45/74
  • Pages
01 Cover
02 Welcome Letter / Sections
03 Section 1: Latin America
04 Latin America Resilience
05 Interview: APLA
06 Interview: S&P Commodity Insights
07 Interview: ExxonMobil Chemical
08 Interview: INEOS Styrolution Americas
09 Sustainability
10 Interview: Tecnon OrbiChem
11 Interview: Pilot Chemical Company
12 Interview: Air Products
13 Industry Thoughts: Decarbonization
14 Section 2: Mexico
15 Mexico Overview
16 Factsheet: Mexico
17 Interview: National Chemical Industry Association (ANIQ)
18 Interview: Braskem Idesa
19 Interview: Grupo Idesa
20 Interview: Evonik Industries Mexico
21 Interview: Unigel Mexico
22 Interview: Helm de Mexico
23 Section 3: Brazil
24 Brazil Overview
25 Factsheet: Brazil
26 Interview: ABIQUIM
27 Interview: Braskem
28 Interview: Indorama Ventures Limited
29 Interview: Elekeiroz
30 Interview: Petrom Petroquímica Mogi das Cruzes S.A.
31 Interview: Ultracargo
32 Section 4: Argentina
33 Argentina Overview
34 Factsheet: Argentina
35 Interview: Argentine Chamber of the Chemical and Petrochemical Industry (CIQyP)
36 Interview: Argentine Petrochemical Institute (IPA)
37 Interview: YPF QUÍMICA
38 Interview: Petrocuyo
39 Interview: Petroquímica Rio Tercero
40 Section 5: Andean Region
41 Andean Region Overview
42 Factsheet: Chile
43 Factsheet: Colombia
44 Interview: Acoplásticos
45 Interview: Chilean Chemical Industry Association (ASIQUIM)
46 Interview: Ecopetrol
47 Interview: Petroquim
48 Factsheet: Peru
49 Factsheet: Ecuador
50 Factsheet: Bolivia
51 Factsheet: Venezuela
52 Section 6: Chemical Distribution
53 Chemical Distribution
54 Interview: Brenntag Essentials Latin America
55 Interview: Univar Solutions
56 Interview: Química Anastacio
57 Interview: GTM Caldic
58 Interview: Pochteca
59 Interview: Tricon Energy
60 Section 7: Logistics
61 Logistics and Services
62 Interview: Leschaco
63 Interview: Vopak
64 Interview: Eurotainer
65 Interview: Stolthaven Terminals
66 Interview: Port of Antwerp-Bruges
67 Industry Thoughts: Logistics Innovation
68 Company Profiles (Sponsored Content)
69 Braskem Profile (Sponsored Content)
70 YPF QUÍMICA Profile (Sponsored Content)
71 Brenntag Profile (Sponsored Content)
72 Evonik Profile (Sponsored Content)
73 Article & Interview Index
74 Credits

Werner Watznauer President, CHILEAN CHEMICAL INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (ASIQUIM)

"The industry workforce should be our ambassadors. If they do not have a good opinion about something in the industry, we cannot ask the public to have a good opinion."

How has Chile’s chemical industry performed in the last 12 months?

ASIQUIM was fortunate to see good performances in 2020 and 2021 for the chemical industry in Chile. Increased oil prices related to Covid and the crisis in Ukraine brought some challenges to the market, but companies have been resilient and are performing as strongly as they did pre-pandemic.

In terms of COMEX 2021, importations show an increase of 59% in US$ compared with 2020, with a total close of US$12.550 million, which represents 13% of Chilean total imports. Exports also increased 39% compare with 2020, to a total of US$3.425 million, which represents a 4.8% of Chilean total exports.

According with the statistics of the Chilean Central Bank, the chemical industry contributed 2% of Chile’s total GDP in the first quarter of 2022.

Inflation and supply chain disruptions have caused many materials and logistics to become extremely expensive. For example, two and a half years ago, shipping a 40-foot container from China to Chile cost approximately US$2,000, whereas today it can cost from US$12,000 to US$15,000, if you want it express. In addition, raw materials in general have shown an increase along with volatility in the selling price of the final products, which often generate an overpriced inventory. Today in Chile, inflation is over 10%, whereas it was normally around 2% or 3% at the maximum. These cost increases and inflation are passed down to clients but fortunately have not resulted in noticeably decreased demand yet.

Which sub-segments of Chile’s chemical industry have been most resilient in 2022, and which have the strongest potential for growth in 2023?

We have seen strong growth and development in industrial gases, adhesives, pigments, and especially construction chemicals. There has also been growth in the mining and pulp and paper segments. We do, however, expect a decrease in growth in some sectors in the years to come due to inflation.

Can you give details regarding ASIQUIM’s latest sustainability-related initiatives and focus on Responsible Care?

ASIQUIM works with Responsible Care, the global chemical industry’s environmental, health and safety (EHS) initiative to drive continuous improvement in performance. We are proud to say that in the last year, not one of our member companies incurred any major issue or incident. We put in the effort to get information to our members and encourage safety protocols and measures to be put in place in line with our focus on Responsible Care. Chile has high safety standards that are audited and monitored regularly. ASIQUIM has also implemented a university course on Responsible Care that over 500 students of six Universities have passed, and we intend to grow these figures.

Do you think there are misconceptions about the modern chemical industry in Chile, and what could be done to start changing outdated views?

In 2021, ASIQUIM, in collaboration with CADEM, made a study on how people see our chemical sector. The feedback demonstrated that people in Chile associated chemical companies with negatives concepts, such as pollution and accidents. Subsequently, ASIQUIM has started a campaign to let society know what we are doing and the advantages of the chemical industry so they can better understand the importance of the sector.

The campaign comprised of four stakeholder groups – leaders, authorities, industry and public. This also included the industry workforce and interestingly, although they have a much higher appreciation of the industry than the public, there were still some workers who had a negative opinion, especially from an environmental performance of their own companies, compared with other chemical companies in Chile. The industry workforce should be our ambassadors, and if they do not have a good opinion about something in the industry, we cannot ask the public to have a good opinion. Therefore, we hope that our campaign will allow both public and industry workers to understand the sector better and see the benefits it brings to the Chilean economy and society.

Next:

Interview: Ecopetrol