JAKARTA, March 17 (Reuters) - Indonesia has agreed to

issue a copper export permit extension to miner Freeport

Indonesia for the next six months, the energy minister said on

Monday.

Freeport had sought the export permit after a fire at a gas

cleaning unit last October forced a halt in copper cathode

production at a new smelter in Gresik in East Java.

"We are giving six months so that they can expeditiously

fix the smelter so that Indonesia can get state revenues from

the royalties," Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said at a

ceremony to launch Freeport Indonesia's precious metals

refinery, which is in the Gresik smelter complex.

The refinery processes gold, silver, platinum and

palladium, according to the presentation shown at the

livestreamed event.

Under its revised business plan, Freeport seeks to

export 1.2 million metric tons of concentrate, the firm's chief

executive

said last week. The company has 400,000 tons of copper

concentrate ready to export once a permit is received.

Freeport Indonesia did not immediately respond to a

request for comment.