- Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) and Indonesia's government may sign a new agreement as soon as this weekend that will determine a path for the transfer of majority ownership of the Grasberg copper and gold mine to a local firm, Bloomberg reports.
- Under the new deal, state-owned Inalum would seek to acquire Rio Tinto's (NYSE:RIO) 40% joint venture interest in Grasberg by March and then aim to convert the interest into an equity stake, according to the report.
- Local ownership of Grasberg will rise to 51% under a framework agreement reached in August in which FCX divests a majority stake in 91%-owned local unit PT Freeport Indonesia; in return, FCX would be authorized to continue to operate the project through 2041 and as much as $20B would be invested through 2031 to further develop the mine.
- However, a government official reportedly tells Reuters that RIO is not expected to relinquish its stake in Grasberg until 2022.
- Now read: Freeport Is A Buy On Any Price Weakness
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