Freeport to cut output by 30,000 tons a day

Freeport to cut output by 30,000 tons a day

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Mines and Energy Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono said on Wednesday that U.S.-based cooper and gold
mining company PT Freeport Indonesia has agreed to cut its daily
output by about 30,000 tons of ore from 230,000 tons at present.

"This morning I received the news that Freeport has committed
to reduce its output. The amount is not confirmed yet, but it is
likely to be around 30,000 tons of ore a day," he told
journalists before a cabinet meeting.

He said Freeport had promised that it would immediately reduce
its production.

Freeport Indonesia confirmed Tuesday that the Indonesian
government requested it consider reducing production at its
Grasberg open pit mine pending completion of technical studies in
response to a May 4 landslide.

However, the press release did not report the size of the
planned cut in daily production.

Freeport was ordered to reduce output after a large pile of
waste material collapsed into its dumping site, Lake Wanagon,
causing a massive wave that swept away four workers. The men,
employed by contractors PT Petrosea and PT Graha Buana Jaya, are
feared dead.

Freeport has blamed the collapse of the overburden pile on
heavy rainfall, which reached on average of 40 millimeters last
week.

The incident prompted the government to bar Freeport from
dumping its waste material into Lake Wanagon until it can improve
safety measures at the site.

Minister of Environment Sonny Keraf said on Wednesday he
welcomed Freeport's commitment to cut output.

"By cutting the output, half of the problems the company face
now can be solved," he said.

PT Freeport Indonesia is owned by U.S. mining company Freeport
McMoran Copper & Gold, 81.28 percent; the Indonesian government,
9.36 percent; and PT Indocopper Investama Corporation, which is
partly owned by Nusamba Mineral Industries, a company linked to
former president Soeharto, 9.36 percent. (cst)