Plastics
industry on the horizon
By South Bureau
Trinidad Express
Port
Spain
Petroleumworldtt.com
12 03 06
During
his recent address at the Vessigny Secondary School
in La Brea in which he raised the possibility of
a third aluminium smelter, Prime Minister Patrick
Manning also identified four pillars on which the
Government's current industrialisation campaign
is based.
He
listed the development of the iron and steel industry,
the establishment of a "downstream" driven
aluminium industry, the expansion of an Information
Technology (IT) capability and, the development
of a plastics industry. He explained that when combined,
these initiatives will transform Trinidad and Tobago
into "a modern industrial nation".
Although
Manning emphasised that these industries were selected
because of their potential for creating value-added,
commercial opportunities, it is perhaps the plastics
industry that more completely satisfies this objective.
For
years there have been proposals for developing an
indigenous sector. The latest statement came in
April when Energy and Energy Industries Minister
Lenny Saith, announced the signing of a Memorandum
of Understanding for a joint-venture ethylene/polyethylene
project between the Government and Westlake Corporation
of the United States.
Ethylene
is a gaseous hydrocarbon that is derived from ethane
which is found in oil and natural gas. It is used
in the manufacture of other chemicals, including
polyethylene, which is a type of plastic that is
extensively used in food packaging and to manufacture
a variety of plastic household products.
Saith
had said "this project was an important step
in our continued efforts to diversify the energy
sector and create spin-off industries." This,
it is felt, would promote more linkages between
the non-oil and the petroleum sectors of the economy.
It is expected, Saith said, "that the ethylene
complex will trigger the development of a whole
new range of downstream manufacturing activity in
small and medium enterprises."
At
a Seminar back in 2002, Dr. Rene Monteil, now an
Executive Director at U.T.T., delivered an address
titled ""Ethylene, A Key to Sustainable
Development in Trinidad and Tobago." Monteil
argued that an ethylene project will present an
opportunity to get the most vaule in the natural
gas industry.
He
said that "ethylene was a building block for
a variety of downstream industries" and that
"polyethylene resins can be used to make bags,
bottles, knives, forks and many other plastic consumables".
"It will facilitate import substitution and
provide exports to the Caribbean and South America.
Of course, there would be short-term employment
during construction and over the long-term, further
permanent job creation along with revenue from taxation
and spin-off industries," Monteil said.
He
stressed that "in the current, very competitive
international environment it is prudent to take
advantage of any available opportunity and capture
markets early. If a capacity shortfall in polyethylene
is projected, then we should try to capture it ahead
of competitors."
Monteil
concluded: "I am convinced that we have the
wherewithal right now to implement a successful
ethylene project.
Four
years later, the Prime Minister is echoing a similar
view as he seeks to justify his Government's intensive
industrialisation thrust in the face of criticism
that he is going "too fast". His supporters
will undoubtedly argue that now is the time to capture
the opportunities that are emerging globally especially
with the rapid growth taking place in countries
such as China. As one economist recently remarked,
"the window of opportunity will not remain
open for ever and in the cut throat international
business world "he who hesitates is lost."
Opponents will argue that industrialisation cannot
take place at the expense of the environment and
the benefits must outweigh the liabilities.
This
is a reasonable argument and even the Prime Minister
had to agree in his speech at La Brea that "there
must be a balance."
Trinidad
Express
Wednesday, November 29th 2006
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