"We may be able to resume operations in a matter of days. We can't say when full production would resume,'' spokesman Ken Vaughn said.
Employees saw the fire, which started at 3 p.m. Friday, and tried unsuccessfully to extinguish it, he said. Firefighters got the blaze under control about two hours later, Vaughn said.
About 70 workers _ half the number of employees at the plant _ were at work at the time the blaze started. None were injured, he said.
Vaughn said the cause of the fire has not been determined.
The plant makes copper rods used by manufacturers to produce wire and cable products.
Phelps Dodge, which is based in Phoenix, will shift work to plants in Chicago; El Paso, Texas; and Miami, Ariz., Vaughn said.
A call seeking information from the Norwich Fire Department was not immediately returned.
