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Minister urged to revoke letter to Freeport boss
Part of a letter sent from Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said to Freeport McMoRanâs chairman of the board James R
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Part of a letter sent from Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said to Freeport McMoRanâs chairman of the board James R. Moffet on Oct. 7 is pictured recently. Observers have said the letter could act as a green light for the extension of PT Freeport Indonesiaâs contract. (Estu Suryowati/kompas.com) (Estu Suryowati/kompas.com)
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span class="caption">Part of a letter sent from Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said to Freeport McMoRan's chairman of the board James R. Moffet on Oct. 7 is pictured recently. Observers have said the letter could act as a green light for the extension of PT Freeport Indonesia's contract. (Estu Suryowati/kompas.com)
Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said has been advised to revoke a letter to Freeport McMoRan Inc. board chairman James R. Moffet, which was considered to have given a guarantee that the Indonesian government would extend a contract with PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) to manage its gold mining site in Papua.
The chairman of House of Representatives Commission VII overseeing mining affairs, Kardaya Warnika, said on Saturday that the letter sent by Sudirman on Oct. 7 had put the government in a difficult position in negotiating the contract extension with PTFI.
'It is not easy to revoke a letter. But it [should be done] for the bigger picture,' Kardaya said in Jakarta on Saturday as reported by kompas.com.
The fourth paragraph of the letter states: 'The Indonesian government has a commitment to assure the continuity of foreign investment in Indonesia, but because of the need for adjustment of the existing regulations in Indonesia, the agreement on the contract extension with PTFI will be given soon after the result of the reorganization of the regulation on minerals and coal is implemented'.
In the letter, the government appeared to be giving a guarantee that PTFI's contract would be extended, said the lawmaker, underlining the phrase 'will be given soon'. Under the existing regulation, the contract extension could begin to be discussed in 2019, two years before the contract expires in 2021.
'Because there is a promise [in the letter], I propose the revocation of the letter in order to not shackle the Indonesian government,' Kardaya added.
Kardaya also questioned why the minister had sent such a letter to Moffet. According to the lawmaker, if such a letter had to be sent, it should have been directed to PTFI president director Maroef Sjamsoedin.
In relation to the contract extension of PTFI, Sudirman has reported House Speaker Setya Novanto to the House's ethics council for allegedly claiming to have won the approval of President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla to secure shares and projects from Freeport in exchange for helping the company extend its contract and continue operating its gold mine in Papua, which is the largest in the world.
Sudirman and Maroef have given testimony at the council's hearing, while Setya is scheduled to testify on Monday.(bbn)
