JAKARTA: Indonesia’s Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry on Tuesday said it has granted the local unit of U.S. miner Freeport-McMoRan a temporary permit to resume exports of copper concentrate.
Freeport and the government will also continue to negotiate a deal over the future of one of the world’s largest copper mines, the ministry said.
Freeport Indonesia, which operates the massive Grasberg Mine in Papua Province, will be able to ship up to 1.1 million tons of copper concentrate — its previous annual quota — at least until October, ministry officials said in a press conference.
A Freeport Indonesia spokesperson said the company is finalizing the application for an export permit so it can “export immediately.”
The company had been unable to ship since Jan. 12, when the Indonesian government issued a set of new mineral export regulations. The rules require Freeport to convert its current Contract of Work agreement to something called an IUPK, essentially a mining permit, before it resumes exports.
The regulations force foreign IUPK holders to comply with changes in tax policies and also require them to eventually divest majority stakes in their mines to Indonesian parties.
Freeport has been resisting the IUPK terms, demanding that the government provide “legal and fiscal guarantees” that would enable it to operate beyond 2021, when its current contract expires.
Ministry Secretary-General Teguh Pamudji said the two sides will begin negotiating a longer-term agreement next week.
In February, Richard Adkerson, president and CEO of Freeport-McMoRan, told reporters in Jakarta that the company might seek arbitration if the dispute does not get resolved.
