CONTINGENCIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Environmental Loss Contingency Disclosure

A summary of changes in environmental obligations for the years ended December 31 follows:



	2011			2010			2009
Balance at beginning of year	$	1,422		$	1,464		$	1,401
Accretion expense^a	88			97			102
Additions	132			19			40
Reductions	(68		)	—			(3		)
Spending	(121		)	(158		)	(76		)
Balance at end of year	1,453			1,422			1,464
Less current portion	(205		)	(138		)	(168		)
Long-term portion	$	1,248		$	1,284		$	1,296


a.	Represents accretion of the fair value of environmental obligations assumed in the acquisition of FMC, which were determined on a discounted cash flow basis.

Asset Retirement Obligation Disclosure

A summary of changes in FCX’s AROs for the years ended December 31 follows:



	2011			2010			2009
Balance at beginning of year	$	856		$	731		$	712
Liabilities incurred	9			5			12
Revisions to cash flow estimates	48			105			(17		)
Accretion expense	58			54			52
Spending	(49		)	(38		)	(28		)
Foreign currency translation adjustment	(1		)	(1		)	—
Balance at end of year	921			856			731
Less current portion	(31		)	(69		)	(46		)
Long-term portion	$	890		$	787		$	685

- Definition

The entire disclosure for an asset retirement obligation and the associated long-lived asset. An asset retirement obligation is a legal obligation associated with the disposal or retirement from service of a tangible long-lived asset that results from the acquisition, construction or development, or the normal operations of a long-lived asset, except for certain obligations of lessees.

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- Definition

The entire disclosure for environmental loss contingencies, such as presence of hazardous waste, relevant information from reports issued by regulators, and estimated costs to achieve compliance with regulatory requirements. This element may be used for all of an entity's disclosures about environmental loss contingencies.

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