Nandito Putra, Jakarta – Indonesia's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) has confirmed that PT Freeport Indonesia has resumed mining operations at its Grasberg site following last month's deadly landslide.

Production at the Deep Mill Level Zone (DMLZ) and Big Gossan blocks has restarted after being temporarily halted as a safety measure when a landslide struck the underground Grasberg Block Cave (GBC) area.

Tri Winarno, Director General of Minerals and Coal at the ESDM Ministry, said the government completed its evaluation and issued permits allowing the two sites to operate again.

While the landslide did not directly affect DMLZ or Big Gossan, Freeport halted all underground activities to ensure worker safety.

"Now the DMLZ and Big Gossan blocks are operational," Tri told reporters at the Parliament complex on Thursday, November 13, 2025.

Output from both mines will again supply Freeport's smelter in Gresik, East Java, which had faced a shortage of feedstock during the shutdown.

Tri acknowledged that production from the two blocks alone remains insufficient to meet the smelter's full capacity but said the restart is an important step toward stabilizing the downstream program.

The landslide in the GBC underground mine occurred on September 8, 2025, killing seven workers and bringing operations to a standstill for nearly a month. Search and recovery efforts lasted 27 days before the company began gradually reopening parts of the mine.

In 2024, Freeport produced an average of 208,356 tons of ore concentrate per day across its operations, including copper, gold, and silver.

The GBC mine contributed the largest share at roughly 133,800 tons per day, accounting for about 64 percent of total output, followed by DMLZ at around 64,900 tons per day and Big Gossan at approximately 8,000 tons per day.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/2065605/freeport-indonesia-mines-resume-operations-after-deadly-landslid