With construction complete on the Manyar smelter, Freeport will soon produce copper cathodes in Indonesia.
(Photo: PT-FI)

“Our team executed this large and complex project extremely well and is prepared to deliver the ramp-up to full production safely and efficiently,” said Kathleen Quirk, president and CEO, Freeport. “The completion of the project positions PT-FI as a fully integrated producer in Indonesia, providing a foundation to extend its long-term operating rights.”

PT-FI has received approval from the Indonesian government to export copper concentrates and anode slimes through December 2024 when the full ramp-up of the new processing facilities is expected. Freeport said PT-FI will continue to pay export duties on copper concentrates during the smelter ramp-up period pursuant to Indonesian regulations.

PT-FI’s prior concentrate and anode slime export licenses expired on May 31, 2024, and PT-FI did not export copper concentrates or anode slimes during June 2024. As a result, the company said its consolidated sales for Q2 2024 will be approximately 5% below April 2024 guidance of 975 million lb of copper and approximately 30% below April 2024 guidance of 500,000 oz of gold.

Freeport also reported that as a result of a change in mine sequencing to address wet conditions in certain draw points in the Grasberg Block Cave, 2024 gold sales are expected to be approximately 1.8 million oz compared with previous estimates approaching 2 million oz. The company said the change is a timing issue and not expected to affect long-range plans.