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  2. 2020 Wood Mackenzie Americas Polyester Conference

2020 Wood Mackenzie Americas Polyester Conference

  • Houston, United States
This is a past event. To learn more about Wood Mackenzie chemicals events taking place in 2021, please visit our Chemicals and Polymers Conferences page: https://www.woodmac.com/events/cap-2021/ The issue of sustainability has become an important driver over the past few years, as more brand owners, packaging companies and retailers have announced sustainability targets. These goals have placed an emphasis on using recycled plastic, primarily RPET, as the central component of their products. These goals are impacting the entire polyester value chain and the industry will have to face new challenges: • An increasing potential of an economic recession that could severely impact the demand outlook for petrochemicals • Swelling initiatives to reduce plastic consumption/waste and to increase plastic recycling and their impact on virgin PET and feedstocks • Government protectionism & nationalism and impacts on trade in chemicals and waste • Volatile feedstock dynamics due to continued natural gas, crude oil & NGL supply growth in North America and exports to the rest of the world Join us in Houston in February as Wood Mackenzie experts and guests’ speakers address how the changes in legislation and consumers’ expectations have been and will be shaking the chemicals and polyester industries.

Agenda

  • 26 February 2020

    • Training Registration

    • Polyester Industry - Training Session

      A deep dive training session which will provide everything you or your team need to grasp the pricing fundamentals that shape the markets globally. We will share how Wood Mackenzie’s experts report and forecast short term and long term pri Read More...

      Speakers

      • Doug received a B.S. Chemistry from Delaware Valley University in 1970 and a M.S. Chemistry, West Virginia University 1972. He started his professional career in 1972 with ICI Americas in Wilmington, Delaware in sales of Ethylene oxide derivatives and then to the new petrochemical division in 1980 as regional manager developing a new customer base for EO, MEG, DEG, TEG, glycol ethers, ethanolamines and brake fluid for a new 300 kt plant in Bayport, Texas. Appointed National Sales manager for ICI in 1985 then Global Sales Director in 1987 with Cain Chemical and then Global Marketing Director for Oxychem (now LyondellBasell). Left Oxychem in 1991 and started with the PCI consulting in 1992 as their head of EO MEG EOD consulting services.

      • Michael Bermish is a Senior Consultant with Wood Mackenzie. He has a PhD in Economics with 36 years of experience in the polyester industry. Based in the U.S., Michael is primarily focused on the Americas markets for polyester and upstream raw materials. Prior to joining PCI now Wood Mackenzie Chemicals Michael was both Director of Strategic Planning and Development and Investor Relations Officer for Wellman, Inc., a leading polyester producer.

      • Hugh joined Wood Mackenzie’s Chemical Research team as an analyst in October of 2018, where he has played a pivotal role in building out the global aromatics service for Wood Mackenzie. His primary product coverage centers around mixed xylenes and paraxylene for North America. After joining Wood Mackenzie, Hugh initially took responsibility for coverage of short-term benzene markets in North America before moving to focus primarily on xylenes coverage. Hugh also helps develop new chemical research products and services and provides ad hoc analysis for chemicals consulting projects. Hugh graduated from Louisiana State University in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in Finance and completed a Master of Science in Finance from Tulane University in 2018

      • Gustavo Hernandez has 30 years of experience in the petrochemical industries. Gustavo joined Wood Mackenzie in 2019 joining the Research team in Houston after a long career of 30 years in Alpek based in Monterrey, Mexico where he was the technology licensing VP for Alpek.. Between 1999-2011, Gustavo held various positions within Alpek, from managing all operations at Alpek’s Hong Kong office (covering from Japan to Indonesia and India) and later when returning to the Mexican head office for Alpek, Gustavo was in charge of coordinating all commercial operations with all customers. Since 2011, Gustavo was he head of the technology licensing business unit for Alpek’s PTA and PET technologies. Gustavo’s key area of expertise is in the polyester business where he has been called upon to advise clients in the technology, planning and commercial aspects in the industry. Prior to 199, Gustavo had a 11-year career with Petrotemex (part of Alpek) where he held various positions in commercial team handling PTA and PET. Gustavo graduated from the Instituto Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mexico with a degree in Industrial Engineering with an MBA.

      • Steve Sparkowich is a Licensed Professional Engineer with a Bachelor of Science in Metallurgical Engineering from the Colorado School of Mines and a Graduate Certificate in Welding Engineering from the Ohio State University. Steve’s work experience includes 11 years as a Senior Applications Engineer and Corrosion Laboratory Manager with ATI (Albany, Oregon, USA) and his current role as Business Development Manager for NobelClad (Broomfield, Colorado, USA). Steve is a specialist in corrosion resistant alloys, welding and cladding for the chemical processing industry.

    • Conference Registration

    • Welcome and introduction

    • Economy - Navigating risks and finding resilience amid the global growth slowdown

      Where are the pockets of resilience as the global economy weakens? Monetary authorities are opening the taps once again, but which markets stand to benefit most? How likely is a resolution to the global trade war, and where will tensions escalate further?

      Speakers

      • David is a senior quantitative analyst with the Verisk Maplecroft team investigating the interaction between economics and political, ESG, and climate risks for multinational organizations and financial institutions. He also manages the portfolio of economics and business risk indices for the company’s global risk analytics dataset. Prior to Verisk Maplecroft, David spent three years as an analyst in the financial services practice for the business research and advisory firm CEB (now Gartner) and was also a researcher at an economics think tank in the Washington, DC area

    • US crude in the global market: from price maker to price taker

      Peaking US crude and condensate growth? Fundamental drivers altering US Shale’s trajectory A slowing US Lower 48 growth machine: what does it mean for a looming supply gap? Ex US: where will supply come from to meet growing crude oil demand over the next decade, and what does that mean for global prices?

      Speakers

      • John leads Wood Mackenzie's North American Crude Markets Service where he is responsible for short and long term North American crude market outlooks, crude differential forecasts, and midstream logistics analysis. Prior to joining Wood Mackenzie, John worked in sell side equity research where he supported equity coverage of independent US refiners and refining logistics midstream master limited partnerships. John also has experience in upstream financial planning and analysis and is a former officer of the United States Navy. John holds dual B.S. degrees in economics and finance from Southern Methodist University, a M.S. in Accountancy from Texas A&M University, and a M.S. in Finance from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business. John is a Certified Public Accountant and is currently a CFA Level III Candidate.

    • Coffee Break

    • US Recycling Dilemma: Is RPET supply and demand moving in different directions?

      A review of PET bottle recovery drivers Update on the US recycling/recovery rate Brand owner sustainability goals What are happening to US recycling facilities RPET sustainability goals – are they realistic?

      Speakers

      • Michael Bermish is a Senior Consultant with Wood Mackenzie. He has a PhD in Economics with 36 years of experience in the polyester industry. Based in the U.S., Michael is primarily focused on the Americas markets for polyester and upstream raw materials. Prior to joining PCI now Wood Mackenzie Chemicals Michael was both Director of Strategic Planning and Development and Investor Relations Officer for Wellman, Inc., a leading polyester producer.

    • Focus on sustainability - A waste collector perspective

      Speakers

      • Professional experience of 35 years in: Technical Sales, R&D management, JV Project BoM, plant operations, process design, Technology Development, strategic planning, project engineering; Technical, quality, environmental and safety management. Technical consultancy for process design, mass transfer equipment design, gas-liquid separation equipment design, heat transfer equipment design and energy integration projects. Process design of projects ranging from: solid-liquid separation, conventional and advanced distillation, reactors improvement, full New plants, plant debottlenecking, plant expansions, energy integration, turbo-machinery.

    • Coronavirus special: China battles Covid-19 - what it means for the polyester chain

      China is now battling arguably its worst epidemic since the foundation of the People's Republic in 1949 The world's second-biggest economy is under immense pressure as business activities screen to a halt and the supply chain is badly disru Read More...

      Speakers

      • Laura joined Wood Mackenzie in 2017 after more than 25 years in the nylon and polyester industrial fiber business. Prior to joining Woodmac, she worked for DuPont, Kordsa, Hailide America, and most recently Nexis Fibers. Her roles have included everything from process engineer to shift supervisor to market manager. Laura grew up in Rhode Island and received a chemical engineering degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. In her spare time, she is an avid underwater photographer and is currently trying to improve her golf handicap. She enjoys the occasional glass of pinot noir in her suburban Philadelphia home.

      • Salmon Aidan Lee watches the Asian polyester chain from paraxylene all the way to the downstream markets, but with a special focus on the PTA and MEG markets in the Chinese- speaking world. He joined PCI Xylenes and Polyester China Limited on 1 October 2009. Previously, he had spent nine years reporting on the PTA and MEG markets at chemical news, intelligence and price reporting service ICIS; and two years before that at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a diplomat. In 2003 and 2008, Salmon had working stints respectively at China’s Yizheng Chemical Fiber Co, and Sinochem Trading (Singapore). Since the acquisition of the PCI group by Wood Mackenzie’s parent, Salmon has been officially based in Singapore from 1 April 2016, but devotes a significant portion of his time in China, as well as other Asian countries to keep abreast of the latest situation and market trends there. Salmon was educated in Singapore and France; he is fluent in English, Chinese and several other languages and/or dialects.

    • Panel discuss ion and closing remarks

    • Drinks reception

  • 27 February 2020

    • Welcome coffee

    • Welcome and introduction

    • PX - lower for longer

      Global PX supply to simply overwhelm demand Just how low can PX prices fall? Will aromatics feedstock values in US gasoline disconnect US prices from Asia? Implications of growing North American PX imports

      Speakers

      • Hugh joined Wood Mackenzie’s Chemical Research team as an analyst in October of 2018, where he has played a pivotal role in building out the global aromatics service for Wood Mackenzie. His primary product coverage centers around mixed xylenes and paraxylene for North America. After joining Wood Mackenzie, Hugh initially took responsibility for coverage of short-term benzene markets in North America before moving to focus primarily on xylenes coverage. Hugh also helps develop new chemical research products and services and provides ad hoc analysis for chemicals consulting projects. Hugh graduated from Louisiana State University in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in Finance and completed a Master of Science in Finance from Tulane University in 2018

    • North America PTA: Preparing for a new market reality

      What will be the implications of the new Regional Supply-Demand balances? How the trade flows will realign to the new market structure? Development of new projects timing

      Speakers

      • Gustavo Hernandez has 30 years of experience in the petrochemical industries. Gustavo joined Wood Mackenzie in 2019 joining the Research team in Houston after a long career of 30 years in Alpek based in Monterrey, Mexico where he was the technology licensing VP for Alpek.. Between 1999-2011, Gustavo held various positions within Alpek, from managing all operations at Alpek’s Hong Kong office (covering from Japan to Indonesia and India) and later when returning to the Mexican head office for Alpek, Gustavo was in charge of coordinating all commercial operations with all customers. Since 2011, Gustavo was he head of the technology licensing business unit for Alpek’s PTA and PET technologies. Gustavo’s key area of expertise is in the polyester business where he has been called upon to advise clients in the technology, planning and commercial aspects in the industry. Prior to 199, Gustavo had a 11-year career with Petrotemex (part of Alpek) where he held various positions in commercial team handling PTA and PET. Gustavo graduated from the Instituto Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mexico with a degree in Industrial Engineering with an MBA.

    • Networking break

    • Ethylene: The end of the American first wave and the beginning of a Global tidal wave

      How has the first wave of American ethylene capacity changed the US market? Will there be a second American wave? How will feedstocks react to the increase in capacity? Will there be room for both American and rapidly increasing Global ethylene capacity?

      Speakers

      • John joined Wood Mackenzie’s Chemical Research team in 2018 with six previous years of industry and consulting experience. He is currently responsible for ethylene and propylene analyses in the Americas region. Previous to Wood Mackenzie, John was a Principal Analyst at IHS Markit, as the lead analyst for the North American ethylene market and the accompanying advisory services; he also was responsible for the development of many econometric and supply/demand models, specifically for value chains in C2 and C4 olefins, ethylene oxide, cyclohexane, and acrylic acid. He started his career as a reliability engineer at Baker Hughes. John holds an electrical engineering degree from Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN).

    • MEG - Historical surpluses, only the strong survive

      14 MT new global capacity in next 4 years, only 4.5 MT new demand Unprecedented surplus, many casualties Can more expensive US plants be justified? US exports have adapted without China

      Speakers

      • Doug received a B.S. Chemistry from Delaware Valley University in 1970 and a M.S. Chemistry, West Virginia University 1972. He started his professional career in 1972 with ICI Americas in Wilmington, Delaware in sales of Ethylene oxide derivatives and then to the new petrochemical division in 1980 as regional manager developing a new customer base for EO, MEG, DEG, TEG, glycol ethers, ethanolamines and brake fluid for a new 300 kt plant in Bayport, Texas. Appointed National Sales manager for ICI in 1985 then Global Sales Director in 1987 with Cain Chemical and then Global Marketing Director for Oxychem (now LyondellBasell). Left Oxychem in 1991 and started with the PCI consulting in 1992 as their head of EO MEG EOD consulting services.

    • Networking Lunch

    • The North American PET Resin Market: Coping with a shift towards recycled PET

      North American PET resin market update. Corpus Christi plant delay – impact on the market. PET resin producer strategy to meet brand owner recycled PET content goals. VPET/rPET price differential – is it sustainable? Sustainability goals – potential impact on virgin PET resin production.

      Speakers

      • Michael Bermish is a Senior Consultant with Wood Mackenzie. He has a PhD in Economics with 36 years of experience in the polyester industry. Based in the U.S., Michael is primarily focused on the Americas markets for polyester and upstream raw materials. Prior to joining PCI now Wood Mackenzie Chemicals Michael was both Director of Strategic Planning and Development and Investor Relations Officer for Wellman, Inc., a leading polyester producer.

    • Polyester Fiber - part of a healthy diet for the world?

      How will the fibre world will change in 2020? In what fibre end use segments will sustainability efforts show progress? What has the impact of the Section 301 tariffs done to the US fibre supply?

      Speakers

      • Laura joined Wood Mackenzie in 2017 after more than 25 years in the nylon and polyester industrial fiber business. Prior to joining Woodmac, she worked for DuPont, Kordsa, Hailide America, and most recently Nexis Fibers. Her roles have included everything from process engineer to shift supervisor to market manager. Laura grew up in Rhode Island and received a chemical engineering degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. In her spare time, she is an avid underwater photographer and is currently trying to improve her golf handicap. She enjoys the occasional glass of pinot noir in her suburban Philadelphia home.

Fees

Full Price

$1490.00

Training Session - Optional

$600.00