To have growth in the petrochemical industry, there must be stability in the political climate, with government and environmental regulations, and in market dynamics, industry leaders tell Business Report in a story in the current issue.
Each plays its own role in an owner’s ability to predict profit, and if all were manageable and predictable Louisiana would be sitting pretty. “The perfect world scenario would be very boring to the average person,” says David Dismukes, executive director of LSU’s Center for Energy Studies. “When you’re dealing with big companies in the petrochemical space, they like boring. They like things that are stable and not moving. That means everything—overseas growth, wages, interest rates, input commodity prices. And then, obviously, government rules and regulations. It’s true with everything.”
The Trump administration has already made some of those wishes come true, particularly when it comes to regulations and taxes.
“Throughout most of the Obama administration there was a lot of stability but not a lot of certainty,” says Dismukes. “Right now, I think you’ve got both, or at least a better sense of certainty about where things are going. This is probably a very good year—and a good series of years—for the petrochemical industry.”
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