Nickel Smelter Furnace Explosion: Walhi Central Sulawesi Urges Govt to Stop PT IMIP Production

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Central Sulawesi Forum for the Environment (Walhi) is urging the government to stop nickel production at PT Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park (IMIP). This is in line with the repeated occurrence of work accidents in the area. Most recently, a fire occurred in the nickel smelter furnace belonging to PT Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel (PT ITSS) which killed 12 people on Sunday morning, December 24, 2023.

"The government must not just remain silent. PT IMIP production must be stopped and give strict sanctions to PT IMIP," said Head of Advocacy and Campaigns for Central Sulawesi Walhi Aulia Hakim in a written statement, Sunday, December 24, 2023.

Aulia asked the government not to just campaign for nickel downstreaming just for the sake of profits obtained without looking at the reality on the ground. "Lives have been lost, lives are miserable, due to the chaotic area," said Aulia.

Before the indiscension at ITSS, Aulia said that on December 22, 2022 there was a similar work accident which claimed the lives of two workers, Nirwana Stele and Made Defri. Both died as a result of a furnace explosion in the nickel industrial area belonging to PT Gunbuster Nicek Industri, a large Chinese company operating in North Morowali district.

Then, on April 27, 2023, there was another work accident at PT Indonesia Guang Ching Nickel and Stainless Industry. The factory is also in the PT IMIP area. Aulia said that the incident killed two dumpling workers, namely Arif and Masriadi.

"Once again we see how workers are sacrificed in pursuit of profit alone, work accidents are caused by the provision of PPE or safety equipment that the company never complies with. "Additionally, arbitrary working hours regulations, chaotic work rotations, and uncontrolled equipment being operated, are the triggers for this accident to occur," said Aulia.

Aulia said the central government and regional governments ignored the accident that occurred. The reason is, based on Walhi's records, throughout 2022-2023 not a single company will be given strict sanctions for incidents that take away workers' lives. On the contrary, said Aulia, the company gave sanctions to workers who demanded their rights.

"For example, the incident experienced by Minggu Bulu and Amirullah. They were both named suspects in the clash between workers on January 14, 2023. They became suspects in their activities advocating for the rights of other workers," said Aulia.

Furnace Explosion Kills 12 People

As previously reported, a furnace explosion occurred at a nickel processing factory owned by PT Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel (ITSS), one of the tenants operating in the IMIP area. Head of the Media Relations Division of PT IMIP Dedy Kurniawan said the work accident occurred at around 05:30 WITA (Central Indonesian Time). The incident started when a number of workers were repairing the furnace and installing plates on it.

"The results of the initial investigation show that the cause of the explosion was thought to be because the bottom of the furnace still contained explosion-inducing liquid. During the repair process, an explosion occurred," said Dedy in a written statement, Sunday, December 24.

Dedy said that at the location there were also many oxygen cylinders used for welding and cutting furnace components. As a result, he said, the first explosion caused several oxygen cylinders in the area to explode.

Dedy said the furnace fire was successfully extinguished at 09:10 WITA. The worker who was the victim was taken to clinics 1 and 2 of PT IMIP. According to information gathered from the IMIP Clinic as of 10:00 WITA, the number of victims was 51 people.

"Twelve of them died and 39 others suffered serious to minor injuries," said Dedy.

The victims who died consisted of 7 workers from Indonesia and 5 foreign workers. He said that several of the deceased victims had been identified. "And at the request of the victims' families, their bodies have today been flown to their respective hometowns," he said.

ANTARA

Editor's Choice: Nickel Smelter Furnace Explosion Kills 12 People, Wounds Dozens in Morowali

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News