Freeport-McMoRan Inc.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc.

Freeport-McMoRan was founded in 1912 as the Freeport Sulphur Company, evolving into a diversified natural resource firm before becoming the world's largest publicly held copper producer. Richard Adkerson, who joined as president in 1999, led the acquisition of Phelps Dodge in 2007 and later the ill-fated oil-and-gas purchases in 2013 that were reversed after the commodities downturn. The company operates across the full mining lifecycle — from exploration and development to extraction and refining — with core copper assets including the Grasberg mine in Indonesia, the largest gold reserve and second-largest copper reserve in the world. Its portfolio also includes molybdenum production and, historically, oil and gas (divested by 2016). Freeport's strategy focuses on cost reduction, operational efficiency, and expanding copper output to meet demand from electrification and renewable energy infrastructure. Headquartered in Phoenix, the company maintains offices in Baltimore, Melbourne, Tokyo, and New York, employing over 25,000 people globally. In 2023, Freeport produced 4.1 billion pounds of copper (per the firm's annual report, 2023). The company also operates a copper cathode facility in Miami, Arizona, and has announced expansions at the Bagdad mine in Arizona to increase mill capacity. A structural differentiator is Freeport's contract with the Indonesian government for Grasberg — a unique profit-sharing and royalty arrangement that gives it operational control in a politically sensitive jurisdiction. The company is also a bellwether for global copper markets, with its production costs and output used as industry benchmarks.