These statistics are for the Petrochemicals Industry, based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 32511.
| Year | Establishments | Shipments ($ millions) | Employment | Imports ($ millions) | Exports ($ millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada estimates Source: Statistics Canada. Note:The step change in establishments observed in 2004 was due to a change by Statistics Canada in the minimum threshold size necessary for inclusion of establishments in the annual data. This change had only a minor impact on other principal statistics. | |||||
| 2003 | 16 | 4 649 | 1 548 | 274 | 1 395 |
| 2004 | 17 | 6 046 | 1 382 | 549 | 2 007 |
| 2005 | 17 | 6 621 | 1 490 | 711 | 2 104 |
| 2006 | 18 | 7 380 | 1 311 | 881 | 2 582 |
| 2007 | 19 | 7 729 | 1 294 | 782 | 2 906 |
| 2008 | 21 | 8 589 | 1 183 | 1 070 | 2 868 |
| 2009 | 16 | 4 363 | 1 226 | 828 | 1 723 |
| 2010 | 16* | 6 200* | 1 060* | 908 | 2 405 |
This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in converting feedstocks derived from petroleum, or from petroleum and natural gas liquids, into petrochemicals. Some important processes used in petrochemical manufacturing include steam cracking and steam reforming. For the purpose of defining this industry, petrochemicals consist of acyclic (aliphatic) hydrocarbons and cyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
Exclusion(s): Establishments primarily engaged in:
- refining crude petroleum into petrochemicals (32411, Petroleum Refineries)
- manufacturing acetylene (32512, Industrial Gas Manufacturing)
- converting petrochemicals into other basic chemicals (32519, Other Basic Organic Chemical Manufacturing)
- manufacturing plastics resins and synthetic rubber (32521, Resin and Synthetic Rubber Manufacturing)
Examples, products made from refined petroleum or natural gas liquids:
- Acyclic hydrocarbons (except acetylene)
- Aliphatic hydrocarbons (except acetylene)
- Aromatic cyclic hydrocarbons
- Benzene
- Butadiene
- Butane
- Butylene (butene)
- Cumene
- Cyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
- Ethane
- Ethylbenzene
- Ethylene (ethene)
- Heptane
- Heptene
- Hexane
- Isobutene
- Isoprene
- Naphthalene
- Nonene
- Olefins (alkenes)
- Paraffins (alkanes)
- Pentane
- Pentene
- Petrochemicals
- Propylene (propene)
- Styrene
- Toluene
- Xylene