Mitsubishi Materials to resume Gresik smelter: Report

Mitsubishi Materials Corp. said on Thursday it hopes to be able to resume operations at its Gresik, East Java copper smelter by Dec. 20.

"The target now is to restart it by Dec. 20," a company spokesman was quoted as saying by Reuters. Operations at the plant were halted on Oct. 17 because of troubles with oxygen supplies to the plant.

Mitsubishi Materials said in October that the suspension would have the effect of reducing current profits at PT Smelting by about 5 billion yen ($42.53 million).

Mitsubishi Materials owns 60.5 percent of PT Smelting, the operator of the facility. Other Japanese stakeholders are Mitsubishi Corp with 9.5 percent and Nippon Mining and Metals Co. Ltd., a unit of Nippon Mining Holdings Inc. with 5.0 percent.

The Indonesian unit of U.S.-based Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. also has a 25 percent stake.

The smelter, which started operating in 1999, is capable of producing 275,000 tons of copper a year. (*)