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How many chemical plants are there in North America and what is the breakdown by country and type?
Hello! Thanks for your inquiry on the number of chemical plants in North America, with breakdown by country and type.
The short version is that projections of the US economic census indicate that in 2015 the number of chemical manufacturing establishments was of 12,923, slightly lower than the 13,317 in 2012, when the last economic census was realized. According to the Canadian Industry Statistics of the Government of Canada, in 2015 there were 3,205 establishments of chemical manufacturing in Canada, 91.7% of them with less than 100 employees. Based on a specific subsector, it is possible to infer that the average age of chemical manufacturing plants in North America is higher than that in newly industrialized regions of the world.
Below you will find a deep dive of my research along with all the details for how I came to this answer.
METHODOLOGY
In order to answer your inquiry, I relied on in the definition of chemical industry from the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Statistics from the US and Canada, the two countries usually considered part of North America, use this classification and provide data on number of establishments. An establishment is a physical point of production. That means that one company may have several establishments or plants, of different sizes.
The detailed results of the research are included in the attached SPREADSHEET: Chemical Plants in North America.
DEFINITION OF NORTH AMERICA
There is no homogeneous definition of North America. In economic terms, it usually refers to the United States and Canada. This is also the definition of the United Nations geoscheme for the Americas, which distinguishes between North America (essentially US and Canada), Central America (from Mexico to Panama), the Caribbean (all the Caribbean Islands), and South America (from Colombia to the southern tip of Chile and Argentina). Although because of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Mexico is being included as part of North America, in most economic statistics the data on North America still corresponds only to the US and Canada. Thus, for this response, let us consider chemical plants in the US and Canada.
INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION OF CHEMICAL PLANTS
Most manufacturing industries include chemical processes, and thus, it is difficult to define what a chemical plant is. Let us use the official classification. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) categorizes the different manufacturing industries, and one of them is chemical manufacturing, under the NAICS code 325. Let us then use this definition, which basically says a chemical plant is that manufacturing chemical products, which are supplied to other industries that use them in their respective plants for a large variety of processes: the former is a chemical plant, the latter are not.
3251 Basic Chemical Manufacturing
3252 Resin, Synthetic Rubber, and Artificial and Synthetic Fibers and Filaments Manufacturing
3253 Pesticide, Fertilizer, and Other Agricultural Chemical Manufacturing
3254 Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing
3255 Paint, Coating, and Adhesive Manufacturing
3256 Soap, Cleaning Compound, and Toilet Preparation Manufacturing
3259 Other Chemical Products and Preparation Manufacturing
CHEMICAL PLANTS IN THE US
According to the economic census of 2012, there were 13,317 establishments of chemical manufacturing in the US. Projections of the US economic census (see the first graph/table at the left of the Industry Snapshot for chemical manufacturing, NAICS 325) indicate that in 2015 the number of chemical plants was of 12,923 with 86,000 employees, revealing a decreasing trend, particularly acute in some subcategories of the industry. The number of establishments by type is included in the attached SPREADSHEET: Chemical Plants in North America.
CHEMICAL PLANTS IN CANADA
According to the Canadian Industry Statistics of the Government of Canada, in 2015 there were 3,205 establishments of chemical manufacturing in Canada, 91.7% of them with less than 100 employees. In 2010, there were 2,730 establishments. The detailed information, by type of chemical industry, is included in the attached SPREADSHEET: Chemical Plants in North America.
AVERAGE AGE OF PLANTS
After an extensive search, it was not possible to find information on the average age of chemical plants in North America. The available industry reports refer to production, employment, number of establishments, and other indicators, but not to plant age. The US Census Bureau conducts a survey on plant capacity utilization, but there is no information on plant (buildings and equipment) age.
A report states that the average age of the petrochemical plants in the US is high and, for instance, the average age of ethylene crackers in North America (US and Canada) is 32 years, below that in Europe (38), but above the age in Latin America (24), Asia Pacific / North East Asia (19), and the Middle East (12). Although restricted to a specific sector, one can assume that this situation could be typical for the chemical industry in general, in which the traditionally industrialized regions (North America and Europe) have plants with higher average age than the newly industrialized areas of the world (Asia in particular).
CONCLUSION
Summarizing, projections of the US economic census indicate that in 2015 the number of chemical manufacturing establishments was of 12,923, slightly lower than the 13,317 in 2012, when the last economic census was realized. According to the Canadian Industry Statistics of the Government of Canada, in 2015 there were 3,205 establishments of chemical manufacturing in Canada, 91.7% of them with less than 100 employees. Based on a specific subsector, it is possible to infer that the average age of chemical manufacturing plants in North America is higher than that in newly industrialized regions of the world.
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