Costs, transportation, three different

The coca leaf is either consumed by the natives of South America or exported to other countries for consumption. Another use of the coca leaf is in the extraction of cocaine either for illegitimate or legitimate use. The majority of the legal and/or clandestine cocaine factories are in South America due to the cost and bulk of transporting the whole leaf. In 1961, Bolivia produced an annual crop of from 12,000 to 18,000 tons of leaves although only half reached the legal market. The alkaloid cocaine is extracted from the coca leaf in basically three different chemical procedures. These procedures are used both in licit and illicit labs in the production of cocaine. 

The choice of technology, the associated capital, and operating costs for a chlor—alkaU plant are strongly dependent on local factors. Especially important are local energy and transportation costs, as are environmental constraints. The primary difference ia operating costs between diaphragm, mercury, and membrane cell plants results from variations ia electricity requirements for the three processes (Table 25) so that local energy and steam costs are most important. 

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