Prabowo claims BRIN found large gold reserves in Papua
The report was said to have reached him only hours earlier, but the location, size and mineral type were not detailed.
President Prabowo Subianto said a scientific expedition led by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) had found large gold reserves and several minerals in the Papua mountains. Prabowo said the finding was reported to him hours before the launch of the mandatory B50 biodiesel program at Rest Area KM 57 on the Jakarta-Cikampek toll road in Karawang on Thursday, July 9, 2026. He said the expedition had been under way for only two to three weeks and involved BRIN, several universities and support from the military. Prabowo did not specify the discovery site, estimate the reserves or identify any mineral other than gold. In the same speech, he also cited gas fields in Andaman and reserves in Masela and Natuna as reasons for his optimism about Indonesia's economic outlook.