Mining Weekly reported that Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold will take additional steps to free up cash, including further reductions in high cost copper production and the possible sale of as much as USD 750 million worth of shares.

Freeport has already announced a series of curtailments, project deferrals and the suspension of its dividend as it battles low metals prices and difficult financial markets.

Mr Richard Adkerson president & CEO of Freeport McMoRan said that mining and crushed leach rates at the flagship Morenci copper mine, in Arizona, will now be reduced by a total of 50%, rather than the 25% cut announced by it in December 2008. He added that it wants its high cost US operations to be profitable at a copper price of UDS 1.25 per pound.

Mr Adkerson further said that, although there will be a natural time lag to restart production when conditions improve, the group could bring some capacity back online fairly quickly if it decided to.

While the group is benefiting from a strong gold price, molybdenum prices, which fell sharply towards the end of last year, have lately stabilized at a level below USD 10 per pound, compared with prices of around USD 30 per pound seen for much of 2008.

(Sourced from www.miningweekly.com)