out on August 6, 2021. Currently, BKP-BTR has also received an additional 42 doses of vaccine that are not used at Merdeka’s headquarters in Jakarta.

In Pohuwato, 37 of the total 44 PETS employees as of 26 July 2021 have been vaccinated through the local government’s vaccination program. Ten of them had received a complete two-dose vaccination. While 27 others have received the first dose of the vaccine. There are only 7 employees who have not received the vaccine. Two of them are COVID-19 survivors who must wait at least three months after testing negative to be vaccinated, one person has comorbidities or comorbidities that need further diagnosis to be vaccinated. The rest are waiting for vaccination in their respective domicile areas.

Merdeka continues to strive to procure vaccines for each of its employees, monitor the vaccination process in each of its subsidiaries, and educate the importance of vaccination to all relevant stakeholders. Vaccination is very important. After all, it will benefit employees, as well as the company because it can maintain the continuity of its operations. In addition, the company environment also benefits because more people have been vaccinated.

The construction of the buttress took place in the Pad A and Pad B areas. According to the Head of the HLO (Heap Leach Operation) Department, Hariadhi Anjar Kusuma, the buttress serves to strengthen the stability of the slopes when the ore is piled up again in that place. In addition, the construction team also installed a piezometer: a geotechnical instrument for measuring water content. With this tool, it is hoped that the occurrence of falling events can be mitigated earlier. Currently, there are still 6 of the 16 tools that will be installed. “Improvements in the heap leach are carried out in several phases by prioritizing operational needs so that the production process continues to run smoothly,” said Anjar.

In addition to repairs on Pad A and Pad B, the company is also accelerating the construction of new leachate reservoirs, namely PLS (pregnant leach solution) and ILS (intermediate leach solution). In general, the repair activities have been running by the production plan that has been targeted by the company. The biggest challenge is when the rainy season arrives, while the PLS and ILS pools have not yet been completed. Under such circumstances, the gold recovery process will be hampered because it is deluded by rainwater in the leach pad area. In conditions like this, more effort is needed to ensure production continues to run according to target.

In addition, the company is also in the process of obtaining a leach pad expansion permit (Pad C). “The total improvement of the leach pad has reached 63 percent,” said Anjar.

Meanwhile, the underground project is still at the pre-feasibility study stage. Workers are still taking samples for analysis. Drilling is carried out at various depths up to a maximum depth of 1,000 meters. It is hoped that this activity will confirm the mineral content, particularly gold and copper, underground. “If it is calculated until the start of production, underground projects are still 20 percent,” said Porphyry Study Project Geologist BSI, M. Hafid Rahadi.

Hafid continued, that the condition of the soft rock beneath the ground is the main obstacle that hinders the pace of project development. “So far it’s still on the track,” he said. However, there is a possibility that the project development timeframe could be longer than planned because the target is based on the project where the rock is harder while the rock in Tumpang Pitu is very soft.

The current length of the tunnel has reached 1,800 meters. Tunnel construction activities have been stopped since mid-2020. As planned, the addition of tunnel depth will be continued again next year on the condition that the data required at the current depth is sufficient.

The story from the Tujuh Bukit site in Banyuwangi is one of the many operational challenges that Merdeka Copper Gold has faced this year. And, Merdeka chose to keep moving forward. At the end of the first quarter of 2021, the good news came one of which was through a change in the composition of Merdeka’s board of directors which gave rise to a new leader.

At the Merdeka General Meeting of Shareholders on May 25, 2021, in Jakarta, Merdeka appointed Albert Saputro as the new President Director, replacing Tri Buwono who resigned. At a very young age, 35 years old, Albert was trusted to take Merdeka to a higher level. Albert himself is not new to the Merdeka environment. In the last five years, he has co-managed Merdeka’s investments through PT Saratoga Investama Sedaya Tbk, one of Merdeka’s largest shareholders. “It’s time for me to jump right in,” said Albert. He wants to play a role as a bridge for many parties and is very optimistic about Merdeka.

Another good news from Merdeka is that its performance is increasing. In the first quarter of 2021, Merdeka managed to generate revenue of US$ 46.55 million, which was largely due to increased gold and copper production by Merdeka’s subsidiaries.

Gold production in the first quarter of 2021 managed to reach 16,585 ounces, a significant increase compared to 5,355 ounces—the total production in the fourth quarter of 2020. In April, the first month of the second quarter of 2021, the accumulation of new ore in the Pad B area of ​​BSI caused gold production for that month to decline, from about 5,000 ounces in the previous month to about 4,000 ounces. However, after the ore stacking process was completed, monthly gold production immediately increased dramatically, bringing total gold production in the second quarter of 2021 to 37,779 ounces—more than double the gold production in the first quarter of 2021.

Meanwhile, copper production in the first quarter of 2021 managed to reach 2,489 tons, more than double the production in the fourth quarter of 2020, which was 1,017 tons. Copper production in the second quarter of 2021 continues to grow every month. Total copper production in the second quarter of 2021 reached 5,003 tons—more than double the production in the first quarter of 2021. This significant gradual increase is certainly good news for Merdeka.

Starting in the third quarter of 2021, Merdeka will continue to increase its gold and copper production, to achieve the total 2021 gold production target, which is between 100,000–120,000 ounces of gold and 14,000–17,000 tons of copper. That way, by the end of 2021, Merdeka is optimistic to increase its income, more than the previous year.

Apart from handling operational issues, Merdeka continues to develop projects that will improve the company’s performance to achieve its vision to become a leading mining company in Indonesia.

As a subsidiary of Merdeka, BSI is still collecting data to prepare a pre-feasibility study for underground copper mines or what is commonly known as an underground project. The ore potential under pit A Tujuh Bukit is no joke, it can reach 1.9 billion tons, consisting of 8.7 million ounces of copper and 28.3 million ounces of gold. The world-class ore content can be compared to Bukit Hijau copper in Sumbawa and Grasberg in Timika.

The exploration process, which began with infrastructure development and drilling completed in June 2020, was carried out to investigate the amount, shape, and grade of ore content—how high the copper content is, what associated minerals are, and to what extent these associated minerals add to its economic value. and no less important, how to transport it. The more data generated, the more basis for planning the most appropriate mining method, including measuring infrastructure requirements. Recording of the existing condition of the coastal environment is also carried out which will be the basis for future environmental monitoring activities.

BSI’s attention also falls on the process of separating copper, gold, and other minerals from mined ores. Because the underground rock structure is different from the oxide rock on the surface, it is estimated that the mineral extraction method of this underground mine will be different from the heap leach method currently being carried out at the Tujuh Bukit open pit.

The plan is that ore processing will be carried out through the process of crushing, grinding, flotation, and drying. This process aims to separate copper, gold, and other valuable minerals from the ore. The remainder of this separation process is called tailings, the material is in the form of fine sand left over from ore processing. Typically, tailings are stored in a special dam or Tailings Storage Facility (TSF). The tailings that have been deposited in the solid material settling pond in the dam will be processed first at the waste management installation, before finally when they are safe from hazardous chemicals, flowed into the river. Another method of tailings placement is Deep Sea Tailings Placement (DSTP), which is the placement of tailings in the deep sea using pipes. Gravity and deep-sea currents will keep the tailings on the deep-sea floor. Deep-sea water has a low dissolved oxygen level, which inhibits the possibility of tailings chemical reactions occurring.

Currently, BSI is considering which tailings placement method is the most appropriate and environmentally safe. The results of the pre-feasibility study are planned to be completed by the end of 2021, and to be submitted to the government for an operating permit.

In Morowali, Central Sulawesi, Merdeka will begin the development of an existing operation, marked by the completion of a feasibility study for the Acid, Iron, Metal (AIM) Project. This project is a further innovation from the Batutua Kharisma Permai and Batutua Tembaga Raya copper mining and processing companies (BKP-BTR).

As in the Tujuh Bukit operation, BKP as a copper mining company also applies an open-pit mine. BKP also uses the heap leach method to extract copper content. It is the extracted copper that has been transferred to BTR to be processed into copper plates.

However, upon closer inspection, it turns out that not all mineral content can be extracted from the leachate. The fine rock or ore that is piled up in the leachate still contains residual minerals of economic value, one of which is pyrite—the raw material for batteries. This opens a new opportunity to extract the remaining ore piles in the leachate which will become a new source of income for Merdeka.

To that end, Merdeka cooperated with Eternal Tsingshan Group Limited and established PT Merdeka Tsingshan Indonesia (MTI) which will run and operate the AIM Project, with a composition of 80 percent owned by Merdeka and 20 percent by Tsingshan.

MTI will be established in an industrial complex in Morowali, consisting of various factories that will be the consumers of most of the mineral content extracted by MTI. That way, the presence of MTI will add to the production chain in Wetar. BKP mines and produces copper extract, while the results are then processed into copper plates by BTR. Meanwhile, the remaining ore from leaching at BKP will be transported by MTI to be processed and the product sold to factories that are still in the same complex as MTI.

Currently, Merdeka is in the process of obtaining permits for the establishment of the MTI factory, as well as establishing a special port to transport ore from the BTR leachate to MTI. It is planned that the construction of the MTI plant will begin in the second quarter of 2021. MTI is targeted to start production in the fourth quarter of 2022.

“Freedom’s investment in the AIM project is approximately USD 300 million over two years, with USD 100 million to be executed in 2021. AIM’s products to be commercialized are sulfuric acid and steam with expected revenue of USD 170 million per year for more than 20 years, “said Albert Saputro, President Director of Merdeka.

Meanwhile, the negotiations between Merdeka and J Resource regarding the gold mining plan in Pani are still ongoing. If running smoothly, the Pani Project is projected to produce more than 250,000 ounces of gold per year for 15 years.

Albert Saputro believes that the Merdeka Group will undergo an important transition in the next ten years to become a larger company to support new developments in operations and projects in the future, with a longer operating life. He also imagines that Merdeka can always be an option for anyone who wants to cooperate in mineral mining projects. “I want us to be partners of choice.”

In the last two years, the Merdeka Group has never been free from challenges. However, with the immediate completion of the repair of the leachate platform and the construction of a new leachate reservoir at BSI, the potential for production of the BSI underground project, and the commencement of construction of the AIM project in Morowali, Albert is optimistic about the future of Merdeka. According to Albert, the key to that vision is to continue to be professional and everyone must be held accountable. “Both are a reflection of respect,” said Albert.

Artikel Strengthening the Foundation for Merdeka’s Future pertama kali tampil pada PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk.