Venezuela's PP plant down unexpectedly - source

17 July 2008 21:24  [Source: ICIS news]

CARACAS (ICIS News)--Venezuela's sole polypropylene (PP) plant was shut unexpectedly over the weekend and could be down for two weeks, an industry source said on Thursday.

The plant has a capacity of 110,000 tonnes/year.

Officials with Petroquimica de Venezuela (Pequiven), the state petrochemical producer, did not respond to requests for comment.

The unplanned shutdown was expected to further aggravate an already delicate plastic resins supply situation.

Pequiven has increasingly relied on imports to supply Venezuela's transformers. However, the company is still largely unable to meet that industry's growth, which has consistently topped 20% over the last few years.

Prices for many resins have increased this year as Pequiven passed on the cost of importing product from abroad to local transformers.

"This will put incredible pressure on Venezuelan industry, especially on non-food products," the source said.

The Venezuelan government is lending extra support to the food industry and making it a priority in an attempt to ease lingering shortages of basic staples that are often cited as a prime source of discontent against President Hugo Chavez's administration.

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By: Jasmina Kelemen
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