Senior industry experts will discuss bolstering the growth of the Middle East’s plastic conversion market at a key event in Dubai next month.

 

Organised by the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA), the 4th edition of  PlastCon will be held from April 7-9 at the InterContinental Festival City, Dubai.

 

It will focus on sustaining the growth of the plastic conversion market by creating value across the region’s plastics industry, said a statement.

 

The regional plastic conversion market continues to grow at an impressive rate of for 7.6 per cent which is more than double the global average. This brought the total polymer production capacity of the ‘big five’ high volume plastics categories in the GCC to 23.6 million tons per annum by end of 2012.

 

Around 400 senior industry experts from the Gulf and beyond will convene to discuss ways to solidify the position of the Gulf industry, the statement said.

 

“In the past 12 months there have continued to be external pressures on the Gulf plastics industry, but the region’s plastics producers and converters have responded in such a way that they have met these challenges and continued to strengthen our industry,” said Dr Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun, secretary general, GPCA. “This has been fortifying, but clearly there is still a lot of potential for development for our plastics sector, and this is the focus of this year’s PlastCon. 

 

Another area which will be a key topic during the PlastCon is the development of regional consumption of product, rather than export. Just 4.7 million tons, or 23 per cent of total production, is currently consumed regionally, with the remaining 77 per cent of the Gulf’s production exported. Regional consumption of thermoplastics in the GCC has been growing however, with a compound annual growth rate of 8 per cent for the region over the past five years, but this is still an area the industry needs to address, it said.  

 

The GPCA PlastCon 2013 programme will feature panel sessions comprising high-level speakers that will discuss new ways and technologies to help plastic converters further develop their business. Delegates will hear of new opportunities in key product sectors and markets and case studies of successful export growth strategies.

 

GPCA PlastCon 2013 will also feature the third edition of the Plastics Innovation Awards where trophies will be awarded to industry players for ‘Excellence and Ideas in Plastics Conversion’ in addition to a special award for ‘Student Talent in Plastics’ offering a prize of Dh10,000 to encourage future generations and inspire innovations in plastics. The awards will be announced at a glittering gala dinner on April 8.  - TradeArabia News Service