Venezuela's construction industry stalls in 2019

The president of the Venezuelan Chamber of Construction (CVC), Mauricio Brin, has said that the sector will close 2019 with a fairly negative balance sheet, due to a continuing decline in construction works.

"Public construction is stalled and in the private area only some office buildings, specifically those that are in Caracas, Valencia and other capitals nationwide," said Mr Brin.

Therefore, the low building materials output is sufficient to meet demand for the small number of active projects. The domestic cement industry has an installed capacity of 12Mta, but is expecting to produce 1.5Mt. "The steel industry is another one that is practically paralysed, because the only active and private plant in Zulia cannot operate due to lack of electricity," said the president of the CVC. 

While these issues are expected to continue into 2020, there are projects underway that may ease the situation, including one to increase electricity supply to some regions.