Jul 19 2007
The Catalysts segment of specialty chemicals manufacturer Albemarle Corporation recently hosted its 12th International Catalysts Symposium ("SCOPE 2007") in Athens, Greece. More than 200 delegates from 50 countries attended the three-day event, which focused on critical industry issues including emerging trends in refining catalyst development, environmental legislation, new technologies and the latest process and product improvements from polyolefin plastic process licensors.
Recognized experts in the refining and petrochemical industries, as well as technology experts from Albemarle, discussed refineries' response to projected growth in global demand for fuel and petrochemical feedstocks that meet increasingly stringent environmental specifications. The format of the symposium encouraged extensive discussion and information exchange among attendees focused upon industry trends, challenges and solutions.
Huub Cuijpers, Albemarle Regional Managing Director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and chairman of the SCOPE 2007 committee, opened the conference and introduced an impressive array of distinguished speakers from across the industry. Featured speakers included Kristine Klavers, Vice President, Hart Energy Consulting, who provided an analysis of the global oil market and discussed how Asia has replaced North America as the largest refined product market in the world - a theme taken up by several subsequent speakers.
Representatives from Reliance Industries, Jacobs Consultancy and Neste Oil addressed their companies' unique responses to the challenges of increasing demand, presenting details on the expansion of the Jamnagar refinery, mining and treatment of Canadian oil sands, and the growth of biofuels, respectively.
Motor Oil Hellas and Hellenic Petroleum S.A., two major Greek refining companies, illustrated increasing global interest in new developments in refining and biofuels. They also discussed the challenges their companies face in order to meet the growing global demand for effective and environmentally sound energy solutions.
In addition to technical sessions on the latest hydroprocessing catalyst and fluidized catalytic cracking (FCC) catalyst developments, Albemarle was delighted to introduce to a new session dedicated to polyolefin catalysts. The open exchange between attendees over the course of the entire event provided vital information to Albemarle's technology experts and their ongoing efforts to produce innovative solutions that proactively meet the needs of the company's valued clients.
In his closing remarks for the event, John Steitz, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Albemarle, said he felt "energized and rewarded" by the symposium. His sentiment was echoed by many of the delegates, who also declared it a triumph to bring clients, partners, academics and Albemarle staff together for a common purpose with open and constructive debate.