Jakarta. The Supreme Court has upheld an earlier ruling that ordered state-owned gold miner Aneka Tambang, or Antam, to pay a businessman from Surabaya Rp 1.1 trillion in a dispute over the purchase of 1.1 tons of gold.

The businessman, Budi Said, has sued Antam over accusations that Antam gave him 1.1 tons less of gold ingots than what he paid, leading to a protracted legal battle that began in early 2021.

Budi claimed he had bought 7 tons of gold from an Antam outlet in Surabaya at a discount price for a total of Rp 3.9 trillion ($263 million) in 2021 but he only received 5.9 tons.

The owner of the leading property firm Tridjaya Kartika Grup also claimed he had paid in full the agreed price in 73 bank transfers, but Antam didn’t deliver all the gold.

His complaints to Antam’s Surabaya branch office and Jakarta headquarters didn’t get a response.

Antam, meanwhile, denied ever offering discounts as Budi alleged to have been offered when he met with executives of Antam’s Surabaya outlet.

Last August, the Supreme Court ruled that Antam owed the businessman Rp 1.1 trillion in undelivered gold, prompting the company to file a judicial review, the final legal avenue under the Indonesian judiciary system.

However, the Supreme Court again dismissed Antam’s legal move and ordered it to pay Budi Rp 1.1 trillion based on the agreed price when the transaction was made more than two years ago, as reported by Kompas news website on Monday.

The latest verdict, which is final and binding, dated September 12, was released on the Supreme Court’s website only recently.

The civil case was tried by a panel of three justices, including Yakup Ginting, Muh Yunus Wahab, and Nani Indrawati.