JAKARTA – The Indonesian unit of Freeport-McMoran is seeking fiscal and legal guarantees from the government over mining rules issued last week, a spokesman for the copper mining giant said late on Thursday.

The Southeast Asian nation has been pushing miners to build smelters to process ore locally, with concentrate shipments stopped since January 12 under laws introduced in 2014.

But new regulations announced last week mean that Freeport and some other miners could be allowed to keep exporting ore if they meet conditions including shifting from their current 'contracts of work' to so-called 'special mining permits', a move that could leave them liable to paying more in taxes.

The latest rules also require foreign mining companies to divest at least 51 percent of their holdings in Indonesia.

Freeport spokesman Riza Pratama said in a statement that the company had told the government it would shift away from a contract of work and develop an additional smelter within five years as long as it obtains "a stability agreement providing the same rights and the same level of legal and fiscal certainty provided under its contract of work".

He said Freeport expects to be allowed to resume concentrate exports while the new licence and requested guarantees were finalised.

"There is no requirement to pay export duties on concentrates or to conduct further divestments (under the company's existing contract)," Pratama added.

As of Friday, the mining ministry had not issued a recommendation for Freeport to obtain an export permit. According to Coal and Minerals director-general Bambang Gatot, Freeport will have to receive its new mining licence before the government will issue an export permit.

Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Ignasius Jonan said it would take a "maximum of 14 days" for Freeport to obtain its new mining licence, once all necessary documents were submitted.

The head of the finance ministry fiscal policy office said on Wednesday that he expected Freeport to pay "slightly" more in taxes once it obtains the new mining permit.