In brief
OIKN reports that 1,600 hectares of forest in the IKN region were burned between July and October 2026, with evidence pointing to deliberate clearing by PT AJP. Field mapping revealed a rectangular burn pattern, and the authority has imposed staged administrative sanctions on the company. The investigation is now underway with police and regional ministries.
Balikpapan, East Kalimantan – The Nusantara Capital City Authority (OIKN) confirmed that 1,600 hectares of forest and land were burned in the IKN area from July to October 2026, alleging the fires were deliberately set by palm‑oil company PT AJP.
According to OIKN Deputy for Environment and Natural Resources Myrna Asnawati Safitri, field mapping and satellite imagery showed a distinct rectangular or elongated pattern of spread, a form she said is “common and recurring” in commercial land‑clearing.
"Even in several locations after the fires, new plant seedlings, such as oil palm and banana trees, were found. This pattern of cutting vegetation and then burning it is a common and recurring tactic,"
She added that the fires were concentrated within the company’s concession, which covers roughly 500 hectares of the total burn area, while 900 to 1,000 hectares fell inside the Bukit Soeharto Forest Park and the remainder scattered across privately owned land.
OIKN has coordinated with law enforcement, and the investigation is now being handled by police. The authority has begun a staged administrative sanction regime against PT AJP, starting with written warnings and moving to government orders that require land restoration. Failure to comply may lead to the suspension or revocation of the company’s permits, Safitri said.
OIKN has also submitted its findings to the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Forestry for coordinated follow‑up on other concession holders whose lands cross the IKN and Kutai Kartanegara District borders. As a long‑term measure, the authority is tightening field monitoring and demanding that all concession holders improve fire‑preparedness systems in their areas, and it plans to resume reforestation and fire‑preparedness programs for the burned lands.
These actions come after OIKN began monitoring hotspots via satellite imagery since early August, noting the repeated clearing and burning behavior by PT AJP.
