| May 3, 2002
Euro Zone To Recycle 260,000 Tonnes of Old Coins By 2005.
Initiative is an Important Contributor to Sustainable Development
In 2002, the year that the World Summit will be held on sustainable development, Europe has begun to recycle its old coins.
Since March 1st, twelve national currencies in the euro zone have been replaced by the common euro currency. The old currencies are being demonetarised, sorted and recycled.
By 2005, some 260,000 tonnes of metal from the old coins will be recycled into approximately 147,000 tonnes of copper, 54,000 tonnes of steel, and 43,000 tonnes of nickel.
This is a significant initiative for Europe. For example, recycled materials make up more than 45% of the annual demand for copper (i.e., 2 millions tonnes).
Copper has the unique ability to be completely recycled, time and time again, without any loss in performance. The production of copper, via the recycling of products that have reached the end of their useful lives, only uses about one quarter of the energy necessary to produce material from ore. This results in substantial savings in European energy usage (on the order of 75%), thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fueled power plants.
Through its long experience in the recycling of copper and copper alloys, the Spanish company, Elmet, has achieved a leadership position across Europe in the specialized activity of coin demonetarisation and recycling.
Elmet has demonetarised 35,000 tonnes of Spanish pesetas and 6,600 tonnes of Irish punts and pence since January 21st. One thousand five hundred tonnes of demonetarised pesetas are ready to be sent to Daewoo in Korea to produce new currency.
Elmet's facility in Bilbao, Spain, opened its doors to the international press for the first time today.
Since recycled copper is indistinguishable from virgin material, there is a high probability that the copper in our old recycled coins will someday reappear as connectors for mobile phones, chips for personal computers, distribution tubes for drinking water, and electric wire and cables for our homes.
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Contact: Christian de Barrin
European Copper Institute
Tel: +32 2 777 70 82
E-mail: cdb@eurocopper.org
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