Cable Theft Costs Telefonica US$10.5mn in 2006

Chilean incumbent fixed line operator Telefónica Chile, a unit of Spain's Telefónica, spent US$10.5mn in 2006 replacing stolen telephony lines, local daily Diario Financiero reported.

According to the report, one of the likely causes of the increased theft was the high copper prices on world markets. The capital city of Santiago saw the highest level of theft, mainly in the Puente Alto and La Pintana municipalities.

CTC officials previously told press in their 2006 earnings conference that the company is considering wireless infrastructure options for its affected areas, but would not give more details.

In Peru, 1mn people were affected by interruptions to regular phone service due to cable theft between January and August last year affecting Telefónica's local unit Telefónica del Perú."

Posted to the site on 7th March 2007