Freeport Indonesia Says Ramped up Copper Output

TIMIKA, KOMPAS.com - Freeport Indonesia has ramped up copper concentrate production at its strike-hit giant Grasberg mine, taking it to more than 4,000 tonnes per day in October, while almost 79,000 tonnes would be shipped this week, the company said on Wednesday.

Concentrate output was only 54 tonnes on Sept. 18, just days after the start of a strike by around half its workforce. The firm said output has steadily climbed since, peaking at 6,266 tonnes on Oct. 9, and was 4,494 tonnes on Monday.

Earlier on Wednesday, Freeport Indonesia said it would ship 78,921 tonnes of copper concentrate from Grasberg this week. Sources said last month its port had also been emptied of workers by the strike.

The increased output comes despite the strike at Freeport McMoran Copper & Gold Inc’s Grasberg, the world’s second biggest copper mine and with the world’s largest gold reserves, being extended by another month to mid-November.

Last month Freeport-McMoRan said it was unlikely to meet third-quarter sales estimates because of the strike. It then estimated the impact on production at about 3 million pounds (1,361 tonnes) of copper and 5,000 ounces of gold for each day of the stoppage.

Copper prices have so far shrugged off the supply disruption because of worries a weakening global economy would hit demand for metals, and news of increased output at Grasberg may weigh on the market.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 1.2 percent to $7,380 a tonne by 0720 GMT, riding on steep gains in Shanghai equities and rapid restocking by Chinese consumers, though fears about the global economy limit gains.

The statement by Freeport Indonesia, given to local reporters near the remote mine in the country’s easternmost Papua region, backs up its assertion that contract and some other workers have been returning to boost output and processing.

“No work, no pay — work, more pay,” the statement said, in an apparent effort to encourage striking workers to return.

Striking miners, whose union is pushing for higher pay of between $12.50 and $37 an hour versus a current rate of $1.5 to $3 an hour, are not getting paid while striking. The region is one of Indonesia’s poorest.

On Monday, a clash between the striking workers and police near the remote mine killed one protester and injured others, complicating the pay dispute, which still appears far from being resolved.