Freeport Indonesia unveils plan for IPO

Freeport Indonesia, the local unit of the world?s largest copper and gold miner, unveiled plans for an initial public offering (IPO) to boost corporate governance and transparency at the company.

?We are considering several options, including an IPO,? Rozik Soetjipto, the president director of Freeport Indonesia, said as quoted by The Jakarta Globe in his meeting with BeritaSatu Media Holdings, which the Jakarta Globe is part of it.

?The IPO would be good for Freeport Indonesia, as it tends to be more accountable and transparent,? he said. He did not disclose possible terms of the IPO, such as the time frame and the size of the sale.

?Should everything go smoothly, a real strategy heading to that [IPO] direction would be carried out by 2013,? he said. But Rozik emphasized that the parent company, US-based Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold, would have the final say on the matter and an IPO was just one option.

Rozik said the company, which runs the country?s biggest copper mine in Papua, was focused on renegotiating its contracts ending in 2021 with the government.

Indonesia has urged foreign miners operating in the country to sell stakes to local companies, eventually bringing overseas ownership to less than half. The move is meant to protect the country?s abundant natural resources and generate more revenue from extractive industries.

Freeport-McMoRan owns a 90.64 percent stake in Freeport Indonesia and the government owns the rest.(*)