Papua to go on with plan to buy stake in Freeport McMoRan

Correction: In the initial story, JP Solossa was misquoted.

The provincial government of Papua is in the process of preparing a team to negotiate with New Orleans-based copper and gold mining giant Freeport McMoRan Inc. to acquire a 15 percent stake in the company that controls the worlds? biggest copper and mining operations in Papua.

?We?ll proceed with the plan to acquire a 15 percent stake in Freeport McMoRan and is preparing a team whose members will consist of professionals to negotiate with Freeport McMoRan?s management,? said Papua governor JP Solossa on the sidelines of President Megawati Soekarnoputri?s visit to the province Thursday.

?We have received green light from Freeport McMoRan?s Chairman and CEO James Moffett, who suggest us to have stake in Freeport McMoRan instead of in PT Freeport Indonesia.?

Freeport Indonesia is the entity that runs Freeport McMoRan?s mining operation in the Papua province.

Solossa said one of the team?s tasks would be to find financing sources to buy the 15 percent stake.(alex)