JEDDAH – With GCC chemical exports reaching $54.6 billion, streamlining supply chain functions will be the key to maintaining a competitive advantage, says the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA), ahead of the annual GPCA Supply Chain Conference. "The Arabian Gulf region is ideally placed to capitalize on forecasted growth in Asia and Africa over the next five years, utilizing export-oriented strategies in order to flourish, said Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun, Secretary-General, GPCA. "To meet this growing demand, bold steps must be taken to help drive seamless trade of goods and services throughout the region and to push forward for a GCC customs union. It is only through a coordinated and forward thinking approach that the GCC's ambitious economic development goals for 2020 can be met." The GCC exported approximately 80% of its total product portfolio to more than 80 countries last year, amounting to 66.1 million tons of chemicals, according to GPCA estimates. As the petrochemical industry is forecast to grow by 6% every year by the end of this decade, with the region producing over 190 million tons of petrochemicals by 2020, exports will account for a sizable share for forthcoming capacity, said the GPCA. Increased competition and the need for product differentiation puts new and unique pressure on supply chains in the GCC, said Dr. Sadoun. "Infrastructures in the GCC are undergoing transformational changes, with new networks, facilities and capabilities coming online, to leverage economies of scale and meet growing demand. We must continue to finance the development of 'hard' infrastructure that makes up the backbone of all good supply chains, but also continue to invest in 'soft' infrastructure like training, education and customer service to take the GCC supply chains to the next level." The GPCA Supply Chain Conference, now in its 7th edition, will be held at Dubai's Intercontinental Festival City on May 3- 5, 2015. Held on the theme of 'Strengthening the Supply Chain Backbone - Paving the Way Forward for 2020', the conference gathers top executives from petrochemical companies, ports, consultancies and customs authorities to explore strategies that improve accessibility to and from the GCC that help the region achieve its developmental goals. — SG
