Jakarta, (Antara) - Indonesia's state-owned mining enterprise PT ANTAM and Australian mining company Newcrest Mining Ltd. have established a strategic alliance to explore gold and copper in some areas in Indonesia.
A statement from the Australian Embassy in Jakarta received by Antara here on Sunday said the document on the strategic alliance was signed in front of Indonesian Minister of Trade Enggartiasto Lukita and Indonesian Head of Investment Coordinating Agency Thomas Lembong in Sidney.
According to the statement,the signing showed the increase in the two companies' cooperation.
Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Paul Grigson who attended the signing welcomed the cooperation.
"The investment in both directions is a recognition that both countries have a lot of potentials to be offered to one another," he said.
Economic issues have been put forward in bilateral relations between the two countries by reviving the Indonesia Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership (IACEPA) negotiations at the beginning of this year.
"More investments mean common prosperity," the ambassador said, adding that the increasing investment will create more jobs for people of both countries.
The cooperation on gold and copper mining has been established by the two companies since last year in the form of a preliminary study conducted at the end of 2015.
The preliminary study was then followed by a joint exploration in Indonesia.
ANTAM's operation areas spread across Indonesia. Ativities of the state-owned enterprise (SOE) include exploration, mining, processing and marketing of nickel ore, ferronickel, gold, silver, bauxite and coal.
Given the extent of mining concessions and the large amount of reserves and mining resources, ANTAM forms several joint ventures with international partners.
Newcrest is an old investor in Indonesia, which has earlier worked together with ANTAM in Gosowong gold mining in North Halmahera, North Maluku, through a joint venture company named PT Nusa Halmahera Minerals (PTNHM).
Meanwhile, Lembong described the alliance as a model for a strategic partnership between Australia and Indonesia.(*)
