Buenos Aires - The shortage of fuel forced several bus lines in Buenos Aires to suspend or reduce their service on Wednesday, while the lack of diesel hampered industrial and agricultural activity elsewhere in Argentina.

Hundreds of buses were affected by the move, and there was chaos at bus-stops, as commuters tried to squeeze into full vehicles.

Daniel Millaci, president of the bus transport organization CEAP, said bus lines were affected by supply problems from Shell, "which started to deliver 50 per cent less fuel until they receive a diesel lot from abroad, which could happen next week."

One bus company suspended its service for several hours and another withdrew half its vehicles from circulation. A similar thing happened in other Argentine towns.

Millaci explained that bus companies could not change supplier, since "no oil company has diesel to spare."

In some petrol stations away from the capital, diesel was being sold at three times the usual price.

Shell admitted that it is not supplying the market normally.

"The supply will become normal when we can produce at our refinery, that is, when they sell us the crude oil to refine. And we do not know when that will happen," the company director in Argentina, Reginaldo Thompson, told Argentine daily La Nacion.

The government has placed price caps on fuel sold in Argentina below the international price. Oil companies are only allowed to export the oil they extract and refine in Argentina when the domestic market is saturated.

However, reduced earnings have led to insufficient investment, while internal demand has risen as the sale of cars boomed. (dpa)