("Congo Tenke Fungurume: Contract Row To Be Resolved By Next Wk," at 1014 GMT, misstated the name of the communications officer for Tenke Fungurume in the second paragraph. The correct version follows:)

 
    DOW JONES NEWSWIRES 

U.S.-based Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX) expects to resolve its contract row with the Congolese government over the $2 billion Tenke Fungurume copper/cobalt project ahead of a government set deadline next week, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday.

Talks with the government are continuing and a compromise is expected to be reached by next week, Margaret Rashidi Kabamba, the communications officer for Tenke Fungurume, told U.N.-sponsored Radio Okapi.

The Congolese government gave the company two months from Aug. 6 to resolve contract issues with the state mining company, Gecamines or face closure.

Kabamba told Okapi that the project is very important to the country employing up to 3,500 workers and appealed to the government to soften its stance. She added that the company's contract is fair and complies with the Congolese mining code.

Tenke Fungurume started output in March.

Freeport officials couldn't comment immediately.

-By Nicholas Bariyo, contributing to Dow Jones Newswires; +256 75 262 4615; bariyonic@yahoo.co.uk