On 12 September, Indonesia’s Satgas Penertiban Kawasan Hutan (Satgas PKH, Task Force for Forest-Area Enforcement) took control of 148.25 hectares within PT Weda Bay Nickel’s (WBN) concession, citing the absence of a required forestry “borrow-to-use” permit (IPPKH).

According to energy and mining ministry official, Rilke Jeffri Huwae, whilst WBN holds a valid mining permit, the company lacked the necessary forestry approval for this portion of land. Satgas PKH, established under Presidential Regulation No. 5/2025, has the authority to impose administrative fines and reclaim forest areas operated without proper permits.

Eramet, a shareholder in WBN, clarified that the reclaimed land is a quarry for construction and maintenance rather than ore extraction, meaning that the action will not materially impact mining operations in North Maluku.

The market reacted with heightened sensitivity. Benchmark three-month nickel on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose by 1.32% on Friday morning, reaching US$15,350/t.  Since late August, LME nickel prices have shown similar volatility in response to Indonesian headlines.

Amid a serious protest across major Indonesian cities (25 August–1 September), cash nickel prices rose from US$14,925/t to US$15,265/t, relating to concerns over potential disruption, before easing back to US$14,900/t by 11 September.

The latest price uptick is expected to be similarly short-lived. The affected area represents roughly 1% of North Maluku’s nickel ore mining quota and does not constrain ore supply.

Structural fundamentals in the nickel market remain bearish, with Indonesia continuing to push significant volumes of nickel intermediates into the market and demand from nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) battery materials proving much weaker than anticipated.

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