Balikpapan is a port city in East Kalimantan, Indonesia, on the eastern coast of Borneo. An important oil-refining, commercial and transport centre, it is often called Kota Minyak ("Oil City"). The city had 688,318 residents at the 2020 Indonesian census and an estimated population of 766,052 in mid-2025, making it one of East Kalimantan's largest cities alongside Samarinda. Separate civil-registration records listed 770,047 inhabitants in the first half of 2026; the registration total is not a census count.
Balikpapan was originally a fishing village built by Buginese people in the 19th century. The first oil drilling began in Balikpapan on 10 February 1897, which was later set as the anniversary of the city. In 1899, the Dutch East Indies colonial administration granted a township status to Balikpapan. In 1907, Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij (BPM) made the city its headquarters and imported skilled laborers, engineers, and managers from overseas. Subsequently, numerous multi-national companies came to Balikpapan to invest in the oil industry. This resulted in the economic boom of Balikpapan and attracted many migrants and expatriates.
During World War II, the Empire of Japan occupied the city in 1942, as part of the occupation of the Dutch East Indies, and it was bombed by the Allies in the first Balikpapan Battle in 1942 and second battle in 1945. The battles impacted critical infrastructure, including the oil refinery stations and seaport which were completely burned to the ground. Upon Indonesia's independence, BPM extended its activities in Balikpapan until 1965 when Pertamina, the Indonesian state-owned oil company, took control over the ownership of BPM and its oil exploration activities.
The city's petroleum sector underwent a major expansion in January 2026, when the Indonesian government inaugurated Pertamina's Balikpapan refinery modernization project.
Etymology and nicknames
There are several popular stories and legends explaining the origin of Balikpapan:
The 10 pieces of board returned to Jenebora from the 1,000 pieces requested by the Sultan of Kutai as donations of building materials for the construction of the New Kutai Palace. The ten boards that were returned were referred to by the people of Kutai as Balikpapan Tu. So that the area along Balikpapan Bay, precisely in Jenebora is called Balikpapan.
Balik people (the indigenous people of Balikpapan) are the descendants of grandfather and grandmother named Kayun Kuleng and Papan Ayun. So that the area along Balikpapan Bay by its descendants is called Kuleng-Papan or means Balikpapan (in Paser, Kuleng means Balik).
Other legends link the origin of Balikpapan to a princess who was released by her father a king who did not want his daughter to fall into the hands of the enemy. The daughter who was still a toddler was tied up on several pieces of board in a state of lying. Because she was carried away and hit by waves, the board was reversed. When the board was stranded on the shore found by a fisherman and so it turned out that there was a daughter who was still bound. It is said that the princess was named Putri Petung who came from the Kingdom of Sand. So that the area where it was found was called Balikpapan.
From several older documents, the city was also spelt as Billipapan and Balikkappan.
The city has had several nicknames throughout its history such as the Oil City, City of Believers (Kota Beriman, which is an acronym of: BERsih (clean), Indah (magnificent), dan nyaMAN (comfortable)).
Before the oil boom of the early 1900s, Balikpapan was an isolated Bugis fishing village. Balikpapan's toponym (balik = "behind" and papan = "plank") is from a folk story in which a local king threw his newborn daughter into the sea to protect her from his enemies. The baby was tied beneath some planks that were discovered by a fisherman. An alternative story is that, at the time of the Kutai sultanate, Sultan Muhammad Idris sent 1000 planks to aid the Paser Kingdom to build a new palace. The planks were shipped from Kutai to Paser along the Borneo shoreline by roping all the planks together. 10 out of the 1000 planks that were originally shipped resurfaced in a place currently called Balikpapan.
Oil development
On 10 February 1897, a small refinery company, Mathilda, began the first oil drilling. Building of roads, wharves, warehouses, offices, barracks, and bungalows started when the Dutch oil company Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij (BPM) arrived in the area.
On 24 January 1942, a Japanese invasion convoy arrived at Balikpapan and was attacked by four United States Navydestroyers that sank three Japanese transports. The Japanese army landed and met with no opposition by the Dutch troops, which had been ordered to evacuate after destroying the oil installations. In response to this, the Japanese massacred 78 Dutch POWs and civilians.
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) intelligence determined that half of all lubricating oils used by the Japanese military and 60 percent of all their aviation fuel came from refineries in Balikpapan, and it was therefore an extremely important target.[citation needed] The American 380th Bombardment Group under the command of the RAAF, including the famous B-24 LiberatorShady Lady, attacked the oil refineries in August 1943 from Darwin, Australia. Amazingly, there were no aircraft losses, despite the crash landing and subsequent repair of the Shady Lady.[citation needed]
In September and October 1944, the 5th and 13th Air Forces under the command of General George Kenney launched a series of five raids from Morotai and Noemfoor Islands. Kenney was a strong advocate for using the powerful B-29 Superfortress for this raid but was forced to use the B-24 Liberator instead.[citation needed] Unbeknownst to the Allied forces, the Japanese Air Force had conserved many of its dwindling numbers of fighters to protect the important oil refineries. The first two raids did not have fighter cover and suffered severe losses.[citation needed]
In 1958, the CIA attacked Balikpapan and stopped oil exports. The US was running a CIA covert mission to undermine President Sukarno's government by supporting right-wing rebels in Indonesia. The CIA, Taiwan and the Philippines had provided the Permesta rebels in North Sulawesi with an insurgent air force, the Angkatan Udara Revolusioner (AUREV). On 28 April 1958, a CIA pilot, William H. Beale, flying a B-26 Invader bomber aircraft that was painted black and showing no markings, dropped 500 pounds (230 kilograms) of four bombs on Balikpapan. The first damaged the runway at Sultan Aji Muhammad Sulaiman Airport, the second set the British oil tanker SSSan Flaviano on fire and sank her and the third bounced off the British tanker MVDaronia without exploding. Beale's fourth bomb set on fire and sank the Indonesian NavyBathurst-class corvetteKRI Hang Tuah, killing 18 crew and wounding 28. Before attacking Hang Tuah, Beale also machine-gunned the oil pipes to Shell's wharf.
The CIA had orders to attack unarmed foreign merchant ships in order to drive foreign trade away from Indonesia and weaken its economy, with the intention of undermining Sukarno's government. The day before attacking Balikpapan, Beale had also damaged a Shell complex at Ambon, Maluku. His Balikpapan raid succeeded in persuading Shell to suspend tanker services from Balikpapan and withdraw shore-based wives and families to Singapore. However, on 18 May Indonesian naval and air forces off Ambon Island shot down an AUREV B-26 and captured its CIA pilot, Allen Pope. The US immediately withdrew support for Permesta, whose rebellion rapidly diminished thereafter.
Subsequent history
Shell continued operating in the area until Indonesian state-owned Pertamina took it over in 1965. Lacking technology, skilled manpower, and capital to explore the petroleum region, Pertamina sublet petroleum concession contracts to multinational companies in the 1970s.[citation needed]
With the only oil refinery site in the region, Balikpapan emerged as a revitalized center of petroleum production. Pertamina opened its East Borneo headquarters in the city, followed by branch offices established by other international oil companies. Hundreds of laborers from Indonesia, along with skilled expatriates who served as managers and engineers, flocked into the city.[citation needed]
On 31 March 2018, a rupture in an underwater crude-oil pipeline supplying the Balikpapan refinery caused an oil spill in Balikpapan Bay. The spill subsequently ignited, killing five people and disrupting activity in the bay. Investigators reported that a ship's anchor had dragged and damaged the pipeline. The event prompted a cleanup operation and raised concerns about marine habitats and fishing livelihoods.
Geography
Topography
Topography of Balikpapan is generally hilly (85%), with only small areas of flat land (15%), mostly along the coast and surrounding the hilly areas.[citation needed] The hills are less than 100 meters (330 feet) higher than the adjacent valleys. The altitude of Balikpapan ranges from 0 to 80 meters (260 feet) above sea level.[citation needed] The city proper itself is located on eastern side of Bay of Balikpapan.
Most of the soil in Balikpapan contains yellow-reddish podsolic soil and alluvial and quartz sand, making it extremely prone to erosion.
Climate
Balikpapan features a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen: Af) with rainfall throughout the year. The 1991–2020 monthly normals shown below total approximately 2,600 millimeters (100 inches) of annual precipitation. Balikpapan generally shows little variation in weather throughout the course of the year. The city does not have significantly wetter and drier periods of the year and average temperatures are nearly identical throughout the course of the year, averaging about 26to 27 degrees Celsius (79–81 degrees Fahrenheit) throughout the year.
Balikpapan's municipal water supply depends in part on reservoirs and catchments in its surrounding hills, including the Manggar and Teritip reservoirs. The municipal water utility, Perumda Tirta Manuntung Balikpapan (PTMB), manages distribution to residential and commercial customers. In September 2026, amid dry conditions and concerns about El Niño, the utility was instructed to reduce raw-water withdrawals from Manggar Reservoir from approximately 1,150 to 900 litres per second, and from Teritip Reservoir from 220 to 110 litres per second. The city warned that service schedules for approximately 38,000 household connections could be affected, and prepared adjustments to distribution and water-tanker support.
In Wain River Protection Forest, which is the main water catchment area and habitat for endangered species of Borneo, the community begins to encroach on how to burn it so that during the dry season some areas become barren and damage 40%. The area of Wain River forest reaches 10,000 hectares (25,000 acres), slowly but surely continues to decrease, leaving 9,000 hectares (22,000 acres) with forest conditions that are still good at only 63 percents. Residents around looked for wood to cook in the forest even though the surrounding area had been lined with wire.
Previously between 2000 and 2001, illegal logging occurred in 10 to 15 points in the Wain River forest, and in 2009 this forest was hit by a fire along with the Manggar River forest which made 15 hectares (37 acres) of forest area engulfed in fire. The threat of coal mining from the surrounding area which provides mining permits such as Paser and Kutai Kartanegara also disrupts the border ecosystem of Wain River forest.
The urban forest in Telagasari, which was inaugurated in 1996 with an area of 29.4 hectares (73 acres), has now shrunk to just around 8 hectares (20 acres). The forest in the middle of this city has been surrounded by residential areas.
The protected forest of the Manggar River also suffered considerable damage, which is around 60%. The reservoirs in this forest are also threatened because coal mining fields and brick mills were set up so close that there was siltation of reservoir water. The majority of those who founded it were even known to be immigrant communities. In addition, the construction of the Samarinda-Balikpapan toll road planned by the East Kalimantan government which divides the forest for 8 kilometers across the reservoir could damage the quality of the clean water reserve in Balikpapan.
Forest damage resulted in Balikpapan being easily hit by floods and landslides when it was hit by heavy rains. Clean water supply is also decreasing because water absorption is narrowing, erosion is easily to occur and sediment from mining sites that flow into the river worsens and lowers reservoirs, coupled with Balikpapan conditions has few rivers and less fertile land.
The sun bear, the city's animal mascot, faces threats from habitat loss. A 2011 news report estimated a population of about 50 sun bears in the Balikpapan area; this historical figure should not be treated as a current count. Habitat fragmentation associated with land-use change and coal mining has been reported as a threat to wild sun bears. In addition to sun bears, other Balikpapan animals that are declared endangered are proboscis monkeys, borneo gibbon, bornean orangutans, pangolin and otter civet. The Bornean banteng (Bos javanicus lowi) has also been described as threatened in the wider region.
2026 forest and land fires
During the dry period in 2026, Balikpapan experienced numerous vegetation and land fires, locally referred to as kebakaran hutan dan lahan (karhutla). The municipal disaster management agency (BPBD) recorded 37 incidents affecting approximately 16.3 hectares by 26 August and 91 incidents affecting approximately 46.5 hectares by 16 September.
By 12 October 2026, BPBD reported 127 incidents and approximately 81 hectares of land burned since the beginning of the year. Much of the reported burned area comprised grasses and scrub rather than documented destruction of primary forest. East Balikpapan had the largest number of reported incidents, with fires also recorded in North Balikpapan, South Balikpapan, Central Balikpapan and West Balikpapan. Fires increased particularly during August and September.
Smoke associated with regional forest and land fires contributed to deteriorating air quality in the city in October. The local government ordered distance learning for early childhood, elementary and junior secondary schools from 14 to 16 October 2026. A subsequent circular extended distance learning from 17 October for affected schools, subject to further review of air quality. Residents were advised to limit exposure to smoke and seek medical assistance for respiratory symptoms.
Administrative divisions
Map of Balikpapan
Balikpapan is bordered by Kutai Kartanegara Regency to the North, by the Makassar Strait to the South and East, and by Penajam North Paser Regency to the West. The city is divided into 6 districts (kecamatan) subdivided into 34 urban villages (kelurahan) tabulated below with their 2010 and 2020 Census populations, together with the official estimates as at mid 2025.
Notes: (a) the 2010 populations of Balikpapan Town District are included in the 2010 figure for South Balikpapan District, from which they were later split off.
Before 1987, Balikpapan Seberang was originally part of Balikpapan. However, due to enactment of the government regulation no. 21 on 13 October 1987, most of the district (excluding parts of Jenebora and Pantai Lango villages) was transferred into Paser Regency (Pasir) and later renamed as Penajam District (Sepaku was split in 1996, and the two districts are now part of Penajam North Paser Regency).
Government
Balikpapan is administered by an elected mayor and vice mayor, and its legislative body is the Balikpapan City Regional House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Daerah or DPRD). Rahmad Mas'ud and Bagus Susetyo were inaugurated as mayor and vice mayor on 20 February 2025 for the 2025–2030 term. The city government administers six districts and their 34 urban villages.
Demographics
During the Suharto dictatorship Balikpapan achieved unprecedented economic growth by attracting foreign investments, particularly in the exploitation of natural and mineral resources. The policy was heavily criticized for uncontrolled environmental damage and corrupt bureaucrats and politicians, but it significantly boosted urban development in resource-rich cities. In the 1970s Balikpapan experienced 7% population growth annually, while exports of timber and petroleum increased dramatically.
The Balik people are an indigenous community of the Balikpapan area and form a minority of the modern city population. Based on their origins, migrants come from neighbouring islands such as Java, Madura and Sulawesi. Residents come mainly from ethnic migrants who have long settled in Balikpapan, namely from the ethnic Banjar, Bugis, Makassar, and Javanese. Other migrants including ethnic Minahasan, Madurese, and Sundanese. At the beginning of June 2014, the population reached 684,339 people with the number of arrivals during 2012 of 21,486 people, the highest number in the past three years. The number of migrants was able to exceed the number of newcomers who entered in Singapore in the same year which was as many as 20,693 inhabitants. The highest number of arrivals came from Java, which was 30%, then followed by Banjar and Bugis each by 20%, Toraja by 11%, Madura by 8%, Buton by 7% and Betawi by 4%.
Human development
Statistics Indonesia recorded a Human Development Index (HDI) value of 83.23 for Balikpapan in 2025, compared with 82.62 in 2024. Both figures fall within the "very high" human development category according to the Indonesian classification.
Indonesian Most Liveable City
Based on Indonesian Most Liveable City Index which measured 27 indicators in every 2 years, Balikpapan is the best city for living in 2013 and toppled Yogyakarta as the best in 2011 and 2009. Balikpapan mainly maintained city management aspects and environment wellbeing. As part of the Earth Hour City Challenge, Balikpapan was recognized as the Most Loveable City for 2015. In 2016, Balikpapan was nominated for the second time as the most lovable and sustainable city, pending final judgement. However, in 2022, Balikpapan was no longer in the top 10, Samarinda held the top spot.
Economy
Balikpapan oil refinery in 1988
Some multinational corporations operate in East Borneo. Companies including Baker Hughes (US), ChevronTexaco (US), Halliburton (US), Pertamina (Indonesia), Schlumberger (France), Thiess (Australia), TotalEnergies (France) and Weatherford International (US) use Balikpapan as their base of operations in the region. Governmental public services including Bank Indonesia, the Finance Department, Angkasa Pura 1, the Port of Semayang, and several others also attract many people to work in this area.
Balikpapan has been chosen as the site of some important governmental agencies such as Komando Daerah Militer VI Tanjungpura and Kepolisian Daerah Kaltim.
Balikpapan oil refinery is on the shore of Balikpapan Bay and covers an area of 2.5 square kilometers (0.97 square miles). Founded in 1922, it is the oldest refinery in the area.[citation needed] The Allies destroyed it in the Second World War and Shell re-built it in 1950. The refinery has two subunits, Balikpapan I and Balikpapan II.[citation needed]
Balikpapan I has two raw oil refinery units that produce naphtha, kerosene, gasoline, diesel fuel, and residue and one high-vacuum unit that produces 100 metric tons (110 short tons) of paraffin oil distillate (POD), used as raw material for wax factories. The wax itself has various grades and is sold domestically and internationally.[citation needed]
The Refinery Development Master Plan (RDMP) for Balikpapan substantially expanded and modernized the city's petroleum-processing facilities. On 12 January 2026, President Prabowo Subianto inaugurated the upgraded refinery complex. The project, valued at about US$7.4 billion, increased nominal processing capacity from approximately 260,000 to 360,000 barrels of crude oil per day. The modernization was intended to increase domestic production of transport fuels and liquefied petroleum gas, improve product quality and reduce reliance on imports. In February 2026, Pertamina reported completion of the project's electrical substation energization, while further unit start-up activities were being prepared.
Kariangau Industrial Estate
Kariangau Industrial Estate in West Balikpapan covers approximately 3,565 hectares of designated industrial land, according to the city government. It serves industries including crude-palm-oil processing, manufacturing, warehousing and port-related logistics. Its position on Balikpapan Bay connects it to domestic shipping and industrial markets across Kalimantan.
Education
Schools
SMAN 2 Balikpapan
As of 2025, there are 196 elementary schools (SD), 79 junior high schools (SMP), 29 senior high schools (SMA), 34 vocational schools (SMK), and 8 Madrasah Aliyah (MA). Some of these are:
Statistics Indonesia recorded 13 higher-education institutions in Balikpapan for the reporting year covered by its 2024 higher-education tables. some of these are Universitas Balikpapan, Institut Teknologi Kalimantan (ITK), Politeknik Negeri Balikpapan, etc.
Tourism
Balikpapan sports and convention center
As a coastal city, Balikpapan has many beaches, including Manggar Beach, Segara Beach, Monument Beach, Kemala Beach, and Brigade Mobile Beach near the police academy. Melawai Beach is the most popular for local citizens.
Balikpapan is a departure point for nature tourism. Wain River Protected Forest, a Balikpapan natural reserve covering 10,000 hectares and also the habitat to a number of endangered animals, like the Beruang Madu (honey bear) which are sun bears endemic to the area, Orangutans and Proboscis monkeys or Bekantan. Wain river reserve, moreover, houses a number of endangered plants. Near Balikpapan is also a crocodile farm called Teritip, in Lamaru.
There is also a well-known forest site which has been developed for visitors at Bukit Bangkirai rainforest, about 45 minutes by car from Balikpapan.
A mangrove forest at Kariangau is a worthwhile tourist attraction at Balikpapan. There are still some Japanese artillery sites from World War II, and there is a military monument at Kampung Baru.
Panorama of Kemala Beach.
Balikpapan Botanical Garden
It is the first Botanical Garden in Kalimantan as a part of Hutan Lindung Sungai Wain (Wain River Conservation Forest) with total area 10,000 hectares (25,000 acres) and still has orangutan, sunbear, deer, and some endemic species of Kalimantan birds. Balikpapan Botanical Garden, which is located at kilometer 15 on Jalan Soekarno Hatta, was officially opened on 20 August 2014. It has 1,200 types of lowland hardwood trees, covers 309.22 hectares (764.1 acres) and is known as the "green open space" of the city. At the opening ceremony, Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan expressed the hope that the Botanical Garden would rival Gardens by the Bay in Singapore.
Shopping
E-Walk, part of the Balikpapan Superblock
As one of the fastest developing cities in the nation, Balikpapan has been supported by the rise of shopping centers. Prominent shopping centres mentioned in local guides include Plaza Balikpapan, Balikpapan Superblock, Pentacity Mall Balikpapan, Balcony City, Mall Fantasy in Balikpapan Baru, Ocean Square and Plaza Kebun Sayur.
Balikpapan is served by Sultan Aji Muhammad Sulaiman Sepinggan International Airport, which was previously known as Sepinggan airport. The airport has capacity to serve 10 million passengers per year, as well as immigration, passenger convenience, company reps offices, restaurants, shopping and many others. The airport is equipped with 11 aerobridges and four-level parking garages.
According to the airport operator, the airport handled 2,392,873 passenger movements, 21,789 aircraft movements and about 23.85 million kilograms of cargo in the first half of 2026.
Seaports
Port of Balikpapan
There are several public and private sea ports located at Balikpapan Bay. Semayang seaport serves commercial boats to many destinations to Indonesia including Jakarta, Makassar, Manado, Pare Pare and Surabaya. In the 1990s maritime transport was very popular. Today, due to more affordable and efficient airplane travel, more people choose to fly. Taking the ferry is a main choice for traveling to Penajam. Kariangau Seaport was built to serve containers and all other industrial needs. It is located in km.13, as part of Kariangau Industrial Estate.
The city has been served by Balikpapan City Trans (Bacitra), a publicly supported bus network, since trials began in July 2024. The initial network was described as three corridors. As of September 2026, services comprised the main airport, Semayang Port route and routes from Batu Ampar Terminal via MT Haryono and Ahmad Yani roads, operated with 21 buses.
In March 2026, a dedicated pickup and drop-off zone for Bacitra and intermodal Balikpapan–Nusantara buses was inaugurated at Sepinggan airport. The city announced plans to expand the network toward Teritip and Manggar in East Balikpapan, and Kilometer 23 in North Balikpapan, following a proposed transfer of operating responsibility from the national government in July 2027. These were proposals rather than completed routes as of October 2026.
Bus terminal
The main intercity bus terminal is Batu Ampar Terminal in North Balikpapan, which provides connections to destinations including Samarinda.
Balikpapan-Samarinda Toll Road
Balikpapan-Samarinda Toll Road
Balikpapan is connected to other cities by the Trans-Kalimantan Highway Southern Route. The Balikpapan–Samarinda Toll Road runs broadly parallel to the older Balikpapan–Samarinda highway. Sections 2–4 were operational by early 2020, followed by sections 1 and 5 in May 2021. The toll road supplements the region's existing road links.
IKN Toll Road
A dedicated road connection to Nusantara is being developed as part of the future capital's infrastructure. Portions of the access toll road were opened temporarily for restricted vehicle use during the 13–29 March 2026 holiday period, including access at the Manggar interchange and a connection near Batakan Stadium. The temporary opening was not equivalent to the road's full permanent operation.
Media
There are 4 local channels such as Balikpapan TV, BTV Balikpapan, BKV Channel, and TV Beruang based in the city.
Kaltim Post Headquarters in Balikpapan
Notable local newspaper in East Kalimantan, Kaltim Post based in Balikpapan. There are also Balikpapan Post (formerly known as Metro Post Balikpapan), and Tribun Kaltim based in the city.
↑Muir, Dan (1999–2000). "The Balikpapan Raid". Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
↑L, Klemen (1999–2000). "The Balikpapan Massacre, February 1942". Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
↑Utama (22 January 2013). "Rp 4,2 T Masih di Awang-Awang". Kaltim Post. Balikpapan: Kaltimpost.co.id. Archived from the original on 22 May 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
123"Warga Khawatir Kondisi Hutan kota". Balikpapan Post. Balikpapan: Balikpapanpos.co.id. 8 December 2012. Archived from the original on 23 July 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2013.
12"Kaltim Bergantung Air Permukaan". Indonesia Business Links. Jakarta: Ibl.or.id. 21 October 2009. Archived from the original on 26 December 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
↑"Geologi". Balikpapan.go.id. Archived from the original on 9 December 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
Conboy, Kenneth; Morrison, James (1999). Feet to the Fire CIA Covert Operations in Indonesia, 1957–1958. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN1-55750-193-9.
Indonesia
East Kalimantan
.jpg)
_TMnr_60018714.jpg)
_atau_Dome_Balikpapan.jpg)
