Freeport Targets 1.3 Million Ounces of Gold by 2029 Amid Grasberg Mine Restart
Reporter
November 19, 2025 | 04:36 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Freeport-McMoRan aims to boost gold production from PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) to 1.3 million ounces by 2029, aligning with its plans to restore and enhance operations at the underground Grasberg Block Cave (GBC) mine.
The mine is expected to resume normal operations in the second quarter of 2026.
The company is accelerating recovery efforts following a recent incident that temporarily halted some activities at the Grasberg mine complex. Freeport President and CEO Kathleen Quirk emphasized that the recovery process prioritizes safety.
"We have incorporated the lessons from the recent tragic incident into future plans and implemented a number of initiatives to address the conditions that triggered the incident," Quirk said in a written statement on Wednesday, November 19, 2025.
Since late October 2025, PTFI has resumed operations at the Deep Mill Level Zone (DMLZ) and Big Gossan, two areas unaffected by the incident and now serving as the main production pillars. All mining activities had been suspended following a September 8 landslide that killed seven workers.
Looking ahead, Freeport expects 2026 copper and gold output to remain close to 2025 projections, targeting 1 billion pounds of copper and 0.9 million ounces of gold.
Production is projected to rise steadily in 2026 and 2027, strengthening further between 2027 and 2029, when the company aims for an average annual output of 1.6 billion pounds of copper and 1.3 million ounces of gold.
In 2024, Freeport recorded an average daily production of 208,356 tons of concentrate, comprising copper, gold, and silver. The GBC mine contributed the most at 133,800 tons per day (64% of total output), followed by DMLZ at 64,900 tons per day, and Big Gossan at 8,000 tons per day.
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