Industry thought leaders will converge in Bahrain from today (September 26) to discuss the sector outlook and review technological advancements at the largest gathering of downstream oil and gas professionals in the Middle East.

The 10th Middle East Refining and Petrochemicals Conference and Exhibition (Middle East Petrotech 2016) is expected to attract over 3,500 attendees over four days who will utilise the event to initiate new business, learn, benchmark and network with associates from across the globe.

Held under the theme “Teaming Up for Excellence: Industry, Government and Education,” the event takes place under the patronage of His Royal Highness the Prime Minister of Bahrain Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa. It will run till September 29.

“Middle East Petrotech is a networking and knowledge sharing opportunity for the international and Middle East downstream sector, which is not only rich in hydrocarbon resources, but also has a large pool of talent and experience and potentially vast opportunities for growth, innovation and investments,” said Middle East Petrotech 2016 chairman and president and CEO of Kuwait Petroleum International Bakheet Al-Rashidi.

“This year we aim to intersect the realms of education, government and industry to underscore distinctive elements of collaboration that will yield superior industrial development. This will be demonstrated during the conference with examples that reinforce concepts of collaboration, and the sharing of real-life successes in the GCC region. Leaders from industry, key decision makers from the government and academics from top universities will discuss future long term and short term strategies, collaboration on industry and research, government policies to promote investments, educational opportunities and ideas for the implementation of new technology,” he continued.

“It is imperative to unlock the full potential of collaboration in the pursuit of building prosperity for tomorrow. This has never been as important as now for the Middle East region given structural economic challenges, political uncertainties, increasing competition and the new younger demographic reality,” Al-Rashidi added.

The conference has secured an impressive line up of speakers, beginning with a pre-conference forum and the conference opening ceremony today at the Ritz Carlton, Bahrain Hotel & Spa.

The pre-conference forum will discuss the roles of industry, education and government across three sessions. Invited speakers include: Professor Jean M J Fréchet, vice president of research, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology; Dr Jawaher Al-Mudhahki, CEO, the Bahrain National Authority for Qualifications & Quality Assurance of Education and Training; Dr Roy Blatchford, advisor on education reform, Government of Bahrain; Abdulaziz Al Abdulkarim, VP
procurement and supply chain management, Saudi Aramco; Rebecca Liebert, president and CEO, Honeywell UOP; Jean Sentenac, chairman and CEO, Axens; Lord David Howell of Guildford, Former UK Minister of Energy and writer on energy issues; and Dr Ihsan A Bu-Hulaiga, principal consultant, Joatha Business Development Consultants.

The conference opening ceremony will begin with a welcome address from Bahrain’s Oil Minister  Shaikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa and the Middle East Petrotech 2016 chairman Bakheet Al-Rashidi.

An executive plenary session will follow under theme “The Economic Downturn and Its Effect on the Oil Downstream Industry” with addresses from Amin H Nasser, president and CEO, Saudi Aramco; and Nizar Al-Adsani, CEO, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation.

Over the next three days at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre, the conference will feature 63 technical sessions with insights on case studies, best practices and industry advancements across nine distinct tracks: operational excellence, plant reliability and integrity, project challenges, energy management, HSE and risk management, smart plant and technology, market intelligence, catalyst management and people development.

Daily keynote sessions led by presidents and CEOs further examining the roles of government, education and industry will also take place.

New for 2016, a series of ‘Meet the Experts’ sessions will provide delegates with the opportunity to meet, consult and learn from recognised authorities on 10 key topics. They include: hydrotreating process, instrumentations and analysers, fired heaters, reforming process, process safety, corrosion, hydrocrackers, rotating equipment, steam traps and FCC.

The Middle East Petrotech 2016 exhibition of refining and petrochemicals products and services showcases over 100 companies from 20 countries and runs from September 27 – 29 at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre.  – TradeArabia News Service

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