By I Made Sentana
JAKARTA, Indonesia--PT Freeport Indonesia said Saturday that it
has been informed by the government that it may commence production
and open-pit operations at its Grasberg mine in Papua Province.
"PT Freeport Indonesia expresses its appreciation to the
government for the approval and the thoroughness of its ongoing
investigations and recommendation related to the underground
accident," the Indonesian unit of Phoenix-based Freeport-McMoRan
Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX) said in a press release.
It, however, didn't mention when it would restart operations at
Grasberg--one of the world's largest open-pit copper mines and the
largest gold mine, which is located in Indonesia's easternmost
province.
The company suspended operations there after 28 workers died
when an underground training facility near the underground Big
Gossan mine collapsed May 14. Freeport Indonesia suspended all
mining activities, including open-pit, out of respect for the
deceased workers and said then that it hoped to resume work
quickly. But the government, which owns a 10% stake in the company,
said production couldn't continue until investigations were
completed.
The company has declared force majeure to free itself from
obligations to deliver copper concentrate. It said last week that
the halt was causing a production loss of 3 million pounds of
copper and 3,000 ounces of gold per day. Freeport Indonesia, which
started mining in Papua in the early 1960s, shortly after former
dictator Suharto rose to power, is the single-largest taxpayer in
Indonesia.
Write to I Made Sentana at i-made.sentana@dowjones.com
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