ENERGY, MINING AND INDUSTRY
Paraguay presents a poor floor in minerals. Most of the mineral deposits is located in the western area of the river Paraguay. They highlight some such locations as: manganese in the next area to Ambush; feldespato and mica in Concepción; talc and piroflita (it ballasts with iron) in Concepción's areas and San Miguel, and malaquita and azurita (copper mineral).
The rivers in Paraguay present unbeatable conditions for the production of hydroelectric energy. In 1976 the prey of Acaray ended, built jointly with Argentina, and that you/he/she produces 1.000 millions. of kw/h year; in 1984 the prey of Itaipú was inaugurated that is one of the biggest hydroelectric power stations in the world. Of the total of produced electric power (70.000 million kw/h year), the local market only absorbs a small proportion; the rest is for the export. Also, in 1998 it concluded the construction, jointly with Argentina, of it dams it of Yacyretá.
The relative participation of the industrial sector has been located around the 16 or 17% from the years fifty, with a growth average of 2% starting from the eighty and a decrecimiento in the second half of the decade of the 90. The fundamental industrial activity is based on the prosecution of matters agricultural and forest cousins, giving place to the agroindustries.
The agroindustrial subsector represents 70% of the product industrial Paraguayan, being the branch of production of foods that of more importance, representing 29% of the total of industrial establishments. The importance of the industry manufacturer is rather modest, concentrating on its biggest part in Asunción's region, in the Central department and in that of Concepción. The traditional factories are that of the meat, the dull herb, the tannin and the leather whose development is always very sensitive to the variations of the external demand.
The alimentary branch gives occupation to 25% of the manpower of the industrial sector. The industry is, in general, of reduced size, prevailing the companies to small scale. In the big private industries it highlights the presence of foreign capital. Among the developed branches in the sector Paraguayan manufacturer they figure the industries of the cotton (in Asunción, Concepción, Pilar, Caazapá and Villarrica), that of the tobacco and that of the cement, centralized in Vallemí. Other industries with enough representation are the wooden prosecution, with 17% of the total of industrial establishments; the textile one, with 16%; that of making, with 7% of establishments, and that of drinks, with 5%. Other industrial branches are those of chemical products, ceramic and mining, graph and plastic products. The State acts as manager in some industries, concretely in the production of alcoholic drinks as the cane and in the refinement of petroleum.
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Encarta Enciclopedy 99 (© Microsoft)
Translations and editing by: Thomas Otter
