MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina bans sales of scrap copper

Because stealing electricity cables has become so widespread, Argentina decided Monday to suspend for 90 days all exports of scrap copper.

Economy Minister Roberto Lavagna said the temporary ban also extends to aluminium scrap, another of the metals being rampantly stolen from public and private sources by criminal gangs who then sell the metal on the international market.

Lavagna said it is estimated that some 6,300 kilometers (3,900 miles) of copper cable - mostly in the form of electrical-transmission and telephone-transmission lines - has been stolen in recent years.

Argentine exports of copper scrap have risen significantly in recent years. In 2004, Argentina exported some 763,000 tons of scrap with a value of 965 million US dollars.