PT Freeport Temporarily Stops Mining And Processing Due To High Rainfall

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAYAPURA - PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) temporarily suspended mining and processing activities, due to high rainfall in the mining area.

It is feared that this condition will result in a part of the concentrate processing factory (Mill-Concentrating) experiencing mudflow.

President Director of PT Freeport Indonesia Tony Wenas said, apart from some of the factory locations that were flooded, several sections of the mining road were also damaged.

"So mining and processing activities are temporarily suspended for the recovery process," Tony said as quoted by Antara, Sunday, February 12.

According to Tony, currently, the PTFI Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) team has been activated to take the necessary actions for the process of recovering the mine area which was affected by the high rainfall that occurred on Saturday, 11 February.

He explained that PTFI had picked up and evacuated 14 employees who were detained in the office building, and currently, they are in good health.

"We are grateful that there were no reports of casualties from this incident, and we prioritize the safety of all employees on duty at the location," he said.

Since Saturday night, his party has continued to work on cleanup and recovery safely and according to priority so that operations can run as expected and can return to normal.

"The situation in the Tembagapura area, especially the factory area at MP 74, is currently under good control," he concluded.