SMM, Jan. 11: gold and copper miner PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) has lowered its copper concentrate production target to 1.2 million tons, 800000 tons less than last year's 2.1 million tons, to adapt to the transition from open-pit to underground mining, an energy official said. The decline was mainly due to a reduction in copper production from the Grasberg project, the second largest copper mine in the world, the Grasberg project in Indonesia.

PTFI plans to export only 200000 tons this year, with the remaining 1 million tons to be processed at its smelter in Gracke, East Java province.

The Treasury also expects PTFI's (EBITDA) to fall before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in 2019.

Bambang Gatot Ariyono, director of coal and minerals, said the company's EBITDA would decline from this year until 2025 to optimize production. "PTFI's income and EBITDA will remain stable beyond 2025," he said.

PTFI's copper concentrate export license expires in February, but the government said it would extend the license if it met existing requirements, including production targets.

SMM expects copper supply growth to slow again to about 2.4 per cent in 2019, with mineral copper growing by about 500000 tons. The most important factor is that Grasberg2019, the world's second largest copper producer, is expected to reduce its annual copper production, mainly due to mine transformation.