Fluor Unit Leaves Group Building Copper Smelter

IRVINE — A unit of Fluor Corp. has dropped from a partnership formed just last year to build a $640-million copper smelter in Indonesia. Fluor Daniel Inc. sold its 10% interest in the venture at the urging of the partnership’s majority owner, Japan’s Mitsubishi Materials Corp.

Mitsubishi wanted Tokyo-based building contractor Chiyoda Corp. to take over as project manager as work moved beyond the preliminary stages, Fluor spokeswoman Kirsten Frosh said.

Although a minority owner of the partnership, Fluor Daniel had contracted only to do preliminary design and construction preparation work and did not have a contract to move into the second phase of the project, she said. “We did what we contracted to do, and we were paid for that,” Frosh said.

The copper smelter deal was put together a year ago with Fluor as the minority owner, Mitsubishi as majority owner with a 70% share and New Orleans-based Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc. as a 20% owner.

Frosh described the breakup of the partnership as “amicable” and said Fluor’s former partners each bought half of its stake. Fluor would not disclose its income from design work or the sale of its 10% stake in the venture.