When Will the Grasberg Block Cave Mine Operate? Here's the Scoop from Freeport's Boss

Jakarta - PT Freeport Indonesia’s President Director, Tony Wenas, stated that Freeport will resume production at the Grasberg Block Cave mine in the next 2-3 weeks. “In the next 2-3 weeks, we will start production in production blocks 2 and 3, then gradually carry out a ramp-up,” Tony told the media during the open house event for Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto on Saturday (21/3/2026). Meanwhile, the next development phase, production in production block 1 of the Grasberg Block Cave, is planned to begin only next year. Tony Wenas revealed that PT Freeport Indonesia’s production target is 1.1 billion pounds of copper and 800,000 ounces of gold in 2026. However, he did not deny that global turmoil caused by the war in the Middle East is also impacting the company, for example, fluctuations in global commodity prices and potential increases in operational costs. Nevertheless, Tony emphasised that the company is more focused on production aspects. “If prices (of global commodities that rise) we cannot control. What we can control is production and operations,” he said.