Decision comes after the companies received Wednesday a preliminary geological assessment of the property, which shows Heritage contains several targets for modern alluvial diamond placer deposits.
State-owned miner Inalum said the $3.85 billion deal is still subject to the issue of environmental recommendations and a special mining permit (IUPK) by the Indonesian government.
The Rajo Inca project would convert the existing asset, which has been in operation since 1959 and is due to run out of ore in 2021, to an open pit mine from an underground one.
Hungary’s central bank increased its gold reserves 10-fold, citing the need to improve its holdings’ safety, joining regional peers with relatively high ownership in the European Union’s east.