Sustainability will become a business imperative: GPCA chief

Interview article by Muhamad Fadhil

DUBAI (ICIS)–Sustainability will evolve from a concept to a business imperative as more companies embrace the benefits of energy conservation, the secretary general of the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) said on Wednesday.

“Sustainability is a topic being defined and redefined…Sustainability will develop from a concept to a business imperative,” told ICIS on the sidelines of the 2nd GPCA Sustainability Conference in Dubai.

According to Dr Sadoun, energy companies embarking on energy conservation efforts will benefit from lower costs of production.

The petrochemical industry is “energy and resource intensive” and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) companies will need to strive further to reduce greenhouse emissions, Al-Sadoun said.

“More reduction remains a key challenge for GCC companies. The companies should strive for energy and water conservation,” Al-Sadoun added.

Al-Sadoun cited Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Company’s (SAFCO) usage of carbon dioxide to produce urea as an example of a GCC-based energy company “working hard to incorporate sustainability” in its workflow.

SAFCO is expected to begin production of 1.1m tonnes/year of urea at its new $500m facility next year.

He said GCC petrochemical companies should also educate their staff to enable them to work around sustainability challenges.

“Sustainability requires a buy-in from not only from a company’s leadership but its employees,” Al-Sadoun added.

The two-day conference ends on 23 October.