Lighthouses of Indonesia: Northern Riau, Sumatra

Indonesia is a huge country of Southeast Asia, stretching along both sides of the Equator for more than 46 degrees of longitude (roughly 5100 km or 3200 miles). It occupies 17,504 islands, by official count, including more than 6000 inhabited islands. It is the world's fourth most populous nation with a population currently estinated at about 280 million. More than half of the population lives on the island of Java. Other major islands include Sumatra in the west, Borneo (shared with Malaysia and Brunei) in the northwest, Sulawesi in the northeast, and the eastern half of New Guinea in the far east. Other well known islands include Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, and Timor (shared with independent East Timor) along the south side of the country. The unification of the country was accomplished over many years of struggle by Dutch colonial authorities. The Dutch East India Company was founded in 1602 to establish and extend Dutch administration, and after the company folded in 1800 the Netherlands established the Dutch East Indies colony and gradually extended its boundaries to include the present territory of Indonesia. During World War II Japan occupied the islands from March 1942 to the end of the war in 1945. The Republic of Indonesia proclaimed its independence immediately after the war ended and following some conflict the Netherlands accepted the country's independence in 1949. Sumatra (Sumatera in Indonesian) is the world's sixth largest island and the westernmost of the major islands of Indonesia. It is separated from Malaysia to the north by the Malacca Strait, from Kalimantan (Borneo) to the northeast by the broad Karimata Strait, and from Java to the southeast by the Sunda Strait. Its south coast faces the open Indian Ocean. Indonesia is divided into 38 provinces (provinsi) and the provinces are subdivided into county units called regencies (kabupaten). Sumatra includes eight of the provinces. This page includes lighthouses of the central eastern coast of Sumatra in the northern section of Riau Province, which faces northeast on the Malacca Strait. This area includes the large island of Rupat and the industrial city of Dumai. More than 700 languages are spoken in Indonesia. The official national language, Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia), was standardized from a form of Malay that served as a lingua franca across the archipelago. In Indonesian a lighthouse is a mercusuar or a menara suar. Tanjung is a cape, ujung is a headland or point of land, bukit is a hill, sungai is a river, kuala or muara is an estuary or river mouth, pulau is an island, karang is a reef, batu is a rock, laut is a sea, selat is a strait, teluk is a bay, pelabuhan is a harbor, and labuhan is a port. Aids to navigation in Indonesia are operated and maintained by the Directorate of Marine Navigation within the Directorate General of Sea Transportation. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volumes F and Q of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. (Volume F includes lights north of the Equator and Volume Q includes lights south of the Equator.) U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112. General Sources Lighthouses in Indonesia Photos by various photographers available from Wikimedia; most of the photos are historic. World of Lighthouses - Indonesia Photos by various photographers available from Lightphotos.net. Online List of Lights - Sumatra - Malacca Strait Photos by various photographers posted by Alexander Trabas. Google Maps Satellite view of northern Riau Province.

Tanjung Medang Light and Radar Tower, Pulau Rupat, July 2022 Google Maps photo by Kukerta Telukrhu

Rokan Hilir (Lower Rokan) Regency Lighthouses

Rokan Hilir Regency surrounds the lower Rokan River. Separated from Bengkalis Regency in 1999, its population is more than 660,000.

Pulau Jemur Date unknown. Active; focal plane 46 m (151 ft); white flash every 5 s. 24 m (79 ft) skeletal tower with lantern and gallery, painted white. A photo is at right and Hing Kai Kent has a photo showing the base of the tower, but Bing has only a fuzzy satellite view of the island. Pulau Jemur is the largest of the Arwah island group east of Tanjung Balai in the Strait of Malacca, about 50 km (30 mi) offshore and 75 km (45 mi) from the Malaysian coast. The islands were formerly claimed by Malaysia but a 1969 agreement setting the maritime border in the Strait of Malacca confirmed Indonesian sovereignty. The Riau provincial government is interested in developing tourist facilities on Pulau Jemur, but admits that conditions are primitive at the present time. Accessible only by boat; speedboat transportation is available from Bagansiapiapi. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-201; Admiralty F1386; NGA 22484. Pulau Batumandi (Batu Mandi) Date unknown. Active; focal plane 43 m (141 ft); two white flashes every 10 s. 40 m (131 ft) square skeletal tower with lantern and gallery, mounted on a 2-story concrete keeper's house. Entire lighthouse painted white. This station is staffed by the Indonesian Navy. A photo is available but the reef is not shown in Google's satellite view. Located on a rocky reef near the center of the Malacca Strait, about 13 km (8 mi) east of Pulau Jemur. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1388; NGA 22484.5. Panipahan Date unknown. Active; focal plane 13 m (43 ft); white flash every 5 s. 13 m (43 ft) tower, probably skeletal, on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view. Located about 5 km (3 mi) off the town of Panipahan. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1385.8. Tanjung Sinaboi No. 1 (?) Date unknown. Active (?); listed with focal plane 11 m (36 ft); green flash every 4 s. 11 m (36 ft) tower, probably skeletal, on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not seen in Google's satellite view. This light and the next one flank a deep water channel leading to Dumai and Bengkalis. Both lights have been dropped from the Admiralty list but C-Map charts both as active. Located about 10 km (6 mi) northeast of Tanjung Sinaboi, a low headland of the mainland. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. ex-Admiralty F1400.311; NGA 22490. Tanjung Sinaboi No. 2 (?) Date unknown. Active (?); listed with focal plane 11 m (36 ft); red flash every 4 s. 11 m (36 ft) tower, probably skeletal, on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not seen in Google's satellite view. Located about 8 km (5 mi) east of the No. 1 Light. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. ex-Admiralty F1400.3115; NGA 22490.1.

Pulau Jemur Light, Arwah Islands, 2012 Blogspot photo by sdarmasyah

Metropolitan Dumai Area Lighthouses

Rupat is a large island, about 40 km (25 mi) in diameter, separated from the metropolitan Dumai City on the mainland of Sumatra to the west and south by the narrow Rupat Strait. Dumai proper is an industrial city with a population of about 300,000 facing the south (mainland) side of the strait.

Gosong Bakautua North

Date unknown. Active; focal plane 13 m (43 ft); white flash every 3 s. 13 m (43 ft) tower, probably skeletal, on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view. This light and the next one guide ships entering the Rupat Strait from the north around a large shoal area. Located about 10 km (6 mi) north of the mouth of the strait. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1394 (ex-F1400.313).

Gosong Bakautua South Date unknown. Active; focal plane 13 m (43 ft); white flash every 2 s. 13 m (43 ft) tower, probably skeletal, on a platform supported by piles. The light is barely visible on the horizon left of center in Sinar Tunggal's view from the shore but is not shown in Google's satellite view. Located on the west side of the mouth of the strait. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1394.101 (ex_F1400.315). #Pulau Ketam (Pulau Rupat West) (1) Date unknown. Active; focal plane about 15 m (49 ft); white light, pattern unknown. This was an approx. 15 m (49 ft) square skeletal tower mounted on a platfoirm supported by piles. Bing has a fuzzy satellite view through clouds. Vivo Ponsel's 2024 drone view shows that the skeletal tower tower has been removed and replaced by a small lantern of some kind. Located off the northwestern tip of Pulau Ketam, an island in the strait off the west coast of Pulau Rupat. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1394.102 (ex-F1400.317). Lubuk Gaung Port Ivomas North Date unknown. Active; focal plane 23 m (75 ft); white flash every 4 s. 20 m (66 ft) square white skeletal tower. Jamaluddin Ote has a distant 2024 photo and Google has a satellite view. Located on the waterfront of the port in front of a large oil terminal. Site and tower closed. Admiralty F1394.106 (ex-F1400.3). Lubuk Gaung Port Ivomas South Date unknown. Active; focal plane 28 m (92 ft); white flash every 6 s. 25 m (82 ft) square white skeletal tower. The light is centered in a 2022 photo and Google has a satellite view. Located on the waterfront of the port in front of a large oil terminal, about 800 m (1/2 mi) south of the north light. Site and tower closed. Admiralty F1394.109 (ex-F1400.4). Lubuk Gaung PT Meridan Sejati Surya Date unknown. Active; focal plane 28 m (92 ft); white flash every 4 s. 25 m (82 ft) square white skeletal tower. Anugrah Cipto has a distant view (lighthouse near the left edge), Vivo Ponsel has a 2024 drone view showing the tower at lower right, and Google has a satellite view. Located about 1.5 m (1 mi) southeast of the Port Ivomas lights. Site and tower closed. Admiralty F1394.125 (ex-F1401.05).

Dumai Light, Dumai, March 2019 Google Maps video by Roffi Ardinata

Dumai Date unknown. Active; focal plane 28 m (92 ft); white flash every 4 s. 25 m (82 ft) white robust mast with three galleries. The tower is shown in Roffi Ardinata's brief video (a frame is seen above right), it is left of the pier in his aerial view and Google has a satellite view. Located in an industrial park on the east side of Dumai. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1394.128 (ex-F1400.05); NGA 22511.1. Dumai Dermaga Pertamina Date unknown. Active; focal plane 43 m (141 ft); white light, 2 s on, 3 s off. Approx. 40 m (131 ft) tapered square skeletal tower, painted white. Eddy Radzi's 2020 photo is at right, the light is in front of the blue buildings in a distant view, and Bing has a satellite view. The light is listed by the Admiralty and NGA simply as "Selat Rupat." Located at the Pertamina oil terminal in the Dumai Industrial Park, on the south side of the Rupat Strait, which separates Pulau Rupat from the mainland. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1394.133 (ex-F1402.6); NGA 22523.1. Selat Rupat G (Tanjung Lebang Outbound Range Front) Date unknown. Active; focal plane 16 m (52 ft); quick-flashing white light. 16 m (52 ft) square white skeletal tower mounted on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view of the area. Located about 5 km (3 mi) northeast of Tanjung Lebang, the south side of the entrance to the Rupat Strait. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1399.1 (ex-F1401.9); NGA 22520. Selat Rupat F (Tanjung Lebang Range Common Rear) Date unknown. Active; focal plane 17 m (56 ft); white light, 1 s on, 1 s off. 17 m (56 ft) square white skeletal tower mounted on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view of the area. Located 1425 m (0.89 mi) east of the Outbound Range Front Light. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1399 (ex-F1402); NGA 22512. Selat Rupat E (Tanjung Lebang Inbound Range Front) Date unknown. Active; focal plane 16 m (52 ft); quick-flashing white light. 16 m (52 ft) square white skeletal tower mounted on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view of the area. Located 300 m (0.2 mi) southeast of the Common Rear Light. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1399.2 (ex-F1402.1); NGA 22516. Selat Rupat A Date unknown. Active; focal plane 16 m (52 ft); three white flashes every 15 s. 13 m (43 ft) square white skeletal tower mounted on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view of the area. Located on a shoal about 5 km (3 mi) offshore marking the eastern approach to the Rupat Strait and Dumai. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1404 (ex-F1402.5); NGA 22523.

Dermaga Pertamina Light, Dumai, March 2020 Google Maps photo by Eddy Radzi

Selat Rupat D

Date unknown. Active; focal plane 14 m (46 ft); white light, 1.5 s on, 1.5 s off. 14 m (46 ft) square white skeletal tower mounted on a platform supported by piles. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view of the area. For vessels leaving the Bengkalis Strait, this light marks the point of division between the channels leading to the Rupat Strait and to the open Malacca Strait. Located on a shoal about 10 km (6 mi) north northwest of Tanjung Bakau. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1403; NGA 22524.

Bengkalis Regency: Pulau Rupat Lighthouses

Bengkalis Regency consists of three disjunct areas: Rupat Island, Bengkalis Island, and an area of the mainland facing the gap between those islands. Only the Rupat Island lights are described here; the other lights of the regency are listed on the Southern Riau page.

Pulau Burung Date unknown. Active; focal plane 13 m (43 ft); red flash every 5 s. 13 m (43 ft) square skeletal tower mounted on a platform supported by piles. No photo available but Google has a satellite view. Located off the west end of Pulau Burung, a small island just off the north coast of Pulau Rupat. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1395.2; NGA 22491. Tanjung Medang Date unknown. Active; focal plane 52 m (171 ft); white flash every 10 s. 50 m (164 ft) square tapered skeletal tower with lantern and gallery, painted white. Several coast guard buildings nearby. Kukerta Telukrhu's 2022 photo is at the top of this page, Abdul Muis has a 2017 photo, Arik Novriko Sulistio has a 2018 photo, a 2024 closeup is available, and Google has a satellite view. For eastbound ships Tanjung Medang is an important landmark marking the entrance to the narrow section of the Malacca Strait. The taller tower behind he lighthouse carries vessel traffic control radar. Located on a swampy cape at the northern tip of Pulau Rupat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-315; Admiralty F1395.1 (ex-F1395); NGA 22492. Morong Date unknown. Active; focal plane 25 m (82 ft); three white flashes every 15 s. 25 m (82 ft) square tapered skeletal tower with lantern and gallery, painted white. No photo available but Google has a satellite view. Located at an estuary entrance on the east side of Pulau Rupat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-171; Admiralty F1395.5; NGA 22496. * Batu Pandang Date unknown. Active; focal plane 18 m (59 ft); white flash every 3 s. Approx. 15 m (49 ft) square cylindrical white skeletal tower. Latief Abdurrachman's 2024 photo is at right, a 2016 view is available, and Google has an indistinct satellite view. Located on the pier at Batu Pandang on the south side of Rupat Island opposite Dumai city. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty F1394.13 (ex-F1401.5); NGA 22511.5. Strait of Malacca Main Channel Lighthouses Gosong Raleigh (Raleigh Shoal) Date unknown. Active; focal plane 16 m (52 ft); two white flashes every 5 s. 13 m (43 ft) tower, probably mounted on a caisson or concrete pier. Lighthouse painted black with one red horizontal band. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view. Located on the south side of the main ship channel of the Malacca Strait, northeast of Pulau Rupat. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1396; NGA 22500.

Batu Pandang Light, Pulau Rupat, February 2024 Google Maps photo by Latief Abdurrachman

Gosong Rob Roy (Rob Roy Bank)

Date unknown. Active; focal plane 16 m (52 ft); two white flashes every 10 s. 13 m (43 ft) tower, probably mounted on a caisson or concrete pier. Lighthouse painted black with one red horizontal band. No photo available and the light is not shown in Google's satellite view. Located on the south side of the main ship channel of the Malacca Strait, east of Pulau Rupat. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1397; NGA 22508.

Information available on lost lighthouses:

Notable faux lighthouses:

Adjoining pages: North: Eastern North Sumatra | Northeast: Malaysia: Malaya South Coast | South: Southern Riau

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Posted April 13, 2006. Checked and revised July 23, 2026. Lighthouses: 24. Site copyright 2026 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.