The statement was made at the President's Sunday radio address from the El Tablazo petrochemical plant in Zulia. 

• The President says that during the country's petroleum age, Venezuela never developed its petrochemical branch and when the revolution came, Pequiven was being privatized and its plants had been abandoned, producing little without any investment and an insufficient supply of gas. 

Chavez has announced the opening in December of a high density polyethylene plant that will produce 60,000 metric tonnes per year, along with a plant that will process 1 million metric tonnes of high and low density polyethylene. The system is expected to formally open in 2010. 

The projects are part of the petrochemical revolution that the government is implementing and consists of building around 52 plants to build different petrochemical derivatives. 

$20 billion are expected to be injected into the projects, which will include joint ventures with Iran, Brazil and Russia to bring in investment and technology. 

The first part of the industrialization process, the President states, will need around 700,000 workers. 

President Chavez points out that the states of Zulia, Falcon, Carabobo, Anzoategui, Tachira, Barinas and Apure will form seven petrochemical poles in the development of a national network of petrochemical socialist companies. 

When the project is finished, Venezuela will be the top producer and supplier of fertilizers in the Americas. It will also become the first producer of plastics, developing a diversified industrial plastics in Latin America.