Greater connectivity needed to drive Middle East supply chains

Agility, Mattex and Ma'aden logistics executives highlight emerging markets, carrier volatility and risk management as key themes for upcoming Middle East container supply chain event

London, 10.09.2012 – The 2nd TOC Container Supply Chain Middle East event will assess how new trade with China, India, Africa and the growth of petrochemical exports is changing Middle East container supply chains. A central theme of this year’s conference will be the shifting economic power from West to East, and how this is reshaping supply and logistics chains.

Mohammed Esa, CEO Dubai and Senior Vice President UAE, Oman & Bahrain for global logistics major Agility, is among the senior industry executives confirmed to speak at the conference, which takes place in Dubai on 1-3 October.

Esa says it is becoming increasingly important to have greater connectivity between the Middle East and the fast growing economies in Asia, beyond the traditional role of the Middle East as a provider of energy resources. “With both regions aiming for a more diversified and balanced growth, and given the abundance of liquidity and capital, there are significant opportunities for cross-border trade and investment flows between the two markets,” notes Esa.

The boom in emerging markets and subsequent decoupling from the post-recession developed economies has had a significant impact on international trade flows, giving rise to the shift eastwards, he adds.

“This was illustrated in the Middle East in 2009, when China overtook the US as the region’s largest trading partner, and trade between the GCC and China is expected to reach between $350 billion and $500 billion by 2020. This growth is largely due to China’s soaring demand for oil and the Middle East’s need for lower-cost goods,” observes Esa. “This model is being replicated throughout emerging markets and is likely to become more pronounced in the next few years, with many observers predicting that trade between emerging markets will soon overtake that of advanced economies.”

Esa also notes that while emerging markets continue to draw interest from large international companies, attracted by their revenue generating potential, it is also important to be aware of the unique challenges of doing business in the Middle East region and ensure that customers partner with organisations equipped to mitigate these potential stumbling blocks. “As a logistics provider Agility’s goal is to help organisations overcome these challenges and enable customers to focus on their core business,” he comments.

Esa will participate in the Opening Plenary session, analysing the Middle East’s growing trade with Asia and what it means for regional shippers and logistics companies. He will be joined by Michel Deleuran, Executive Vice President - Maritime for MILAHA, formerly Qatar Navigation, who will discuss business opportunities for ports and maritime logistics across the Middle East, and Chander Kaul, North India Head at NYK Line, who assesses Middle East-India trade dynamics and their effect on container supply chains. Completing the line-up, Shailesh Garg, Director, Drewry Shipping Consultants, will analyse global and regional factors driving investments in port capacity and logistics infrastructure.

Logistics sector stakeholders will examine the key challenges facing efficient supply chain practice. Among those taking part in the conference, Vasco Amoroso, Head of Group Supply Chain at Dubai-headquartered polymer converter Mattex, says that, globally speaking, supply chains are facing one of the most challenging periods of the past 5 to 10 years, as instability in the market causes severe constraints for shippers. While the situation with shipping lines is well known, the focus of attention has been largely on profit recovery by the carriers, observes Amoroso. “We rarely see details of the impact (of shipping market volatility) on the global supply chain. This is not only related to the inherent cost structure change, but more importantly the impact on supply chain design itself. As services are more unreliable, capacity issues are creating bottlenecks across the region’s main ports and there is congestion at the main hubs. This is all leading to higher risk exposure in serving the market.”

Amoroso will share his views in the session Supply Chain Planning & Fulfilment: The Logistics Dimension, which takes place in the afternoon of Day 1. He shares the platform with Peter Ford, Chief Executive Officer, Port of Salalah; Lars Oestergaard Nielsen, Managing Director - UAE, Oman, Qatar & Iran, Maersk Line; and Mustafa Sener, SVP Seafreight (Middle East, Turkey & Central Asia Region), Kuehne + Nagel.

A crucial feature of the TOC CSC ME event is the opportunity for delegates to hear of real-world shipper case studies in managing supply chain challenges.Bander Boitey, Manager, Logistics and Transportation for Ma'aden Alcoa Aluminium Joint Venture, presents one of these case studies on Day 2 of the event.

Boitey sees five main challenges to supply chain management. First is tying the movement of goods to information and cost flows in real time. Second comes building win-win partnerships. Third, building a collaboration and gain-sharing culture. Fourth, finding local, qualified talent. Finally, Boitey calls for logistics in the Middle East region to be treated as a key enabler to positioning an organisation in the market, rather than being considered as a support service or cost centre.

His number one priority, says Boitey, is to have “reliable partners that understand the whole supply chain concept and work with me as solution providers to mitigate any risk associated with frequent changes in the transportation market. Logistics is not our core business as shippers. If we think we can do it better than the service provides, we are misleading ourselves.”

“It is clear from initial conversations with some of the key participants at TOC CSC Middle East 2012 that the Middle East and neighbouring regions face significant challenges in bringing supply chain practices and infrastructure into line with global benchmarks,” says Neil Madden, Conference Editor for TOC Worldwide, the event organisers. “While some of the region’s facilities are undoubtedly world-scale and world-class, there is still much room for improvement.

“Underlying this need for supply chain assets is the even more pressing requirement for genuine collaborative thinking to maximise the potential of the Middle East as it becomes firmly embedded within global trading networks.”

Held under the Patronage of His Excellency Dr. Rashid Ahmed Bin Fahad, UAE Minister of Environment and Water, and with DP World as host sponsor, the 2nd TOC CSC Middle East brings together cargo owners, logistics providers, ocean carriers, port and terminal operators and other container supply chain stakeholders to examine the key issues and challenges in this fast growing region.

TOC Container Supply Chain Middle East runs 1-3 October at the Dubai World Trade Centre. The event includes 2-day high-level container supply chain conference, free-to-attend port operations and technology seminars, exhibition of port and terminal services, equipment and technology, and industry networking receptions.

www.tocevents-me.com

Ends
 

Notes to editors:

For more information on this release, please contact:

Sam Whelan, Conference Producer, TOC Worldwide

Tel:  +44 207 017 5675 | Email sam.whelan@toc-events.com

Neil Madden, Conference Editor, TOC Worldwide
Tel +33 388 30 60 68 | Email neil.madden@toc-events.com


To arrange press passes to attend a TOC Container Supply Chain event, or to discuss a media partnership arrangement, please contact:

Olga Andreyeva, Marketing Manager, TOC Worldwide
Tel  + 44 (20) 337 73158 | Email: olga.andreyeva@toc-events.com