(Repeats interview story from Wednesday, with no changes to text
)
By Fransiska Nangoy, Stefanno Sulaiman
JAKARTA, May 3 (Reuters) - Indonesia's investment
minister said on Wednesday that copper miner Freeport Indonesia
must agree to sell an additional 10% stake to the government, as
negotiations get underway for the U.S. company to extend its
permit to operate in the country.
Bahlil Lahadalia said the government will seek the cheapest
pricing possible to increase its stake from 51% to 61% in
Freeport-McMoRan's Indonesian unit, which controls one
of the world's largest copper mines.
"We ask for Freeport's 10% divestment through a state
company for as cheap as possible. I'm not asking to see the
valuation," he said in an interview, adding that Freeport must
agree to this requirement to be able to extend its mining permit
which currently runs to 2041.
"If we are not thinking about this now, in 2041 there will
be job losses and Papua's economy will be impacted," Bahlil
said, referring to the region where Freeport's flagship Grasberg
mine is located.
He added Freeport will also be required to build a smelter
in Papua in addition to the $3 billion project it is building in
East Java. Partnership with Papuan businesses and meeting
environmental standards would also be part of negotiations,
Bahlil added.
The $3.85 billion that Indonesia invested in the miner in
2018 via a state company has proven beneficial for the country,
and the government expects to break even on that deal next year,
he said.
Although details of the new deal are still being discussed,
he said, it is crucial for both parties to finalise Freeport's
permit extension as early as possible to avoid a dip in output.
Freeport Indonesia said it produced 3 million tonnes of
copper concentrate in 2022, an annual record. The miner has in
recent year transitioned into underground mining at Grasberg.
(Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor)
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