PT Smelting?s Q4 production up

New Orleans-based copper and gold miner Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc (FCX) reported Tuesday that PT Smelting had produced 145.4 million pounds of cathodes in the fourth quarter of 2005, compared with 143.8 million pounds during the fourth quarter of 2004.

FCX said the smelter treated 228,800 metric tons of concentrates in the fourth quarter of 2005, compared with 227,300 metric tons in the same period of 2004.

PT Smelting produced 579,700 million pounds of cathodes in 2005, up from 464,000 million pounds in 2004.

FCX also said PT Smelting had scheduled an 18-day maintenance turnaround in mid-2006.

PT Smelting, located in Gresik of East Java, is the only copper smelter in Indonesia. FCX?s Indonesian unit PT Freeport Indonesia (PT-FI) is the supplier of copper concentrate to the smelter as well as a 25 percent owner.

Other owners are Mitsubishi Materials Corporation (60.5 percent), Mitsubishi Corporation (9.5 percent), and Nippon Mining & Metals Co (5 percent). (robert)