Sulawesi: mining permits and environmental impact

First metal on Talaud

Leang Tuwo Mane'e, Karakelang · copper

Early Metal layers held a small copper or bronze bell, a plate and a ring. The bell resembles a Sa-Huynh piece from Vietnam, so Bellwood dated metal use on Talaud to about 2,000 years ago.

Limit: Metal objects prove trade and use, not local ore mining.

Source: Peter Bellwood (1976) Archaeological research in Minahasa and the Talaud Islands, northeastern Indonesia · Asian Perspectives 19(2) (1976, publ. 1978), pp. 240-288 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Submerged iron-working village in Lake Matano

Pulau Ampat, Lake Matano, Luwu Timur · iron

Divers found the remains of an iron-working village on the floor of Lake Matano. Radiocarbon dates show iron ore was smelted here from the 8th century AD. It is the first underwater study of iron production in Asia.

Limit: The date applies to this one site; the scale of production is unknown.

Source: Shinatria Adhityatama; R.R. Triwurjani; Suryatman; David Bulbeck et al. (2022) Pulau Ampat site: A submerged 8th century iron production village in Matano Lake, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Archaeological Research in Asia · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Copper cast on Salibabu

Salibabu and Karakelang · copper

In the Leang Buidane burial cave, 2 km northwest of Lirung, Bellwood found 11 copper or bronze objects, a copper socketed axe, 4 baked-clay casting moulds, 3 iron pieces and carnelian and agate beads from India. One mould is dated to about 960 years ago. A second cave on Karakelang holds the same kind of finds.

Limit: Bellwood: the copper items were clearly cast locally, but the metal may be imported scrap. No local copper or tin source is known.

Source: Peter Bellwood (1976) Archaeological research in Minahasa and the Talaud Islands, northeastern Indonesia · Asian Perspectives 19(2) (1976, publ. 1978), pp. 240-288 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Iron and goats on Kabaruan

Leang Buida, west coast of Kabaruan · iron

At the Leang Buida dwelling cave researchers found 14 iron fragments in the top layer, two trade-ceramic sherds and many fish and shell remains. Goat teeth and bones from a layer of about AD 1000 show that goats had reached Talaud by then.

Limit: The iron shows use, not local smelting or iron ore.

Source: Rintaro Ono, Sriwigati and Joko Siswanto (2018) Development of marine and terrestrial resource use in the Talaud Islands AD 1000-1800, northern Sulawesi region · In: O'Connor, Bulbeck & Meyer (eds), The Archaeology of Sulawesi, Terra Australis 48, ANU Press, pp. 243-266 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Centuries of iron smelting at Nuha and Matano

Nuha and Matano village, Lake Matano, Luwu Timur · iron

The OXIS project excavated smelting debris, tuyères and charcoal at Matano and Nuha in 1998–1999. The lowest layer at Nuha dates to the 11th–13th century, the top to the 17th century or later. Iron was smelted through most of the second millennium AD.

Limit: Radiocarbon dates carry ranges of centuries.

Source: David Bulbeck; Ian Caldwell (2000) Land of Iron: The Historical Archaeology of Luwu and the Cenrana Valley (OXIS project results) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Luwu named in the Majapahit poem

Luwu (Gulf of Bone) · iron

The Javanese poem Desawarnana (Nagarakertagama) of 1365 lists Luwu among lands under Majapahit influence. It is the oldest written mention of Luwu. Historians see the iron trade as one reason for the link with Java.

Limit: The poem names Luwu, not the iron; the iron-trade link is a scholarly interpretation.

Source: David Bulbeck; Ian Caldwell (2000) Land of Iron: The Historical Archaeology of Luwu and the Cenrana Valley (OXIS project results) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Gold from North Sulawesi to Ternate

Siau and the North Sulawesi coast · gold

Soon after 1512 the Portuguese writer Tomé Pires recorded traders from Siau bringing gold to Ternate. The Spaniard Urdaneta (1526–1535) wrote that 'Celebes' sent gold to Maluku every year. These are the oldest written records of gold from the north.

Limit: The sources do not say exactly where the gold was mined.

Source: David Henley (1993) A Superabundance of Centers: Ternate and the Contest for North Sulawesi. Cakalele 4: 39-60 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

VOC sources on Luwu iron

Luwu and Lake Matano · iron

VOC official Speelman in 1670 was the first European to record iron exports from Luwu. In the same century Rumphius wrote that Matano iron was nearly as good as steel. Until the early 20th century Matano iron tools were traded to Maluku.

Source: David Bulbeck; Ian Caldwell (2000) Land of Iron: The Historical Archaeology of Luwu and the Cenrana Valley (OXIS project results) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

North Sulawesi under the VOC

Manado, Minahasa, Sangihe, Gorontalo · gold

Between 1677 and 1681 Sangihe, Minahasa and the peninsula from Gorontalo eastwards came under the VOC. The Company then bought goods such as gold, turtleshell and wax directly from local producers.

Source: David Henley (1993) A Superabundance of Centers: Ternate and the Contest for North Sulawesi. Cakalele 4: 39-60 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Beo: epidemic and a 'wooden age'

Beo, Karakelang · iron

At Beo Hickson heard that of nearly 9,000 people in the area 3,000 had died within a few months; the raja too was dead. He visited the old missionary Richter. Hickson wrote that the Talaud people lived in a 'wooden age', with wooden spears and shields, because there was 'no iron and no copper'.

Limit: This concerns material culture, not geology; archaeology shows old metal use. A local historian gives 25 May 1885 as Richter's death date, which conflicts with Hickson.

Source: Sydney J. Hickson (1889) A Naturalist in North Celebes: a narrative of travels in Minahassa, the Sangir and Talaut Islands · Chapter VII, pp. 152-172 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Over 13 tonnes of gold from Paleleh and Totok

Paleleh (Buol) and Ratatotok (Minahasa Tenggara) · gold

The colonial mines of Paleleh and Totok (Ratatotok) together produced over 13 tonnes of gold. It came from quartz lodes and eluvial deposits.

Limit: The figure is a total; no split by mine or year in this source.

Source: S.L. Garwin (1996) The settings and styles of gold mineralization in Southeast Asia. Geological Society of Malaysia, Annual Geological Conference '96 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Lease on Kabaruan to win gold

Kaboeroean (Kabaruan) · gold

The commander of the Edi made a 75-year lease contract with the Siau rajaship over part of Kaboeroean, at 15 cents per bouw per year. He wanted to win gold there, presuming it existed because of 'gold-bearing stones'. The Sumatra-Courant repeated the report on 17 November 1898.

Limit: No assay, location, workings or production are known; the second paper repeats the same report.

Source: De Locomotief (correspondent) (1898) Van Menado · repeat: Sumatra-Courant 17-11-1898, Delpher ddd:011188519:mpeg21:a0004; ESMI copy historical-evidence/1898-delpher-kabaruan-gold-prospect-ocr.xml · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Talaud men in the Totok gold mine

Talaud Islands (origin of labourers) · gold

The Colonial Report of 1899 says the Totok mining company, holding a gold concession in Minahasa, had about 225 workers, partly from the Talaud Islands. Talaud men were not used to mine work. At an exploration company, coolies from Java and Talaud deserted.

Limit: The mines were in Minahasa, not on Talaud. It says nothing about ore on Talaud itself.

Source: Minister van Koloniën (1899) Koloniaal verslag van 1899, Bijlage C · Kamerstuk TK 1899-1900 nr. 5.2, Bijlage C (pdf p. 201); also Indische Mijnwet, TK 1898-1899 nr. 15.11 p. 1 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Talaud people sought as mine labour

Talaud Islands (origin of labourers)

A July 1898 rule allowed people from the Sangi and Talaud Islands to be recruited as contract labourers for agriculture or mining in the Residency of Menado. In 1899 a gold-mining company at Kwandang–Sumalata wrote that it was trying to bring in coolies from the Sangi and Talaud Islands.

Limit: The mines were on the mainland (Gorontalo), not on Talaud; numbers of Talaud workers are unknown.

Source: Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad (1898) Nederlandsch-Indië, Batavia 13 Juli 1898 · Soerabaijasch Handelsblad 1-7-1899, Delpher ddd:011136057:mpeg21:a0054 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Siboga expedition: the 'concession craze' reaches Kabaruan

Lirung (Salibabu); Kaboeroean (Kabaruan)

The Siboga lay off Beo and Lirung from 23 to 27 July 1899. On 27 July the highest peak of Salibabu was climbed for geological study. The newspaper letter says the urge to apply for concessions had 'already' reached Kaboeroean.

Limit: No name, mineral or area given. The geological result for Salibabu was not found in Weber (1902).

Source: Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad (1899) De Siboga-expeditie. Molukken, Augustus · Delpher ddd:011032818:mpeg21:a0084 (20-09-1899); Weber, Siboga-Expeditie I (1902) pp. 57-62 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

New contracts: mining rights pass to the Government

Talaud Islands (via the Sangi rulers)

In November 1899 the five Sangi landschappen received new political contracts. The right to grant exploration permits and mining concessions passed from the rajas to the Government. The Talaud Islands then consisted only of dependencies of these landschappen; two villages on Karakelang, for example, belonged to Tagoelandang.

Limit: This is a legal rule, not a find. That the 1898 Kaboeroean lease lapsed because of it is an inference.

Source: Tweede Kamer (1902) Overeenkomsten met Inlandsche Vorsten in den Oost-Indischen Archipel (Nota van Toelichting) · Kamerstuk TK 1902-1903 nr. 174.21 (contract Tagoelandang 26-11-1899, art. 14) and 174.22 pp. 1-2 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Mining applications for Karakelang rejected

Karakelang

The Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad reported that the applications of S.W.B. Hijde and G. de Kruijff van Dorssen for mining exploration on the island of Karakelang were rejected. It is the first mining application found that names Karakelang.

Limit: The notice names no mineral and no reason for the rejection.

Source: Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad (1902) Nederlandsch-Indië, Batavia 16 Augustus 1902 (Mijnbouw) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Sangi principalities opened to mining

Kabaruan, Nanusa and Miangas (via the Sangi rulers)

The Javasche Courant of 4 April 1902 announced that the government had no objection to private mining exploration in Siauw, Kandhar-Taroena, Nanganitoe, Taboekan and Tagoelandang (Sangi and Talaud Islands). These principalities had possessions on Talaud: Siau on Kabaruan, Kandhar-Taruna on Nanusa and Miangas.

Limit: The notice names no Talaud island; do not use it as proof that Talaud was opened or mined.

Source: Het Vaderland (citing Javasche Courant 4-4-1902) (1902) Mijnbouw · Jaarboek van het Mijnwezen in Nederlandsch Oost-Indië 1901/1902 (ESMI copy historical-evidence/1901-mining-yearbook-page-2.jpg) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Exploration licence for three areas on Karakelang

Karakelang (afdeeling Sangi- en Talauer-eilanden)

J. Bosman's applications to carry out mining exploration on three areas on the island of Karakelang were granted. This is the first granted exploration licence found on Talaud.

Limit: Mineral, location and outcome are unknown; see Jaarboek van het Mijnwezen and Javasche Courant 1903.

Source: Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad (1903) Nederlandsch-Indië, Batavia 31 Maart 1903 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Geological expedition across Central Celebes

Central and Southeast Sulawesi · nickel; geology

In 1909–1910 mining engineer E.C. Abendanon crossed Central Celebes. His four-volume report (1915–1918) gave the first geological maps of much of the interior.

Limit: Later sources say he found nickel ore at Pomalaa in 1909; this was not checked in the original work.

Source: E.C. Abendanon (1915) Midden-Celebes-Expeditie: geologische en geographische doorkruisingen van Midden-Celebes (1909-1910), 4 vols + atlas, Leiden: E.J. Brill · consulted 24 Oct 2026

'No important minerals known'

Talaud Islands

A survey article said little was known about the geology of the Sangi and Talaud Islands; apart from sulphur and a kind of pipe clay (used as whitewash), no important minerals were known. Talaud had 18,992 inhabitants; a few Europeans held licences to sell timber on Talaud.

Limit: The mineral statement covers both groups together; sulphur comes from Sangihe's volcanoes.

Source: Tijdschrift voor economische geographie (anonymous) (1912) De Sangi- en Talaud-eilanden · Tijdschrift voor economische geographie 1912, issue pp. ~20-23 (Delpher) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij seeks exploration on Karakelang

Karakelang

The Resident of Manado announced on 20 December 1920 that the Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij (BPM) had applied on 17 January 1914 for mining exploration on Karakelang. A newspaper used it as an example of slow bureaucracy.

Limit: BPM was an oil company, but the notice does not name the mineral; the outcome is unknown.

Source: Deli Courant (1921) Grapjes en snapjes · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Roothaan: first geological map of Talaud

Talaud and Nanusa Islands

BPM geologist H.Ph. Roothaan did fieldwork in 1921 and published a 'Geological and petrographic sketch of the Talaud and Nanusa Islands' with a 1:200,000 map in the Jaarboek van het Mijnwezen. He describes a core mainly of gabbro and peridotite, with a thin cover of radiolarian chert, breccia, sandstone and marl.

Limit: Content known from Van Gorsel's summary; the original (Verhandelingen II, pp. 174-220) was not seen.

Source: J.T. van Gorsel Bibliography of the Geology of Indonesia and Surrounding Areas, VI. North Moluccas (entry Roothaan 1928) · Roothaan, H.Ph. (1928) Jaarboek van het Mijnwezen in Ned.-Indië 54 (1925), Verhandelingen II, pp. 174-220; announced Koloniaal Weekblad 5-7-1928 (Delpher MMUBL13:279186027) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Buton asphalt found and mined

Kabungka and Lawele, Buton · asphalt

Dutch geologist W.H. Hetzel recorded natural asphalt on Buton in 1924. From 1925 the Boeton Maatschappij mined it until the Japanese occupation in 1942. It was used on roads from 1926.

Source: Awang H. Satyana; Ngakan A. Ascaria; Alfathony Krisnabudhi; Ragil D. Prasetyo (2023) Prospectivities of Buton area, Southeast Sulawesi: new insights from revisiting integrated geological-geophysical-geochemical data. IPA · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Talaud rocks classified chemically

Talaud Islands

A review in Geologie & Mijnbouw (1939) says Roothaan studied the rocks of Talaud. In his view they belong to the 'Pacific' series, with a weak 'Mediterranean' tendency.

Limit: Petrological classification, not an ore find. Roothaan's own text has not been seen.

Source: Geologisch-Mijnbouwkundig Genootschap (1939) Geologie & Mijnbouw 1 (1939) nr. 3 · Delpher MMSHCL02:017135003, pdf pp. 5-6 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Lam: a serpentine mountain and poor soil

Karakelang, Salibabu, Nanusa

Botanist H.J. Lam studied the flora of Karakelang, Salibabu and the Nanusa Islands. He wrote that a mountain on Karakelang is made of serpentine and so has a very different flora; elsewhere deep-seated rock shows only in river beds. The soil was poor: copra was almost the only export, locusts did much damage and Talaud had about 20,000 inhabitants.

Limit: Botanical report; no ore investigation.

Source: H.J. Lam (in Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad) (1926) Vegetatie der Talaud-eilanden · expedition reports: Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad 30-8-1926 (ddd:011036511:mpeg21:a0155) and 3-9-1926 (ddd:010278173:mpeg21:a0125); locusts: S. Leefmans lecture, NRC 14-12-1928 (ddd:010030018:mpeg21:a0185) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Japanese occupation: nickel for the war

Pomalaa, Kolaka · nickel

In 1942 Sumitomo took over the Pomalaa mine and built a nearby smelter. Prisoners of war from Makassar were forced to work in the nickel mines from January to September 1943. The smelter was destroyed in the war.

Source: Stichting Indische Kamparchieven (2024) Celebes - bezetting en bersiap (per regio) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

1967 Mining Law and Contracts of Work

Indonesia (national) · all minerals

On 2 December 1967 Law No. 11/1967 on mining was enacted. It allowed Contracts of Work with foreign companies. PT Inco at Sorowako and many gold contracts in North Sulawesi later used this basis.

Source: JDIH BPK RI (1967) UU No. 11 Tahun 1967 tentang Ketentuan-Ketentuan Pokok Pertambangan · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Contract of Work for PT Inco

Sorowako, Luwu Timur · nickel

In July 1968 PT International Nickel Indonesia (PT Inco) was founded. It signed a Contract of Work with the government for 30 years from the start of commercial production. It was one of the first large foreign mining contracts after the 1967 Mining Law.

Source: PT Vale Indonesia (2024) Our history in Indonesia · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Modern geological mapping

Karakelang, Salibabu, Kabaruan, Nanusa

Indonesian and American geologists (Sukamto, Suwarna, Moore and others) described Talaud as a non-volcanic outer arc of mélange and ophiolite (serpentinite, gabbro, basalt, chert). The Talaud block has risen more than 2,000 m since the Pliocene. The 1:250,000 Talaud map sheet appeared in 1986 and 1995.

Limit: Geological context, not an ore discovery.

Source: G.F. Moore, D. Kadarisman, C.A. Evans & J.W. Hawkins (1981) Geology of the Talaud Islands, Molucca Sea collision zone, northeast Indonesia · Journal of Structural Geology 3(4): 467-475; Sukamto & Suwarna, Peta Geologi Lembar Talaud 1:250.000 (P3G 1986, 2nd ed. 1995) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Sorowako smelter starts up

Sorowako, Luwu Timur · nickel

PT Inco built a smelter for nickel matte from laterite ore between 1974 and 1978. President Soeharto inaugurated the plant in 1977. Commercial production began in 1978.

Limit: Sources give 1977 or 1978 as the start year.

Source: Guiry; Dalvi (1987) P.T. INCO's Indonesian nickel project: An updating · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Scientific iron-sand studies

West Karakelang · iron sand

Studies by LIPI and the Indonesian marine geology institute found magnetite, rutile, zircon and olivine in beach sand, and magnetite-rich beach deposits on the west coast of Karakelang. Rivers supply part of it; uplift moves the sand to shallow banks.

Limit: At one beach the river contribution is very small; no economic resource established.

Source: M.A. Mustafa, D. Setiady & U. Kamiludin (2016) Keterdapatan pasirbesi di Pantai Beo dan sekitarnya · also Kurnio et al. 2015, DOI 10.32693/jgk.13.2.2015.262; Sudarsono 2008, Prosiding Geoteknologi LIPI (OpenAlex W2948088695) · consulted 24 Oct 2026

2009 Minerba Law

Indonesia (national) · minerals and coal

On 12 January 2009 Law No. 4/2009 replaced the 1967 mining law. It requires minerals to be processed in Indonesia. This became the basis for the raw-ore export ban.

Source: JDIH BPK RI (2009) UU No. 4 Tahun 2009 tentang Pertambangan Mineral dan Batubara · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Government mineral inventory (PSDG)

Karakelang, Kabaruan, Salibabu · gold

The Centre for Geological Resources found 25–49 ppb gold in 44 stream sediments, cinnabar in 21 of 43 pan concentrates, and manganese blocks with 27.60–61.64 % Mn on Karakelang. Rock at old artisanal gold pits on Salibabu and Kabaruan gave only 1–6 ppb gold, which PSDG calls 'not economic'.

Limit: The source is inconsistent on the island of the old pits (Salibabu or Kabaruan); the anomalies do not form a coherent zone.

Source: R.M. Faisal & I. Muksin (2012) Inventarisasi Mineral di Kabupaten Kepulauan Talaud Provinsi Sulawesi Utara · Prosiding Hasil Kegiatan PSDG 2012, Buku 2, pp. 163-173; full report Perpustakaan Badan Geologi PMB LS 2012-3 · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Raw nickel ore export ban

Indonesia (national) · nickel ore

In January 2014 Indonesia banned exports of unprocessed nickel ore. From 2017 to 2019 low-grade ore could again be exported under conditions. A full ban returned on 1 January 2020; a WTO panel ruled in 2022 that it breaks trade rules.

Limit: Indonesia appealed; the ruling has not taken effect.

Source: World Trade Organization (2022) Indonesia - Measures Relating to Raw Materials (DS592), Report of the Panel · consulted 24 Oct 2026

President opens first IMIP smelter

Bahodopi, Morowali · nickel (NPI)

On 29 May 2015 President Joko Widodo inaugurated the first nickel smelter at IMIP. Since 2016 the park has been a National Strategic Project. It grew into one of the world's largest nickel and stainless-steel complexes.

Source: PT IMIP (2024) FAQ - PT Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Indonesia ratifies the Minamata Convention

Indonesia (national) · mercury

With Law No. 11/2017 Indonesia ratified the Minamata Convention on Mercury. It asks countries to reduce mercury in small-scale gold mining. This affects many gold areas in Sulawesi.

Source: JDIH BPK RI (2017) UU No. 11 Tahun 2017 tentang Pengesahan Minamata Convention on Mercury · consulted 24 Oct 2026

Only mining area: a 1.5 ha quarry

Beo Selatan district, Karakelang · andesite (quarry stone)

The ESDM register lists a 1.5 ha WIUP for 'large mountain-stone quarry' in the Beo Selatan district, with status 'pencadangan' from 19 August 2024. According to ESMI's 2026 review it is the only mining area in Talaud; there is no gold WPR and no metal permit.

Limit: A reservation, not proof of active quarrying.

Source: ESMI Mining Intelligence (2026) Talaud integrated mineral and environment intelligence, §12.2 (ESDM WIUP record) · docs/design/mining-intelligence/pre-analysis/talaud-gold-screening-2026-07-16/TALAUD-INTEGRATED-MINERAL-ENVIRONMENT-INTELLIGENCE.md; canonical mi_esdm_features · consulted 24 Oct 2026