CENTRAL PAPUA – Kuala Kencana City, established by PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) on December 5, 1995 in an area of 17,078 hectares in Mimika Regency, Central Papua, is the first modern city in Indonesia in the middle of a tropical forest.
The city, which was established to support the company’s operations as well as to support the development of the city of Timika, was built with the concept of “environmentally friendly city”.
When entering the Kuala Kencana area, you are presented with a well-maintained natural atmosphere. There are no cables and electricity poles, all neatly embedded underground. On either side of the road are trees that are an indigenous part of the tropical forest. The flora and fauna are treated as valuable assets of the city. This biodiversity is guarded by local residents and closely monitored by specialized personnel.
In the city center, there are office buildings, public and social facilities, and places of worship. In the center of the city center, a statue designed by Nyoman Nuarta that has become the city icon Kuala Kencana stands proudly in the middle of the square. Not only residents of Kuala Kencana, but Timika residents can also enjoy and benefit from the presence of this city.
PTFI’s General Superintendent Facilities Management, Samsul Arifin, explained that Kuala Kencana has always made a positive contribution to the development of Timika since its establishment until the age of 28. One of Kuala Kencana’s tangible contributions to the people of Mimika Regency is the presence of a Water Treatment Plant (WTP) that was inaugurated by Mimika Regent Eltinus Omaleng in October 2023 in an effort to provide clean water facilities for the people of Timika city.
This support is a collaboration between PTFI and the Mimika Regency Regional Government (Pemda) worth USD 10 million or Rp 150 billion. Currently, this facility is in the trial phase and will provide clean water facilities to support the improvement of the quality of life of Timika City residents.
Kuala Kencana City successfully combines elements of sustainability and the needs of today’s life. In addition, Kuala Kencana is also used as a benchmark for the development of the Capital City of the Archipelago (IKN) in East Kalimantan and was the location of a marathon race, as well as a fast walk during the XX National Sports Week (PON) event in Papua.
“Until now, we continue to manage Kuala Kencana well as a modern mining city in Eastern Indonesia. We hope that the presence of Kuala Kencana can always contribute positively, and can even have a greater impact in the future,” Samsul said.
Another important fact, Kuala Kencana has a waste control and waste management system that is monitored regularly. Through this system, Kuala Kencana has managed to minimize the number of malaria cases due to the clean atmosphere of the city.
“We work closely with Public Health & Malaria Control (PHMC) to prevent the development of malaria mosquitoes in our area,” Samsul explains. The residential concept in Kuala Kencana combines modern and natural elements.
One of the interesting things when walking around in this city is that there are still many native Papuan fauna that live wild in this city such as Birds of Paradise, King Cockatoos, Hornbills, Black-headed Parrots, Kuskus, and Cassowaries.
“This city was built to be one with nature while maintaining many green open spaces,” he said.
