31st August 2026
OVERVIEW
On 16 July 2026, the Constitutional Court pronounced Decision No. 160/PUU-XXIII/2025 (“Decision 160/2025”) in the judicial review of several provisions of Law No. 2 of 2025 on the Fourth Amendment to Law No. 4 of 2009 on Mineral and Coal Mining (“Indonesia Mining Law”). The application concerned the mechanism for granting Mining Business License Areas (WIUP) and Special Mining Business License Areas (WIUPK) on a priority basis to business entities, cooperatives, small and medium business entities, business entities owned by religious mass organizations, and business entities acting for the benefit of universities.
The Court granted the application in part. Rather than removing the priority mechanism, the Court declared the relevant provisions conditionally unconstitutional: priority may only be granted on clear parameters, through an assessment process that is objective, transparent, and accountable, so that the granting of priority is not automatically understood as an act of direct appointment. The Court further directed those other provisions of the Indonesia Mining Law containing comparable priority wording, which were not specifically addressed in the decision, must conform to it.
This article, prepared Andrew Atmadja (Senior Associate), M. Akmal Condro Rahmahadi (Associate), and M. Adistya Putra Digjaya (Associate) from IMCOLaw, provides an overview of the key aspects of Decision 160/2025, including the provisions under review, the constitutional grounds relied on by the Petitioners, the Court’s considerations, and the practical implications for business actors that hold or intend to obtain WIUP or WIUPK through the priority mechanism.