Inp.polri.go.id - Jakarta. Indonesia’s Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency (Bapeten) and the Directorate General of Customs and Excise foiled an attempt to import nine containers contaminated with Cesium-137 (Cs-137) through Tanjung Priok Port, Jakarta. 

Radiation Portal Monitors (RPM) flagged abnormal radiation levels up to 210 times higher than background limits, prompting a detailed inspection.

“Based on documents, the containers were declared to contain zinc concentrate powder from the Philippines, which normally should not trigger RPM alarms,” said Ishak, the Head of Bapeten’s Legal, Cooperation, and Public Communication Bureau, on Monday (22/9/2025), as quoted by antaranews.com.

Further inspections confirmed the presence of Cs-137 inside all containers, not on their outer walls, after swipe tests came back clean. Four containers that initially passed also registered radiation levels above normal. 

Bapeten recommended returning all nine containers to the Philippines. This incident was the second interception in September, following a similar case earlier this month when contaminated imports were re-exported to their country of origin.

(mg/inp/pr/rs)