Jakarta. The government has granted the country’s largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) the concession to manage 26,000 hectares of coal mine.

The government has allowed religious groups to manage mining concessions, and NU is among the organizations who already accepted the offer.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo summoned executives of the Nahdlatul Ulama executive board (PBNU) to the State Palace in Jakarta on Thursday to confirm the concession.

According to PBNU’s chairman Yahya Cholil Staquf, his organization will get a mine concession that previously belonged to Kaltim Prima Coal -- a Bakrie Group subsidiary. This mine lies in East Kalimantan.

“Only a part [of the mine] has been explored so it is still at a nascent stage. We still don’t know [the mine’s] full potential because the exploration is still very limited. But we can already begin production while also continuing the mine exploration,” Yahya said.

The mining exploration --which seeks to help determine if there are minerals under the ground– will begin in January 2025.

“We will begin the mining activities as soon as the government issues the permit. We hope to start working in 2025. The permit is ready and legal,” Yahya said.

He admitted that PBNU had yet to determine who would operate the mine while telling the press that the organization would announce the details “when the time comes”. PBNU is also still in talks regarding the technical aspects, including whether the group will also domestically process what they mine into higher value-added goods.

“We still have not reached that point of domestic processing. The permit has yet to be signed, and we are still currently coordinating things with NU-affiliated business networks to decide our next steps,” Yahya said.

“But we would like to thank Mr. President for this mining concession and the permit. We are ready to set up the mining business.”

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