Beneath the Beauty: The 2025 Nickel Crisis in Raja Ampat

June 2025 was a horrible month, or perhaps the nightmare had quietly begun even earlier. The news broke when Greenpeace Indonesia, an independent environmental organization, launched the #SaveRajaAmpat campaign. What exactly happened?

Raja Ampat. Photo from @ilhampid on X

At first glance, it seems breathtaking. But on closer look, it’s heartbreaking. Why? Let’s take a look at the full picture.

Nickle mining in Raja Ampat

This is what’s currently happening in Raja Ampat. That’s not just a patch of red soil — it’s a gaping wound carved into Gag Island, one of the ecological jewels of the archipelago.

Nickel Mining in Raja Ampat

Why would anyone choose to destroy such natural beauty? The answer, unfortunately, is money— through nickel mining. In 2022, Indonesia held the largest nickel reserves in the world, around 21 million metric tons, accounting for over 20% of global reserves (Setyawan et al., 2024). According to PT Antam’s 2022 annual report, Gag Island alone holds approximately 42 million dry tonnes of nickel ore.

Nickel and the Green Paradox

Nickel is essential for producing lithium-ion batteries, particularly for electric vehicles (EVs). The global shift toward sustainable transportation has caused a surge in demand. The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that nickel demand for EV batteries will grow 19-fold by 2040 compared to 2020 levels.

Since 2019, the Indonesian government has accelerated the adoption of Battery Electric Vehicles (KBLBB) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. The Ministry of Transportation has set ambitious targets: to electrify 90% of urban mass transport by 2030, 100% by 2040, and all public transport — including angkot — by 2045 (ITDP, 2024).

While EVs aim to reduce carbon emissions, the extraction of the raw materials needed to produce them — especially in fragile ecosystems — often results in deforestation, soil erosion, coral reef sedimentation, and the displacement of indigenous communities.

Poor Mining Governance in Indonesia

In theory, mining companies are legally required to restore land once mining operations conclude. In reality, most don’t. According to a 2022 investigation by Tempo, a major news magazine in Indonesia, and WALHI, the country’s largest environmental organization, only about 25% of mining companies in Indonesia fulfill their reclamation obligations. What about the remaining 75%?

Revocation of Mining Permits

On June 6, the President led a limited cabinet meeting to discuss mining business permits (IUP) in Raja Ampat. Following the meeting and with presidential approval, the government decided to revoke the IUPs of four companies operating in Raja Ampat Regency, announced Minister of Investment and Head of the BKPM, Bahlil Lahadalia (CNN Indonesia, 2025).

The four companies whose permits were revoked are PT Kawei Sejahtera Mining, PT Mulia Raymond Perkasa, PT Anugerah Surya Pratama, and PT Nurham.

A sigh of relief? Not quite. These four companies had not yet begun operations. In contrast, PT Gag Nikel, who is actively mining and contributing to the destruction of Gag Island’s, was allowed to continue its operations. The decision leaves a contradiction in the government’s commitment to environmental protection.

Between Progress and Preservation

The scars on Gag Island raise a question: does progress always have to come at the cost of nature? As the world demands more nickel for electric vehicles and green energy, we need to look at better ways of getting it — without destroying places like Raja Ampat.

One alternative is agromining, or phytomining. This technique uses special plants to absorb nickel from the soil. The plants are harvested, and the metal is extracted from their biomass. It’s slower than conventional mining but doesn’t require digging or deforestation — and may even help restore damaged lands (van der Ent et al., 2015).

Another method is biomining, where microbes such as Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans are used to break down rocks and release metals naturally. This approach, already used in copper and gold extraction, is now being explored for nickel (Johnson, 2014).

Even if conventional mining continues, it doesn’t have to leave behind a wasteland. With stricter regulations, smarter monitoring, and mandatory reclamation enforcement, mining can be held to higher environmental standards.

These innovations show that we do have choices. The issue isn’t just whether we mine, but how we mine. Will we keep harming fragile ecosystems in the name of green progress? Or will we find a way to protect the planet’s future?

Reference:

• CNN Indonesia. (2025, June 11). Daftar 4 perusahaan nikel yang dicabut izinnya oleh Prabowo. https://www.cnnindonesia.com/ekonomi/20250611113307-85-1238512/daftar-4-perusahaan-nikel-yang-dicabut-izinnya-oleh-prabowo
• Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) Indonesia. (2024, June). Electrification: A momentum for public transport reform. https://itdp-indonesia.org/2024/06/electrification-a-momentum-for-public-transport-reform/
• Johnson, D. B. (2014). Biomining — biotechnologies for extracting and recovering metals from ores and waste materials. Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 30, 24–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copbio.2014.04.008
• Setyawan, E., Surjosatyo, A., Gultom, I. M. E., Setyanto, P., & Nugroho, F. (2024). Review of nickel supply and demand, resources, extraction technologies, and Indonesia’s roles. Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering, 9, 100944. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cscee.2024.100944
• van der Ent, A., Baker, A. J. M., Reeves, R. D., Pollard, A. J., & Schat, H. (2015). Agromining: Farming for Metals in the Future? Environmental Science & Technology, 49(8), 4773–4780. https://doi.org/10.1021/es506031u
• WALHI. (2022). Tambang Gagal Reklamasi: Jejak Lubang di Ujung Izin. Tempo.co