Freeport holds shareholders’ meeting today

The copper and gold giant PT Freeport Indonesia will hold its annual shareholders general meeting on Friday (today) at its temporary office in GKBI building in South Jakarta, the Koran Tempo newspaper reported in its Friday edition.

The meeting was earlier scheduled to be held early this month and postponed due to a bomb blast outside the Australian Embassy in Jakarta.

Freeport’s office, which was located just opposite to the Australian Embassy, was hit by the bomb blast but no one from the Freeport was injured in the incident.

At least nine people were killed and more than 180 people were injured in the high-explosive blast.

Freeport’s communications manager Mindo Pamgaribuan said that there is no change in the agenda of the meeting.

“Agenda is the same and there is no change in it,” Mindo said when Koran Tempo asked him about the meeting.

Mindo said the meeting will approve the financial statements of 2002 and 2003 an determine the dividend for shareholders.

State Minister for State Enterprises Laksamana Sukardi earlier confirmed that the government will ask the Freeport to raise the dividend amount.

“We will ask for 20 percent of Freeport’s profit as dividend,” Laksamana told the House of Representatives recently

For 2001, Freeport decided to pay 15 percent of its profit as dividend to its shareholders. The government, as a shareholder received US$4.5 million. (*)