In the new commercial scenario generated by the covid-19 crisis, some Guatemalan companies in the plastics industry are manufacturing masks, face masks, gloves and special suits for medical use.
The activity of the sector has fallen considerably due to the restrictions imposed by the outbreak of covid-19, and it is estimated that in the country only 60% of companies engaged in the manufacture of plastic products are working.
The company announced that it will close its bar soap production plant of the brands Xtra, Unox, Rinso and Surf that was located in Comayagua, Honduras, and will move operations to the neighboring country.
Unilever Central America announced in a statement that bar soaps will now be manufactured and marketed in Central America by the Guatemalan company Industria La Popular.
On August 14, the company Rianxeira began to operate its new plant for processing fish waste into flour and oil, located in Escuintla.
The industrial complex located at kilometer 97, highway to Puerto Quetzal, Escuintla, will process all types of waste, such as fish heads, skeletons, bones, bone parts and viscera.
In Guatemala, Rianxeira company expects to have in operation in August, its new plant for transforming fish waste into flour.
The company, which is currently exporting tuna loins and concentrates, reported that the investment in the new production line of the plant in Escuintla, amounts to $2 million and that the raw material to be used will be fish heads, skeletons, bones, bone parts and viscera.
In Guatemala, Sika invested $6.5 million in the construction of a 10,000 square meter plant in Palín, Escuintla, which manufactures construction chemicals.
According to the Swiss company's representatives, the new industrial plant, which will start operating on December 13th, will have the capacity to produce 60 thousand metric tons of materials annually.
With an investment of close to $7 million, El Zapote Brewing Company was inaugurated, a company that will produce and market six types of craft beers in the local market.
The company will have production capacity of 2,500 liters per brewing session. They plan to market the product in supermarkets and local restaurants, in presentations of 20-liter barrels and 12-ounce bottles.
The Mexican company Zetrak has inaugurated a plant in Amatitlán, department of Guatemala, for the manufacture of electrical distribution and power transformers.
Executives from Zetrak Guatemala stated that the "...objective of the new production plant, which will have all of the technical-commercial support of Zetrak Mexico, is to provide a more personalized service and a prompt response for all customers in Central America."
Cervecería Hondureña has announced that it will be investing $25 million in the expansion of its beer production plant in San Pedro Sula.
The company, a member of the business conglomerate AB Inbev, explained that the expansion works will be completed within 10 months, once the process to obtain the necessary permits has been completed.
The Salvadoran company San Julian has started operating a dairy production plant in Jutiapa with capacity to process up to 100,000 liters of milk per day.
With an investment of $6.4 million the Salvadoran company Tecnolac has set up a dairy production plant in Jutiapa, in order to serve the local market and expand its supply at the regional level.
The company Cemento Regional has started operating a plant in Escuintla, Guatemala which has capacity to produce 8,000 bags per day.
The company Cemento Regional has invested $12.2 million in the construction and commissioning of the plant, which will produce up to 8,000 bags per day and will supply the product to its three stores in the department of Guatemala.
Operations have started at the pet food processing plant belonging to Corporacion Multi Inversiones, with capacity to produce up to 51,600 hundredweight of food.
At the factory, the livestock industry division of Corporacion Multi Inversiones (CMI) will process food for the Alican, Rambocan and Rufus brands, among others, using two production lines.
Mexichem has completed construction of its new production facility for making piping systems, fittings and PVC products in Escuintla.
The company Amanco, a member of Mexichem Group, opened its new production plant, which required an investment of $20 million. This new factory will replace the one which operated for 40 years in the zone 12 of the capital.
Noting high production costs, Incesa has announced the closure in Costa Rica of its sanitary ware manufacturing plant, and its installation in Guatemala and Nicaragua.
Incesa Standard, a subsidiary of the Colombian company Corona, will start closure of operations gradually over the first six months of the year. The company argues that in the production process costs for labor and energy are very high, preventing the continued operation of the plant in the country.
The cement company has announced it will be investing $35 million over three years to increase the production capacity by 25% at the plant it operates in Costa Rica, near the border with Nicaragua.
From a statement issued by CEMEX:
MONTERREY, MEXICO - CEMEX, SAB de CV ("CEMEX") (BMV: CEMEXCPO) announced today that its subsidiary CEMEX Latam Holdings, SA ("CLH") (BVC: CLH) initiated a project to increase cement production capacity of its plant in Colorado, Costa Rica, by approximately 25% in order to reach an annual capacity of 1.1 million tonnes in 2017.
The company Guatemalteca de Níquel has requested a piece of land in Santo Tomas de Castilla for a coal plant from which would produce nickel be exported.
This was confirmed by Guatemalan President Otto Perez Molina, who said the company's request is for the machinery to be used in the exploitation of the mineral.
He added that at the moment they are reviewing the requirements demanded by the Port Act because "you can not have a usufruct as allowed by Act of Puerto Quetzal".