Our organisation

Board of directors
Supply Chain Program Committee
Talents of Today, Leaders of Tomorrow
CEO & EPCA staff

Executive committee

President

Michels Hartwig

President Petrochemicals

BASF SE

Short CV

Hartwig Michels joined BASF in 1992 where he started his career in the Finance department. Having held senior managing positions in Controlling and Global Marketing in Germany and Singapore, he headed different global and regional business units. In 2008, he became President of BASF’s Procurement.

Hartwig Michels was appointed President Region Europe & MEA in 2013 and assumed his current position as President Petrochemicals Division in 2017.

He has a background in banking and studied Business Administration at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland.

Vice-Presidents

Roudeix Richard

Senior Vice-President, Olefins & Polyolefins Europe, Asia and International

LYONDELLBASELL

Short CV

Richard Roudeix is currently responsible for LyondellBasell’s Olefins business for the Europe region and the president of LyondellBasell companies in France. He has held roles in France, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands and the USA, with business experience in Europe, North America and Asia with LyondellBasell and predecessor companies Basell, Elenac, Montell and Shell. A significant proportion of his career has been in the polymers business. Richard is a graduate of the Ecole des Mines engineering school and of a post-graduate program from French Petroleum Institute.Since 2012, Richard has been appointed Chairman of the Association of Petrochemicals Producers in Europe (now renamed Petrochemicals Europe)

Williams Mark

Vice-President Europe

SABIC

Short CV

Mark L Williams is the Vice President of SABIC in Europe

Mark Graduated in Chemical Engineering from the University of Sheffield in 1989 and has a career spanning 26 years in the Petrochemicals and Polymers industry working across Europe, USA and the Middle East.

The focus of his current role is creating a sustainable and competitive environment for the European Petrochemicals Industry and the development of talent to achieve this.

Mark has extensive manufacturing experience and has previously been responsible for SABIC’s Manufacturing and Strategic planning in Europe focused on transforming the competitive performance in safety, reliability, productivity and cost to achieve best quartile performance.

Mark has been responsible for the leadership of Petrochemical and Cracker complexes across Europe and in Texas.

His achievements have included the safe and successful start-up of the World’s largest Low Density Polyethylene plant, Prestigious CIA (UK) Company of the year award for excellence in manufacturing and innovative low emission Cracker shut down and start-up techniques.

Mark serves on the boards of the CIA, CEFIC and Plastics Europe and is a graduate of the London Business School General Management Development Program. He was previously on the board of the UK National Skills Academy for the Process Industry (NSAPI). He is married to Maureen and they have 2 teenage boys.

Treasurer

Hoekstra Eelco

Chairman of the Executive Board & CEO

ROYAL VOPAK

Short CV

In Attendance

Ciuciu Caroline

CEO

EPCA

Board Members

Bingham Sonia

Global Basic Chemicals Product Executive

EXXONMOBIL PETROLEUM & CHEMICAL

Short CV

Sonia Bingham is the Global Basic Chemicals Product Executive for ExxonMobil Chemical Company.

Sonia joined ExxonMobil in 1998 after completing her Masters of Engineering in Chemical Engineering at the University of Sheffield. From 1998 to 2016, Sonia held a variety of manufacturing, sales, marketing, and financial planning roles with ExxonMobil Chemical based in UK, Belgium and USA.

Sonia returned to UK in 2016 as the Plant Manager for ExxonMobil Chemical at Fife Ethylene Plant. She was named to her current position in December 2018.

Sonia currently lives in Brussels, Belgium with her husband, Charles, and their two daughters.

Chiappani Marco

VP Intermediates Business Unit

VERSALIS

Short CV

Over his 30 year long career in the Eni petrochemical business, Mr. Chiappani has held positions entailing growing responsibilities within industrial operations , sales, marketing, business service, technical assistance

Valued for his solid expertise in industrial operations management , mainly in Styrenics and Intermediates in Mantua site , from 2010 to 2012 Mr. Chiappani moved up to serve as site Director in Ferrara , which enabled him to enhance his experience across-the-board, by building competence in handling the polyethylene and elastomers businesses.

In 2012, Mr. Chiappani became an integral part of the Versalis Executive Team successfully by taking up the position of Executive Vice President of the Styrenics Business Unit , reporting directly to Versalis’ CEO and holds stewardship of both the unit commercial functions - sales, marketing, business service, technical assistance - and industrial operations ,he has been instrumental in exceeding all performance targets until 2014, when he took on the new challenge of spearheading the Elastomers Business Unit. As Head of elastomers business was also in charge of the JV (with Lotte Chemical ) in Korea ( Lotte Versalis Elastomers ) and Director of the Board of Chinese subsidiary Versalis Pacific Trading, with offices in Shanghai and Singapore and Director of the Board of Versalis Americas Inc., with head offices in Houston, Texas.

From July 2019 Head of the Intermediates Business Unit.

Marco Chiappani holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Bologna.

Dahm Joachim

Chairman of the Board of Management

EVONIK PERFORMANCE MATERIALS

Devos Johan

Chief Sales Officer (CSO)

BERTSCHI

Short CV

Johan Devos started his career as sales representative with Huktra NV at Zeebrugge, Belgium. He joined Bertschi AG in 1993 as sales representative for Northern Europe and the UK/Ireland. Currently Johan holds the position of Chief Sales Officer (CSO) for the Bertschi Group. He is also a member of the Bertschi Management Steering team.

Johan holds a Bachelor degree as a translator German-English-Dutch as well as a Business Management Degree. He also attended the Sales Management Programme at the Vlerick Business School (B-Louvain)

Johnson Kate

General Manager Intermediates EUAF

SHELL CHEMICALS EUROPE

Short CV

Kate Johnson was appointed General Manager Intermediates EUAF with effect from January 1^st. 2017. Based in the Netherlands, she is accountable for the commercial delivery, and P&L, for a range of Chemical products in EUAF (Solvents, propylene oxide-related products, Ethylene Oxide, Styrene Monomer and Higher Olefins and Derivatives) with a team of about 100 people in a variety of commercial roles. The challenge in the role comes from the variety of markets as well as leading the community.

Kate joined Shell in the UK in 1986 after completing a chemistry degree. Her career in Shell has been largely in Chemicals - in commercial roles in different product lines, as well as in projects. Outside of Shell Chemicals, but within Shell, Kate has enjoyed stints in crude oil trading, Group Finance, procurement and the Shell bitumen and sulphur businesses.

She is recognized for driving performance and growth with an energizing and collaborative style with ability to quickly adapt to new situations and lead teams to respond. She is a challenging but caring leader who builds environment of trust.

She also has a passion for diversity – representing the Downstream Businesses in the Shell Netherlands executive committee for the Shell women’s network as well as having been on the steering committee for D&I for the European Petrochemicals Association.

Mascolo Leonardo

BU Director, Base Petrochemicals

REPSOL

Short CV

Leonardo Mascolo born in Foggia (Italy), is married and has an eight year old daughter.

He holds a degree in Electronic Engineering from Bologna University with a specialization in TLCs and Microelectronics and a post-grade Master in Telecommunications (1994, I.S.S.T., Rome) and one in Business Management (2001, LUISS Business School, Rome).

He joined Repsol Group in 1999 as Production Assistant at Repsol’s PMMA plant in Rome, Italy.

In early 2000, he took on the position of Production, Logistic & TI.

In June 2002 he was named General Manager of Repsol Polivar S.p.A., position that he maintained until 2008 when the PMMA business was sold to Arkema by Repsol.

In mid-2008 Mr. Mascolo moved to Repsol’s Headquarters (Madrid, Spain) as Product Manager for Olefins & Aromatics until the end of 2010.

Since January 2011 he is Repsol’s Base Petrochemicals Director.

McNally John

CEO

INEOS OLEFINS & POLYMERS NORTH

Short CV

John McNally was born in the UK but was raised and educated in the USA. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry from the California Institute of Technology in 1982 and a PhD in Chemistry from Harvard University in 1987.

He has worked in the petrochemical industry for 27 years, first for BP and then INEOS, in a variety of Technical, Operational and Commercial Management roles in 5 countries.

His most recent previous role was as Chief Operating Officer for INEOS Bio based in Florida, USA. He was appointed Chief Executive Officer for INEOS Olefins and Polymers, UK in August 2014. In the past four years, he has overseen over £500m of investment in the Grangemouth petrochemicals complex.

John is married and has two sons in university. He currently resides with his wife in London near the INEOS UK Headquarters, but splits his time between the London and Grangemouth offices.

Renglet Jean-François

Vice-President Marketing Base Chemicals

TOTAL PETROCHEMICALS & REFINING

Schuller Marc

COO

ARKEMA

Short CV

Szostek Paweł

Executive Director of Petrochemical Sales

PKN ORLEN

Short CV

Mr. Paweł Szostek is a graduate of University of Gdansk.

He has completed postgraduate studies of European Law and Integration at the Technical University of Gdansk and he has also gained a title of ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants).

Since 2005 he holds various positions at PKN ORLEN S.A. with last three positions of Director of Sales Controlling Department at PKN ORLEN S.A., CFO of ORLEN OIL and Director of Key Account Wholesale Services at PKN ORLEN S.A.

Since 1st of June 2018 he holds the position of Executive Director of Petrochemical Sales. He also serves as Member of the Board of ORLEN KolTrans (Poland), Paramo (Czech Republic) and Ventus Nafta (Lithuania).

Viering Axel

Member of the Executive Board

HELM

Short CV

1986 German High School Degree Abitur

1988 Start career in HELM AG

1988 – 1990 Apprenticeship

1990 – 1991 Product Manager Polymers

1992 – 1998 Head of Department Polymers

1998 – 2006 Managing Director HELM Great Britain Ltd., London

2006 – 2009 Executive Manager Division Olefins & Glycols

2009 – 2019 Executive Director Business Unit Derivatives

2020 onwards Member of the Executive Board Business Line Chemicals

Wodjereck Katja

Commercial Director EMEAI

DOW

Short CV

Katja Wodjereck serves as Commercial Director for Europe, Middle East, Africa and India for Dow Industrial Solutions. She is accountable for the long-term strategy and the regional P&L of a $ 1,2 billion industry-leading portfolio that offers a wide range of products and services that enables more sustainable manufacturing, consumer and energy solutions. She was appointed into her current role in August 2018.
Wodjereck joined Dow at the end of 2001. During her 19-year career with Dow, she has held several leadership positions in commercial, asset management and marketing across various businesses and market segments including Packaging & Specialty Plastics, Energy and Microbial, Oil, Gas & Mining and lately Industrial Solutions, besides international assignments in Latin America and corporate leadership positions as director of Dow Antwerp, Belgium.
Wodjereck graduated in International Business Management from the University of Applied Sciences Trier, Germany and Universidad Viña del Mar, Chile and holds an MBA from the Dow Northwood Executive MBA program.

Ex-Officio

Díaz Manuel

Executive Director

APLA

Short CV

no information

Mensink Marco

Director General

CEFIC

Short CV

Marco Mensink is Director General of Cefic since May 2016. With a team of 160 and members adding over 550 billion Euro to the EU economy annually, Cefic is the largest industry sector representation of its kind in Brussels.

Cefic unites 22 national federations, 8 associate federations and 650 members and affiliates from all over Europe. It hosts over 70 different sector groups. Virtually all large global and local chemical companies with production facilities in Europe are Cefic members.

Marco Mensink has chaired and is a member of ICCA, the global Chemical Industry Council, which covers over 90% of the global industry.

Key focus in his role is to be the interface between the industry and policy makers, NGO’s, the innovation networks and scientific community and media. Marco Mensink has an extensive network of contacts within the three key European institutions and has served on several European Commission High Level Groups.

Marco Mensink is representing industry on the Management Board of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) in Helsinki and has chaired and is member of the Alliance of Competitive European Industries.

A Dutch national born in 1968, with a Dutch wife and three kids, he is a seasoned public affairs professional. He has worked in Brussels since early 2006. Before Cefic, he was Director General of the Confederation of European Paper Industries in Brussels. In this role he developed a strong network in the global forest products and paper industry and the European paper recycling and waste sectors. Starting in Ernst&Young and the NL Paper and Board sector, he still has an extensive network in the Netherlands, in industry and at political level.

Thompson Chet

President & CEO

AFPM

Short CV

Chet M. Thompson

President, American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers

Chet Thompson began his role as president of the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers AFPM) in May 2015. Thompson leads a staff that advocates for petroleum refiners and petrochemical manufacturers before Congress and the Executive Branch on a broad range of public policy issues. AFPM, under his leadership, works to emphasize the importance of petroleum refiners and petrochemical manufacturers and their positive impact on U.S. manufacturing, jobs growth, energy independence and national security.

Prior to joining AFPM, Thompson was a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Crowell and Moring LLP, where he was chairman of the Environment & Natural Resources Group, one of the country’s premier environmental practices. His practice included counseling, litigation, and regulatory and legislative representation for a wide array of clients under major environmental statutes, including the Clean Air Act; the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, the Resource Conservation Act; and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, Liability and Recovery Act. While at Crowell Morning he represented AFPM as external counsel for nine years.

Thompson previously served as deputy general counsel at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) where he provided legal advice to the Agency’s administrator, general counsel and program offices. Before joining EPA in 2004, he spent 10 years at Collier Shannon Scott PLLC, where his work focused on the Clean Air Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

Thompson has been recognized as one of the leading lawyers in the U.S. by Chambers & Partners, and was awarded a Certificate of Accommodation by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2006. Thompson holds a B.A. in Political Science from Boston College and a J.D. from the Catholic University Columbus School of Law. He and his family reside in Potomac, Maryland.

Chairperson

Verstraeten Dirk

Director Global Logistics Procurement

COVESTRO DEUTSCHLAND

Short CV

2015 – today – Covestro Deutschland AG Leverkusen, Procurement Global Logistics.
2010 – 2015 – Bayer AG Leverkusen, Procurement, Global storage, bulk shipping and plant logistics.
2006 – 2010 – Bayer AG Leverkusen, Procurement Global Plant Logistics.
1989 – 2006 – Bayer Antwerp NV – different operational & site logistics management functions.
1988 – 1989 – Steinweg NV Antwerp – shipping clerc.
1985 – 1986 – Lloyd insurance NV – insurance clerc.

Members

Alonso Samuel

International Sales Director

LKW WALTER

Ambrosecchia Gerardo

Project Manager

EPCA

Arnet Jan

Group CEO

BERTSCHI

Short CV

Swiss, married, two children
Master degree in Corporate Finance
15 years with Bertschi, several positions as e.g. Head Merger & Acquisitions, MD of Nordic Bulkers (100% subsidiary of Bertschi), Group CFO, Head market entry MiddleEast and Plastics Hub Strategy Europe
Most recent 5 years Managing Director of Business Unit Liquids Europe

Since August 1^st , 2018 Group CEO of Bertschi

Bauer Steffen

COO - Business Unit Shipping

IMPERIAL SHIPPING HOLDING

Short CV

Steffen Bauer, 38 years old, graduated in Economics and Business Management at the University for Economics and Management – University of Applied Sciences, Duisburg.

From 2004 until 2012 he held several positions at Lehnkering GmbH at least as Divisional Head of Contract Logistics Region West. After the acquisition of Lehnkering GmbH by Imperial Logistics International B.V. & Co. KG in 2012 Steffen Bauer was appointed as Director Business Unit Road at Imperial Chemical Transport GmbH and in 2016 as Chief Strategy Officer for the Division Transport Solution of Imperial International Group.

Since February 2017 he is Managing Director of Imperial Shipping Holding GmbH and Chief Operating Officer of Imperial Shipping Group with overall operational and commercial responsibility for all subsidiaries and participations within the Group.

Bessant Guy Alexander

President

STOLTHAVEN TERMINALS

Short CV

Guy Bessant was appointed President, Stolthaven Terminals, a division of Stolt-Nielsen Limited, in March 2015. Prior to relocating to the Netherlands, he had more than fifteen years of experience in the chemical and transportation industries within the Asia Pacific and Middle East region having held senior management positions in Sasol, Covestro and Stolt-Nielsen.

He holds a BA in Modern Chinese Studies with Management from the University of Leeds (U.K.), a postgraduate diploma in International Commercial Law from Northumbria University (U.K.), and an MBA from the University of Strathclyde (U.K.).

Ciuciu Caroline

CEO

EPCA

Short CV

Caroline Ciuciu took up her role as EPCA Chief Executive Officer on January 1, 2017.

Under her leadership, in close cooperation with the Board and advisory bodies, EPCA embarked on a transformation journey into the leading European ideas marketplace for the global petrochemical community.
Building upon the unparalleled reputation of the EPCA Annual Meetings, Caroline actively developed the second, programmatic pillar of the organisation. She launched a program portfolio connecting thought leadership and corporate sharpness to generate fresh ideas for a smarter and inclusive development of the sector.
This includes the Digitisation in the Petrochemical Supply Chain, a series of research studies and events, in partnership with Vlerick Business School, and a multidimensional exploration of the Talent Management and Leadership, with the support of Accenture, EY and the Antwerp Management School.
Caroline’s organizational overhaul includes rejuvenating the EPCA team, revisiting EPCA governance and redesigning its digital communications strategy.

Prior to her current role, Caroline Ciuciu held several positions in government relations and regulatory affairs in France and Belgium. Her industry career started in 1998 with COGEMA/AREVA in France, followed by three years in FORATOM in Belgium. She then moved from the nuclear energy sector to metals and mining, joining ERAMET in Paris in 2007. In 2012 she became EU Public Affairs Director of Albemarle Europe and moved back to Belgium.

Caroline graduated in International Private Law and Business Law at the University of Paris l Pantheon-Sorbonne.

De Vries Frank

Senior Manager Supply Chain Solids Europe

SABIC

Short CV

Mr. de Vries holds a Master of Science in Chemical Engineering from the Twente University and an INSEAD Certificate in “Finance for Executives”. He joined SABIC in 2003, achieving a wealthy experience both in Supply Chain, Logistics as well as Business Management in the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia. As Director Global Foam & Lightweight he drove the implementation of innovative foam and lightweight solutions into the market, leading a global and multidisciplinary team (Marketing, Technology and Sales) towards unmet needs in the Packaging, Automotive, Consumer Goods and the Construction markets. Prior to SABIC, Mr. de Vries worked as Site Logistics Manager and Production Office Manager at DSM in Geleen (the Netherlands). I am sending you enclosed a more detailed bio for your information.

Dries Michael

Vice-President Global Logistics Procurement

BASF

Short CV

Michael Dries’ career with BASF started in 1990, when he joined BASF AG’s Logistics Procurement Department. In 1996 he became Head of Logistics at Shanghai BASF Colorants and Auxiliaries, Shanghai, P.R. China, followed by an assignment as Head of Logistics and Technical Procurement at BASF Company Ltd., Seoul, Rep. of Korea. After one year at BASF AG, Ludwigshafen he was in 2002 appointed Director, Logistics, BASF YPC Company Ltd., Nanjing, P.R. China. He was subsequently appointed in 2006 Vice President, General Services at BASF SE, Ludwigshafen and led as of 2010 the senior project Opal 21 / Logistics. Mr. Dries assumes his current position as Vice President, Global Logistics Procurement since 2015.
Michael Dries was born in Eltville, Germany, in 1961. He studied economics and business administration at the Universities of Mainz and Cologne.

Mahmud Ismail

Global Chemicals Director

ROYAL VOPAK

Short CV

Ismail Mahmud

Global Chemicals Director, Royal Vopak of the Netherlands

Ismail has been with Vopak for 17 years and is currently Global Director for Vopak’s chemicals business with offices in HQ located in Rotterdam. Prior to this role (since the last 4 years), Ismail was located in Singapore for 10 years where he held the positions of Commercial Director Asia and Managing Director Singapore. Prior to Vopak, Ismail worked for Engro Chemical (previously an ExxonMobil Affiliate) for a period of 8 years.

Currently, Ismail is responsible for sales, marketing and commercial activities in Vopak for all chemical related storage activities. Currently about 50 of the 76 terminals owned and operated by Vopak worldwide are for chemical businesses. His experience in logistics and tank storage services spans over multiple regions with specific focus on Industrial Terminaling, where he leads one of Vopak’s core strategies in this service market segment.

He is a Mechanical Engineer from Lehigh University, USA and an MBA in Finance from St. Joseph’s University, USA.

Marston Mark

Supply Chain Director Europe & AFMEI

LYONDELLBASELL INDUSTRIES

Short CV

With over 30 years’ experience in the international world of Intermediate Chemicals, Mark has had leadership roles of increasing commercial responsibility from directing Businesses to most recently Sales responsibility for Europe, MEAF and Asia.

With the move in July 2020 to Supply Chain Director Europe and AFMEI, Mark has responsibility for delivering supply chain excellence across all divisions in Lyondellbasell.

Mark graduated with an MBA from Villanova University, Pennsylvania and holds a BA Hons in Business Studies from Kingston Business School, London.

Mark is married with two children and currently lives in the Hague, NL.

Perra Marcello

Supply Chain Director

VERSALIS

Short CV

Mr. Perra graduated as Mechanical Engineer with a specialization in Maintenance Engineering at the University of Cagliari (Italy). He started his career as Site Manager Deputy and Responsible for Industrial Services Department at Polimeri Europe and since 2009 held several positions at Eni-Versalis, including those of Site Manager of the Ferrara (2012-2016) and Brindisi (2016-2019) sites.

Preston Liz

CEO

AGILITY

Short CV

Liz holds an HND Business Studies from Crewe & Alsager College and was awarded ICI industrial student sponsorship.

She started her career in ICI and followed Phil Browitt to join Agility as Strategic Procurement Manager in 2000. She has occupied several senior positions within the company over the years.

She currently holds the position of Vice President Europe.

Ronse Frederick

Founder & CEO

OVINTO

Short CV

After having studied in Belgium, France, Spain and Italy, Frederick started his career in The Netherlands, working for a large German corporation in the waste sector learning that every single aspect of that business was constantly monitored and measured to enable improvement.

By coincidence Frederick learned that the ‘rail & intermodal freight’-sector was still being operated relying very heavily on manual efforts leaving a big opportunity for improvement.

After 10 years of corporate experience, it was time to start up his own business to fill in the gap discovered in the rail sector. Thus Ovinto was born in 2010 with a mission to optimise the complete supply chain regarding rail & intermodal cargo. This because if we would only put 4% extra in rail freight, we would immediately reduce road transport by more than 9% having a phenomenal impact on mobility and CO2 emissions.

In the last 9 years Frederick has grown the company from a small startup focusing on the monitoring of extremely hazardous goods towards a reference player providing a technology platform to optimise rail & intermodal freight towards large chemical industries such as INEOS, Evonik, Sabic, LyondellBasell, Covestro… and working together with partners such as SAP, Deloitte and the European Space Agency.

Ruiz López Salvador

Logistic & Customer Service Director

REPSOL

Short CV

Mr Ruiz took over the position ofLogistic and Customer Service Director at Repson in September 2020.

He started his career in 1998 at Repsol Chemistry as Operation engineer in the new OP/SM plant, that at this time was a project of construction of a new facility. He was promoted to utilities and cogeneration Power Plant Manager in June 2005 of the Chemistry area of Tarragona Repsol facility and later, in June 2007 Mr. Ruiz was moved to the position of Production Managerat Intermediates products plants in Repsol chemistry Tarragona.

In February 2011, after been working at Tarragona site for 13 years, he leaved Repsol Chemistry and moved to Dynasol.From February 2011 until September 2015, he was in charge of Dynasol Santander Plant, with the responsibility of all the processes of the site. From September 1998 to February 2011 I have been working in Repsol chemistry in Tarragona in different areas related to intermediates products of the Repsol Chemistry business.

From September 2015 to September 2020 Mr. Ruiz worked as Operation Director for Dynasol Group, a joint-venture Company between Repsol and the Mexican Group KUO at 50%. He was in charge of the Global Operation team, with facilities in Spain, Mexico and two plants with different partners in China. Dynasol is one the top ten global leaders in Rubber industry and with its own technology in Solution and Emulsion Rubber process.

Before working in the chemistry business of Repsol, from 1995 1998 he worked as Associated Teacher at Universidad Autónoma of Barcelona (UAB), in the Chemical Engineering department. Mr. Ruiz isgraduated in Industrial Chemistry and hold a Master in Biotechnology applied in Chemical Engineering and Laboral Risks prevention. He also attended a Leadership in Exponential Changing World at the MIT.

Smolders Danny

Managing Director Global Sales

HAPAG-LLOYD

Short CV

1992-date HAPAG-LLOYD AG

MANAGING DIRECTOR HAPAG-LLOYD OVERSEAS TRANSPORT S.A. (HLOT)

HAPAG-LLOYD AREA TURKEY Izmir (2015-date)

Area Manager of Area Turkey (Turkey and Greece)

**SENIOR DIRECTOR GLOBAL OPERATIONS & TERMINALS Hamburg (2009-2015)**

Develop global terminal strategies together with Hapag-Lloyd Regions and Ship Network

DIRECTOR OPERATIONS ITALY Genoa (2006-2009)

Manage, steer and support the Operations teams

MARINE OPERATIONS DIRECTOR REGION EUROPE Hamburg (2005-2006)

Coordination, cost effective management of the Marine Operations Region Europe

MANAGER PORT TERMINAL OPERATIONS ITALY Genoa (2001-2005)

FOCAL POINT OPERATIONS MALTA Malta (1999-2001)

PORT TERMINAL OPERATIONS BELGIUM Antwerp (1992-1999)

Stahlhut Michail

CEO

HUPAC

Short CV

Since June 2020, Michail Stahlhut is theCEO of the Hupac Group.

From August 2018 to June 2020 Mr. Stahlhut was CEO of Hupac Intermodal AG and from 2010 to 2018 he was CEO of SBB Cargo International AG, a joint venture between SBB Cargo and Hupac.

His previous roles include Managing Director Technics at Arriva Deutschland (2006 – 2010), Managing Director at Eichholz Verkauf & Logistik (2002 – 2006) and Head of Cargobahnhof Mannheim at DB Cargo AG (1998 – 2002).

Mr. Stahlhut has a degree in Civil Engineering and Environmental Technology from TU Hamburg.

van Egerschot Peter

Logistics Director Europe

DOW CHEMICAL

Short CV

Peter van Egerschot is Logistics Director for Dow Europe since March 2018. He joined the Dow Chemical Company in 1997 in Terneuzen, Netherlands, and has since then worked in a variety of roles in supply chain planning, improvement and logistics. Prior to his current role, he was responsible for managing the supply chain for Dow’s Polyurethanes business in EMEAI as of 2012.

Peter holds a masters degree in mechanical engineering from Eindhoven University of Technology, a post masters in logistics management systems from the same university, and a MBA from Northwood University in Midland, Michigan (US).

Verpoest Paul

Logistic Department Manager

TOTAL PETROCHEMICALS & REFINING

Short CV

Mr. Verpoest held an MScEng in Electromechanics and Energy Conversion and an MBA from the Vlerick Business School. He has 20 years of international experience in strategy, business, sales, operations and engineering in the oil, chemicals and renewables sectors. Mr. Verpoest started his career at Fina Antwerp Olefins as engineer and the Logistics Supervisor, moving to Total Petrochemicals in 2005 to cover several managerial positions in Business Development, Corporate Strategy and Supply Chain Management. I am sending you enclosed a more detailed CV for your information.

Viallatte Jean-Marc

Vice-President Supply Chain Group

ARKEMA

Short CV

Jean-Marc VIALLATTE, 45 years old, is a graduate engineer from IFMA (Institut Français de Mécanique Avancée) in France and from Cambridge University in the UK. He holds a Master’s in mechanical engineering and automated production systems, and an APICS certification.

In 1997 he joined the American group Avery Dennison as customer logistics Project Manager, before heading the introduction of an ERP system for France. He later held a number of Lean Sigma heavily oriented operational posts in plants, being consecutively production manager, plant manager and operations manager France.

In 2006 he joined the Hamelin group as Subsidiary General Manager before becoming Group Managing Director in charge of operations, supply chain and information systems. In this position he oversaw the complete transformation of the group, and put in place a new organization based on standardized processes and an SAP solution rolled out across the group’s 50 sites on the five continents.

In 2013 he joined the Tarkett group as supply chain Vice President for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, creating the group’s supply chain function, and later became the group’s Global supply chain Director in charge of the transformation.

Wretensjo Henrik

Global Vertical Head - Chemicals

A.P. MØLLER - MAERSK

Short CV

Henrik Wretensjö holds an MSc degree in Industrial Management and Engineering from the Institute of Technology at the Lund University, Sweden. He joined Maersk 2011 as a Senior Supply Chain Developer in charge of project management and execution of supply chain development for the various BUs of the A.P. Möller-Maersk group until 2013. Between 2013 and 2019, Henrik held Key Client Management positions, building strong value relationships with the accounts and managing the portfolio of clients in the chemical and food & beverage verticals across all regions. He is currently Global Head of Chemical Vertical, Director Customer Development & Solutions, with global responsibility for strategy and commercial offering to the chemical customer vertical.

Ex-Officio

Devos Peter

Managing Director

ECTA

Short CV

Peter Devos is Managing Director at ECTA, the European Chemical Transport Association.

In 1988, he graduated as AgroEngineer from the University of Louvain, Belgium and holds a second master in Industrial and Business Management.

After a Supply Chain career of more than 25 years at Monsanto in different leading supply chain functions and disciplines across Europe, Peter started up his own independent company in 2016. As independent Supply Chain Practitioner, he is now focusing to further improve the Chemical logistics processes and this together with all stakeholders across the Chemical Supply Chain.

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Naessens Joost

Director Transport & Logistics

CEFIC

Short CV

My name is Joost Naessens. I’m 48 years old, father of 3 children, and I live in Deinze (Belgium).

In 1993, I graduated as Master in Chemical Engineering at the University of Ghent.

From 1994 to 1995, I started my career as Project manager for Oleofina (subsidiary of Fina, now Total).

Since 1995, I work for BASF Antwerpen, in different functions like project management, operations management and strategic management, mainly in supply chain and logistics :

- 1995-1997 : Project manager for logistics applications

- 1997-2002 : Logistics analyst, leading projects mainly in the area of production logistics (advanced planning and optimization,…)

- 2002-2004 : Production manager MDI production, responsible for production, supply chain management and logistics operations of the MDI products

- 2004-2015 : Operations manager site logistics, responsible for transport management and site logistics operations : loading, drumming, product warehousing, rail and barge terminal operations, technical materials management,..

- 2015-2018 : Project leader and program manager site infrastructure strategy, responsible for defining and implementing the Antwerp site’s infrastructure strategy 2025 (including utilities, logistics, buildings, safety and security infrastructure)

As from January 2019 : Director Transport & Logistics at the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC)

Members

Ambrosecchia Gerardo

Project Manager

EPCA

Bogacki Mariusz

Expert, Petrochemical Sales Support Team

PKN ORLEN

Short CV

Mariusz Bogacki holds master degree in Finance and Accounting. He completed also postgraduate studies of Agriculture at Warsaw University of Life Sciences.

He started his professional career in banking and airline industry.

He joined PKN ORLEN in 2011. His professional path in PKN ORLEN Mariusz began in Controlling area covering mainly petrochemical business units in PKN Group.

Being experienced in business challenging, starting from 2016 he plays the role of Pricing Manager in ORLEN Capital Group coordinating pricing policy of the Group in CEE region.

Bowes Daniel

Regional Talent Acquisition Manager (EMEA)

HUNTSMAN EUROPE

Short CV

_{I hold a degree in Business, Economics & Media Communications and have 13 years experience working within a HR capaicty within the Chemical and Oil & Gas sectors, with the last 5 years spent in a Regional Management role within Huntsman Corporation. I lead a multinational team to support the business with recruiting and retaining the best talent for our organisation who can support the growth and development of Huntsman as a gloal business.}

_{My role in Huntsman encompasses, Talent Management, Early Careers / Internship Programs, Talent Analytics, Employer Branding and HR Project Management across our EMEA region.}

Ciuciu Caroline

CEO

EPCA

Short CV

Caroline Ciuciu took up her role as EPCA Chief Executive Officer on January 1, 2017.

Caroline graduated in International Private Law and Business Law at the University of Paris l Pantheon-Sorbonne.

Costa Rausa Lucia

Repsol Healthcare Technical Manager

REPSOL

Short CV

After graduating from Imperial College London with a degree in Chemical Engineering in 2008, Lucia began working for Repsol, on their graduate training scheme, obtaining a masters specialised in Petroleum Refining & Petrochemicals from the Instituto Superior de la Energía.

Since then she has been holding several positions in the company, including:

- Senior polyolefin healthcare specialist, Technical Service and Development 2019- present

- Polypropylene Film & Fibers specialist, Technical Service and Development 2013-2019

- Production engineer, Puertollano Refinery, 2009-2013

She is currently in charge of project development and serves as technical advisor to customers worldwide withexpert product, processing and application knowledgefor all Repsol Healthcare Polyolefin products. In her role she also works closely with account managers and product managers in developing and implementing product portfolio strategies and identifying opportunities to drive growth and create value in the field of medical and pharmaceutical applications.

Dalderup Ruben

Business Manager Benzene & Aromatic feedstock

SHELL CHEMICALS EUROPE

Short CV

Graduated Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands (2014)

Started career in Shell in 2014.

Previously responsible for Naphtha supply chain in Shell Trading & Supply.

Currently Business Manager Benzene & Aromatic Feedstock in Shell Chemicals Europe.

Fyffe Gina

Executive Director / CEO

INTEGRA PETROCHEMICALS

Short CV

Having graduated in science from the University of Edinburgh, Gina’s career in petrochemicals spans the last 35+ years.

After a short period in biomedical research, she spent 10 years at Exxon Chemical in marketing, steam cracker operations, and shipping both in the UK and the Brussels international HQ.

During her time at Exxon she was a founding member of WISTA (Women In Shipping and Trading Association), with 5 industry friends. WISTA has since grown into a global organisation offering training, support and networking opportunities to women in the industry.

The last 26+ years have been spent working in international trading, having founded the trading and logistics company, Integra in 1989.

In addition to her Integra trading company and main board positions, Gina sits on the board committees of the SCIC (Singapore) and GPCA (Mid East), BTS Tankers Singapore, a charitable medical foundation in Europe, and is president of the board of governors of the German European School, Singapore.

Gina is a regular speaker at conferences on shipping, logistics and petrochemicals for the main consulting companies.

In Asia as part of her commitment to social welfare, training and education she talks and works with companies to develop strategies for social impact investing both at local start-up and government body levels.

On a personal level, Gina is married with 2 school aged children and is currently studying for her diploma in fashion jewellery design and manufacturing at JDMIS in Singapore. In her spare time she is busy co- writing a book on Scottish social history in conjunction with the Scottish and Celtic history dept. of the University of Edinburgh.

de Kruif Jasper

Commercial Manager Ethylene

LYONDELLBASELL

Short CV

Jasper de Kruif holds a Master in Sustainable Processes and Energy Technology. He joined LyondellBasell in 2008 as a Plant Support Process Engineer. In 2013, he moved to a new position in Operations planning and Optimization. Since 2016, Jasper is holding a position in Commercial Management.

Girmann Christoph

Supply Chain Manager

AGILITY LOGISTICS

Short CV

Christoph´s career in Logistics started in 2005 when he joined GeoLogistics, today known as Agility

Logistics Solutions BV. Since then he has developed into his current role as National Operations Manager, Germany & Netherlands.

In his current role he focuses on operational excellence by making sure working instructions are up to date and lead internal audit processes. Furthermore, he leads carrier and customer reviews with a high focus on key performance indicators (KPI). As the market demands efficiency, especially on OTIF – On Time in Full – he leads a project team looking for smart logistic solutions to improve the supply chains of customers whilst also focusing on reducing the environmental footprint. Christoph also leads a project in Germany and the Netherlands to reduce paper use and improve productivity while smartly implementing computer systems and aligning internal KPI measurements. This has already allowed the company to spread work over boundaries to ensure a high level of service is maintained, even during high order levels.

In his first few years with Agility Christoph worked for multiple divisions within the company such as Airfreight / Sea freight / Overland / Fairs & Events and within the project department. Beside these responsibilities he also completed a Bachelor of Business Administration, graduating in June 2014 with the title of State Certified Business Economist.

Goethals Joris

Supply Chain Manager

ADPO

Short CV

Joris Goethals started his career with Adpo in 2006 where he currently holds the position of Supply Chain Manager. He previously worked in several departments within the Adpo Group. Joris is a strong operations professional with a focus on innovation

Hadorn Alain

Deputy Managing Director BU Liquids

BERTSCHI

Short CV

Born in 1984, Alain Hadorn has finished his studies with a Master of Arts in Law and Economics in 2009 and worked in a leading business law firm in Zürich thereafter. He passed his bar exam in 2013. By January 2014, Alain Hadorn joined the Bertschi Group and has undergone a complete logistics traineeship program incl. planning, a period as truck driver, leading a dispatch-department as well as tender and HR management. Since 2015, Alain Hadorn is Project Manager Quotations for the Business Units Liquids of the Bertschi Group, and as such also Deputy Commercial Manager of this BU. He is married and father of 2 boys.

Ismael Michen Marina

Market Manager, Dow Industrial Solutions, EMEAI

DOW EUROPE

Short CV

Marina Ismael Michen holds a PhD in Materials Engineering from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany. She works for The Dow Chemical Company since 2011, where she experienced different positions from technical to commercial. Since March 2018 she works for the Industrial Solutions business as the Global Market Segment Leader for the Crop Defense segment and as the Market Segment Manager for Food, Feed and Crop Defense in EMEAI. She is Brazilian and lives in Switzerland with her husband and children.

Kurus-Ebermann Derya

Director Business Management C4 & Heavy Cracker Products

BASF

Short CV

Derya Kurus-Ebermann is Business Director for C4 & Heavy Cracker Products in Europe at BASF.

The industrial engineering graduate has been with BASF since 2006 in several roles including supply chain and business management.

She also worked on the economic feasibility assessment of investment projects for BASF’s operating divisions Performance Materials and Intermediates.

Derya is passionate about mastering the complexity and fast-changing environment of the chemical industry.

Mueller Gerhard

Head of Diversity & Inclusion

BASF SE

Short CV

Mr. Mueller holds a degree in International Economics as well as an MBA and joined BASF in 2003 where he held several positions in Product and Project management as well as, more recently, in Talent management.

Pavillard Laurence

Head of Diversity, HR Campaigns and Studies

TOTAL PETROCHEMICALS & REFINING

Short CV

Laurence Pavillard is holding a Master degree in Organization and Human Resources from the Pantheon-Sorbonne University (Paris 1). Over her thirty-year career within the Total Group, Laurence held different positions in the HR department with responsibilities for training, recruitment, compensation and benefits or workforce management. From 2010 until 2018, she was responsible for school relations and partnerships for the Marketing & Services Division. She is currently the Head of Diversity, HR Campaigns and Studies unit within the Career management department of Total Refining & Chemicals division.

Pota Andrea

Project Manager (Dry Bulk)

BERTSCHI

Short CV

Born 1986, Andrea Pota finished her studies at Budapest Business School as an economist specializing in Export-Import Management (2009). Meanwhile, she started to work for Den Hartogh Logistics as a trainee. Within 3 years, she became the Head of Operations for their Hungarian subsidiary. May 2014 she joined the Bertschi Group in Switzerland and after a 3 months’ introduction program, Andrea joined the Italian dispatch team for dry bulk. In 2015 she took on a new challenge and moved to Austria, Schwechat for 6 months to drive the implementation of an on-site container storage concept at a major petrochemical producer. After finalizing the project, she returned to the Bertschi Swiss HQ and took over the position Tender Manager for Dry Bulk. Currently, as Project Manager, Andrea is mainly focusing on key projects within the Dry Bulk Team. During her career as part of the Dry Bulk Management Team at Bertschi, she also attended Front Leadership training and joined the Netlop Seminar organized by the Kuehne & Nagel Foundation.

Rojas Maria Pilar

Corporate Culture Manager

REPSOL

Short CV

Pilar brings over 20 years of progressive experience in corporate and business HR functions where she provided thought leadership, tactical design, delivery and oversight to a variety of state-of-the art and transformational HR, talent development and employee engagement initiatives across global locations.

In her current role, she is responsible for leading Repsol´s overall corporate culture strategy, diversity and inclusion and employee engagement initiatives. Committed and passionate about collaborative strategic development of innovative and socially responsible solutions to support business goals.

Pilar is an Executive Coach and holds a Bachelor´s degree in Psychology and a master in Human Resources from IE Business School. She serves the Board of the International Human Capital Organization and actively participates in several organizations committed to promote and highlight the valuable contribution of diverse and inclusive workplaces.

Roux Sebastien

Europe Basic Chemicals Feedstock & Optimization manager

EXXONMOBIL PETROLEUM & CHEMICAL

Short CV

Sebastien Roux

ExxonMobil Petroleum & Chemical

2001 – 2004 Ecole Polytechnique, Palaiseau, France
B.S / M.S Engineering – Majors in Chemistry / Biochemistry

2004 – 2005        IFP School, Rueil Malmaison, France
                                Ecole Polytechnique, Montréal, Canada
                                M.S. in Petrochemicals, Polymers & Plastics
                                Intern with Total Petrochemicals France (Mont, Gonfreville)

2006 – 2008 ExxonMobil Chemical France – Notre Dame de Gravenchon, France

2006 Isobutylene / Butyl Contact Engineer
2007 Adhesions/Additives Plant Analyst

2008 – 2011 ExxonMobil Petroleum & Chemical – Brussels, Belgium

2008 Adhesions Europe Business Analyst
2010 Adhesions Global Supply/Demand Leader

2011 – 2017 ExxonMobil Chemical France – Notre Dame de Gravenchon, France

2011       Polyethylene Process Leader
2012       Manufacturing Workforce Efficiencies Leader
2014       Polyethylene/Polypropylene Business Team Leader
2015       Manufacturing Operational Excellence Advisor
2016       Polymers Process Department Head

2017+ ExxonMobil Petroleum & Chemical – Brussels, Belgium

2017 Europe Aromatics Commercial Manager
2019+ Europe Basic Chemicals Feedstock & Optimization Manager

Ruigt Paul

Senior Account Manager, Olefins & Aromatics

SABIC

Short CV

Paul Ruigt started his career with SABIC in 2006 where he currently holds the position of Category Manager for Shipping & Barging. He previously worked in the Supply Chain Polymers department and held a position within SABIC’s Company Procurement department.

Paul holds a Master degree in Industrial Engineering and Management Science from the Technical University Eindhoven.

Secchi Francesca

International HR Development and Training Manager

VERSALIS

Short CV

I am an International HR Development and Training Manager (Versalis SpA) with almost 15 years’ experience in managing international cross-functional HR areas/projects. I have joined HR community after a Master Degree in Personal and Organization Management, awarded by Bocconi University – Milan.

I have been working for ENI since 2005, improving my knowledge and experience in the HR areas: Development, Organization and international management in Italy and abroad, with two years’ experience in Norway in the sphere of Development and Organization and one year in UK as an HR referent of a company acquisition project.

Thanks to my strong experience in HR, Development and International Management, in 2019 I started a new assignment in Versalis (Eni) as International HR Development and Training Manager.

van Dassen Müller Anne

Chief HR Officer

STOLT - NIELSEN

Short CV

Anne van Dassen Müller, Chief HR Officer at Stolt-Nielsen Group

Since 2012, Mrs. Müller has been responsible for HR worldwide (6500 full time employees), actively supporting the strategic growth of Stolt-Nielsen Ltd and ensuring the optimal allocation of human resources. Previously Ms. Müller held the role of European HR Director for JohnsonDiversey, where she was in charge of supporting the transformation of the company from a decentralised to a centralised European organisation and ensuring the attraction and retention of talent during the process.

Veraa Mariëlle

HR Advisor Commercial Business Europe

LYONDELLBASELL INDUSTRIES

Short CV

Mariëlle Veraa is a Human Resource Advisor for the Commercial Business of LyondellBasell in Europe.

Within her respective business units she is responsible for all personnel related matters, talent management, succession planning and training.

She joined LyondellBasell in 2011 as Sr. Assistant and has joined HR in 2012 as HR Generalist. After studying next to her fulltime job she has successfully obtained her Bachelor degree in Human Resource management in 2016 after which she has been appointed in her current role.