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The incident was reportedly led by a separatist group looking to disrupt operations at the world’s second-largest copper mine.
Six police have been wounded and one killed in shootings at Freeport-McMoRan’s (NYSE:FCX) Grasberg mine in Indonesia, Reuters reported on Monday (October 23).
According to the police, the shootings were led by a separatist group that was looking to disrupt operations at the world’s second-largest copper mine.
Three of the shootings occurred over the weekend, including the fatal shooting, which took place on Sunday afternoon. The separatist group is believed to be led by a man named Sabinus Waker and has up to 30 members.
The armed group has carried out previous shootings in the mine area as well, Papua police spokesman Suryadi Diaz told the news outlet. “It’s clear they want to disrupt operations at Freeport,” Diaz said.
Diaz said the group is “demanding justice” from the local unit of Freeport, which operates the Grasberg mine, although it is not clear what that might entail. The other four shootings took place on Monday.
“Freeport is rich [and] has a big company. The population are poor,” Diaz said.
Grasberg has been the scene of violence for decades, and Freeport contributed $21 million toward government-provided security in 2015.
A spokesman for Freeport’s Indonesian unit told Reuters that the recent shootings have had no impact on output from Grasberg, but he declined to comment further.
Earlier this year, Freeport was hit with labor issues at Grasberg and a dispute with the government over rights to the mine.
In January, the Indonesian government introduced new rules that resulted in Freeport having to halt copper concentrate exports and cut its workforce by 10 percent.
Despite strikes, the company was able to resume work in April; however, it wanted to retain the same legal and fiscal assurances it had under its original deal with the Indonesian government.
In August, the company committed to selling a 51-percent stake in its Indonesian subsidiary, PT Freeport Indonesia, and investing up to $20 billion by 2031 to further develop the mine. This move led Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO,NYSE:RIO,LSE:RIO), which also holds an interest in Grasberg, to start negotiating an exit from the operation.
On Monday, Freeport’s share price remained almost neutral, trading at US$14.81 in New York. LME copper traded flat at $6,950 per tonne.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Priscila Barrera, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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