CEFIC President - 'The Chemical Industry: a Solution Provider'

20 Oct '08

2 min read

Mr. Christian Jourquin, CEO of Solvay, has been elected President of CEFIC : European Chemical Industry Council by its General Assembly held in Athens. In his speech, the newly elected President recognized that the coming years would be crucial for the European Chemical Industry. It will indeed have to respond to unprecedented challenges and opportunities created by climate change and scarce raw materials.

“In order to do this, the chemical industry must reinforce, and be seen to reinforce, its credentials as a responsible and sustainable actor at the heart of the fight against climate change” said Mr. Christian Jourquin to the members of the General Assembly.

“To achieve such an ambitious goal, we must first demonstrate the continued relevance of a chemical industry in Europe in an increasingly competitive global market. If we are to demonstrate the benefits of the chemical industry and its role as an innovative solution provider to the challenges of climate change, then we can no longer neglect to highlight the vast and incredibly diverse range of products and solutions which would not exist without the chemical industry”, he concluded.

Mr. Jourquin also stressed the successes that his predecessor, Mr. François Cornélis, has delivered and his willingness to build on them. In this context, he will strengthen the useful dialogues started with all relevant stakeholders, notably on REACH.

The chemical industry is an important contributor to Europe's socio-economic development. It comprises 27,000 companies, employing directly 1.2 million people and generating a trade surplus of 35.4 billion Euros in 2007.

Cefic is the Brussels-based organization representing the European chemical industry.

Cefic represents, directly or indirectly, about 29,000 large, medium and small chemical companies which employ about 1.3 million people and account for nearly a third of world chemical production.

CEFIC - European Chemical Industry Council

More Textiles News - Greece...