09-12-2020

GPCA announces special edition of annual forum to take place in February 2021

The forum will address the theme ‘Leadership in the New Reality — Catalyzing Sustainable Growth in the Chemical Industry’ The Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA), the voice of the chemical industry in the Arabian Gulf, today announces that a special edition of the 15th Annual GPCA Forum will take place on 10-11 February 2021 at the Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, addressing the theme ‘Leadership in the New Reality — Catalyzing Sustainable Growth in the Chemical Industry’.

The forum’s agenda will include four main sessions which will be addressed by CEOs of leading chemical companies and key players from the Arabian Gulf region and globally. They will discuss opportunities for the new era beyond COVID-19. The forum is set to attract senior industry executives from over 50 countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to plunging petrochemical prices, eroding margins, and depressed demand during the first two quarters of 2020. The regional chemical industry started to bounce back in Q3 but has not recovered fully yet. Despite earnings being negative, the third quarter of this year closed with net income growth for the majority of listed GCC chemical producers, which posted an average net income growth of 78%.

As the chemical industry emerges from the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic, leadership in the new reality will become front and center to companies’ journey towards success in 2021 and beyond. The Annual GPCA Forum will provide renewed perspectives from across the world on key issues that remain top of mind for industry leaders today including leveraging technology post crisis, what value creation will look like in a changing landscape, the need to upskill the workforce of the future, build supply chain resilience and drive positive sustainability results.

Over the last decade and a half, the Annual GPCA Forum has established itself as the most anticipated downstream industry event, and promises to deliver a compelling program with an impressive line-up of speakers who will descend from all over the region and the world. Some of the speakers and panelists confirmed so far include:

·      Yousef Al-Benyan, CEO, SABIC and Chairman, GPCA
·      Ilham Kadri, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee, Solvay
·      Dr. Markus Steilemann, CEO, Covestro and President, PlasticsEurope
·      Dominic Waughray, Managing Director, World Economic Forum
·      Ahmed Saleh Al Jahdhami, CEO Downstream, OQ
·      Dr. Faisal Al-Faqeer, CEO, Sadara Chemical Company
·      Mosaed Al Ohali, CEO, Ma’aden
·      Dr. Ahmed Ali Attiga, CEO, APICORP
·      Rayan Fayez, MD and CEO, Banque Saudi Fransi

Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun, Secretary General, GPCA, commented, “The COVID-19 pandemic has presented unimaginable challenges to the chemical industry the world over and redefined the priorities, business strategies and metrics for success for today’s organizations. How can chemical companies safeguard their competitiveness in 2021 and beyond? How can Arabian Gulf producers remain in the driving seat of innovation and global market leadership? What is the recipe for success on sustainability, digitalization, workforce development and value creation for shareholders with long term returns? The Annual GPCA Forum will provide a platform to debate and answer these key questions and more, and share lessons learned from the region and the world as we come together to navigate through the new reality in the post pandemic era and build a more resilient future for our industry, society and planet.”