Freeport-McMoRan Inc Q2 2024 Earnings Call Summary

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Alan Spence - BNP Paribas Exane - Analyst : Good morning, Kathleen and Richard. On the North American operations, your grades were lower year on year. And the leaching volumes in Q2 annualizing above the '24 target, yet copper sales guidance was decreased. I appreciate to by 1%, but do we put those together and concluded that the North American kind of the optimization targets or maybe improving a bit more challenging this year?

Question: Alan Spence - BNP Paribas Exane - Analyst : Thank you for that. And just quick follow-up question on the leaching. You provided some helpful additional color on it. You mentioned a high probability of getting to the 300 million lb to 400 million lb range by '26. But just to confirm, none of that would be incurred '26 guidance?

Question: Alan Spence - BNP Paribas Exane - Analyst : Thanks, Kathleen.

Question: Carlos De Alba - Morgan Stanley - Analyst : Thank you very much. Good morning, Kathleen, Richard. Kathleen, just continue with this question on the leaching projects and initiatives in North America. Can you remind us or give us some color as to how much lower cash cost does those initiatives or those volumes have relative to the North American overall current cash-cost?

Question: Carlos De Alba - Morgan Stanley - Analyst : Thanks, Kathleen. And maybe just another one, and I understand is this might be difficult to answer precisely, but with the new regulation for IUPK in Indonesia in place and basically, as you mentioned, PT-FI in position having made basic requirements to apply for an extension. What is the path ahead to get the approval of extension, I don't know if there's anything on timing or milestones that you can point and is this something that we have to wait until the new president, administration?

Question: Liam Fitzpatrick - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Good morning, everyone. I'm just a question around the new smelter in Indonesia and the ramp-up profile on the face of it, it appears fairly optimistic target to achieve full capacity by year end, just given the size and complexity of it. So can you give us some color on the some of the key ramp up milestones that you'll need to achieve through H2 to hit that target? And then separately, moving forward, do you plan to give us any separate disclosure for the smelter so that we can assess the operating performance and the profitability and so on? Thank you.

Question: Liam Fitzpatrick - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : That's a very comprehensive answer. Thank you, both. Could I just ask a quick follow-up if there's one item along the critical path over the next few months that you'd highlight the once you get through that you'll be slipping a bit easier at night?

Question: Liam Fitzpatrick - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Thank you.

Question: Bob Brackett - Bernstein - Analyst : Good morning. A question around the gold sales revision. I understand the wet conditions in the Block Cave change your mine sequencing into maybe a lower gold grade area, but why doesn't those ounces come back in the plan period so far? You lost 0.2 million ounces this year. Couldn't you argue that it should reappear in '25 or '26?

Question: Bob Brackett - Bernstein - Analyst : That's very clear. A quick follow-up on sort of the third condition around the IUPK application is commitment for additional exploration and increases in refining capacity. Is that a hard dollar amount that you have to put it into the application? Or is that something that you discuss was out of a softer sort of target?

Question: Bob Brackett - Bernstein - Analyst : Very clear. Thanks. REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies.

Question: Orest Wowkodaw - Scotiabank - Analyst : Good morning. Just a clarification on the potential IUPK extension. The it sounds like you're moving towards giving up an extra 10% in the asset post 2041, which you receive any proceeds for that or but there's not effectively just the cost of the extension?

Question: Orest Wowkodaw - Scotiabank - Analyst : Okay, thank you. And then just a quick follow-up. It's nice to see the buyback resume here in July. It's been a two years, I think, since we've seen any shares are repurchased, should we expect that to ramp up in the second half year with the smelter a commissioning and ramp up?

Question: Orest Wowkodaw - Scotiabank - Analyst : Thank you.

Question: Michael Dudas - Vertical Research Partners LLC - Analyst : Thank you. Your relationship and negotiations with the Indonesian government's been going quite well as you portrayed here today. And in past calls, maybe you could update us on how things are in Peru, Chile, maybe even in North America, how relative to the amount of investments that you're going to be looking at, maybe others and your competitors as well, how that's played out, given the volatility in the upside in the copper price and any thought from those governments and those ministers of to move along with the new supplies at the market seems to be calling for?

Question: Michael Dudas - Vertical Research Partners LLC - Analyst : Very helpful, Richard, Kathleen, thank you.

Question: Lawson Winder - BofA Securities - Analyst : Operator, thank you very much. And Kathleen and Richard, hello and thank you for making the time for my call -- my question and I'll just keep it brief. I wanted to ask about Kucing Liar. Usually high return project for you will effectively one topic three questions. I just wanted to get an update on when you were expecting first production and then ask as to the pace of spending. So I mean, it's a $4 billion project and you're noting a $400 million have been spent to date over a period of about two years. When do you expect that to start to pick up a little more? Thanks very, very much.

Question: Brian MacArthur - Raymond James - Analyst : Good morning, Richard, and Kathleen. Thanks for taking my question. I just want to go back to that 10% on the IUPK, I just want to confirm A until 2041. You maintain your 48.76%. I think that's what I understand that when a 10% thereafter. But then two on the capital. You put it all in 2041 and then get it back or is this going to be more like for a while at Rio where, whereas you develop reserve then their ownership goes up that you share the capital with different ratios? Like we saw with the Rio Tinto stuff I'm just trying to figure out exactly like how the cash flows are going to work on this.

Question: Bill Peterson - JP Morgan - Analyst : Yeah, Kathleen and team. Thanks for taking the question. Nice to see the doubling of leaching in first half '24 relative to the first half last year. Looking ahead, how should we think about the trajectory from here? Do you expect to be at a similar output in the recent quarter was 55 million lbs or are some of the productivity items. You highlighted using technology, you see further upside in the back half of the year and into 2025 as you progress through the 300 million to 400 million lbs per year targeting 2026.