Freeport's Grasberg copper mine unhurt by tsunami
Thursday, December 30 2004 - 01:01 AM WIB
The Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX)-operated Grasberg copper and gold mine in Indonesia has been unaffected by the recent earthquake and tsunami in the region, and continues to operate at full capacity, according to Bill Collier, a spokesman for the company. This was reported by the Dow Jones Newswires from New York on Wednesday.
The Grasberg facility is the third largest copper reserve in the world and the world's largest gold mine.
Collier said output at the plant should reach 1 billion pounds of copper concentrate and 1.45 million ounces of gold for 2004, and reach 1.5 billion pounds of copper and 2.9 million ounces of gold in 20005 as the facility ramps up to full capacity following an enforced shutdown during 2004 due to a major landslide.
Collier added that the epicenter of the earthquake was some 3,000 miles from Grasberg's location in Papua New Guinea, and so left the mine's operational and port facilities unaffected.
He added that shipments from the operations are also as normal in the wake of the disaster. (*)