Freeport confirms seven deaths after Grasberg mine disaster in Indonesia

Monday 06 October 2025 - 11:20

By: Dakir Madiha

Freeport confirms seven deaths after Grasberg mine disaster in Indonesia

Freeport-McMoRan has confirmed the deaths of all seven workers who went missing following a catastrophic mudflow at its Grasberg copper and gold mine in Indonesia. The discovery of the remaining five bodies on October 5 marked the end of a nearly month-long search and rescue mission that followed the September 8 disaster, which forced the suspension of operations at one of the world’s largest mining sites.

Operations suspended and force majeure declared

The Arizona-based mining giant announced that it has suspended all mining operations in the Grasberg mineral district since the incident and declared force majeure on its supply contracts. The Grasberg mine, the world’s second-largest source of copper and a major global supplier of gold, accounts for roughly 4% of the world’s copper output. Freeport stated that production levels are unlikely to return to pre-incident capacity before 2027.

According to the company, copper output in 2026 could fall as much as 35% below previous forecasts. Mining activities at the Big Gossan and Deep MLZ deposits are scheduled to resume in late 2025, while the Grasberg Block Cave mine is expected to restart gradually from the first half of 2026. The company warned that copper and gold sales for the fourth quarter of 2025 will be “negligible.”

Global copper market reeling from supply disruption

The Grasberg disaster has sent shockwaves through the global copper market. Prices surged to a 15-month high of $10,485 per tonne after Freeport declared force majeure, as supply fears deepened across the industry. Analysts have sharply revised their supply forecasts, with Goldman Sachs shifting its 2025 market outlook from a projected surplus of 105,000 tonnes to a deficit of 55,500 tonnes.

The disruption adds further pressure to an already fragile copper supply chain, following other major incidents this year. Flooding at Ivanhoe Mines’ operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and a tunnel collapse at Chile’s El Teniente mine have both reduced global output. Benchmark Mineral Intelligence estimates that the Grasberg interruption alone will remove around 591,000 tonnes of copper production between September 2025 and the end of 2026, approximately 2.6% of total global mining output.

The Grasberg tragedy underscores the vulnerabilities facing global resource supply chains amid increasing environmental and operational risks. For investors and industry analysts, the incident serves as a stark reminder of the growing uncertainty surrounding future copper availability in an era of accelerating demand for energy transition materials.