Chemical and Petrochemicals

Access to low-cost raw materials, a variety of integration agreements and few finished goods means unparalleled opportunities for both local and foreign companies. With a little exploited profitability potential, there are any number of intermediate sectors capable of generating up to 10 times more value than oil extraction.

Demand for these products exists in a wide range of areas of the economy: graphic arts, lubricants, paper, detergents and cleaning products, packaging, containers, plastics, paint, footwear and textiles. The main center of interest, however is petrochemicals, a sector that will benefit from the hydrocarbon business plan that Venezuela will be implementing in coming years.

This latter industry is working towards full development, now out from under the wing of the state-owned corporation Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa). Taking advantage of current gas extraction plans, the sector could make use of all the installed capacity, currently affected by a severe shortage of raw material.

The door will be open to a great many business opportunities with the reactivation, retooling and reindustrialization for production of plastics. This sector is made up of small and medium-sized industries (SMIs) and is an area of great interest to the government given its capacity to provide real, stable employment for skilled labor. The government expects to create 125,000 jobs in this field between 2006 and 2018 by raising domestic consumption from 15 to 50 kg per person per year.