Agenda

Principal Consultant, Aluminium,  CRU
Eoin Dinsmore joined CRU in 2011 after previously working for Nestle.  He obtained an MSc. in Finance and Capital markets from Dublin City University in 2008 and holds a BA in Economics and History.Mr Dinsmore is a Principal Consultant in the Aluminium Primary and Products Team. His main areas of specialism include aluminium price forecasting, semis and primary demand and production analysis.

Managing Consultant,  CRU
Kelly Driscoll has been with CRU in London since 1995, following a 10-year career as a process metallurgist, working with Kaiser Aluminum in the US and with Johnson Matthey in London. His current main responsibility is for the development and improvement of CRU’s aluminium industry cost models, and for the technical development of CRU’s aluminium group products and services.
Dr Driscoll holds a B.Sc. in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Montana and a Ph.D. in Metallurgy from Cambridge University.

Head of Aluminium,  CRU

Paul Williams is the Head of Aluminium at CRU, responsible for the team's research programme. Mr Williams joined CRU in 1986 and for many years ran the Aluminium Semis and Downstream areas specialising in flat rolled product markets and demand analysis. A regular speaker at major aluminium events, he also contributes to aluminium association publications including those of the Aluminum Association and the Gulf Aluminium Council. Mr Williams has a MSc in Economics, London School of Economics. BA in Economics, University of Swansea.

Principal Consultant,  CRU

Zaid Aljanabi recently joined Consulting team’s aluminium and copper desk, bringing an extensive experience in the aluminium and nonferrous metals industry. Prior to CRU, he spent more than six years in the Middle East working for Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), where he led the market research unit and held various positions within marketing and sales, corporate strategy and finance. He previously worked in London for several years for a number of commodity-focused consultants as an analyst and where he also managed the precious and base metals research unit at Diapason Commodities Management. He began his commodities research career in 2002 as a global energy economist with AUPEC, an oil and gas consultancy firm. Mr Aljanabi holds an MA with honours in Economic Science from the University of Aberdeen and an MSc in Economics from the University of Amsterdam. He speaks Arabic and French.

Executive Director & Senior Vice President,  Chalco
Lu Dongliang, is currently an Executive Director and a Senior Vice President of Aluminum Corporation of China Ltd (“Chalco”). Mr Lu graduated from North China University of Technology majoring in accounting. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and is an accountant. Mr Lu has more than 20 years of work experience in financial management and in the non-ferrous metals industry. He had subsequently served as manager of the treasure management division of the finance department of Chalco, general manager of the finance department of Chalco, chief financial officer of Chalco Gansu Aluminum Electricity Co., Ltd, assistant to the president of Chalco and general manager of Lanzhou Branch of Chalco, and executive director and president of Chalco Gansu Aluminum Electricity Co., Ltd.

Vice President, Sales and Marketing,  Rio Tinto Aluminium
Tolga Egrilmezer is a global executive with extensive experience in the aluminium industry. He has recently joined Rio Tinto and is currently leading Rio Tinto Aluminium’s bauxite, alumina and aluminium sales & marketing teams globally. He is part of Rio Tinto Aluminium Executive Committee and has recently been elected to the ASI Board of Directors (Aluminium Stewardship Initiative). Mr Egrilmezer’s most recent experience was for the Sapa Group, a world leader in aluminium solutions as Executive Vice President Strategy & Business Development.
He joined Sapa Group in 2002 and held increasingly senior executive roles reflecting his breadth of experience in commercial, business transformation and innovation, culminating in his appointment as a member of the Sapa Executive Board in 2011. His experience includes serving as President of Sapa Asia based in Shanghai, with responsibility for Sapa's P&L in China, Vietnam and India as well as its’ sales network in South Korea and Japan. Mr Egrilmezer also served as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors in Sapa Group’s joint venture in China with Chinalco 2011 – 2015.

Vice President - Corporate Strategy & Analysis/Energy,  Norsk Hydro ASA

Katherine Fog is SVP Corporate Strategy & Analysis at Norsk Hydro, responsible for the corporate strategy process, industry structure, macro- and market analysis for the total aluminium value chain including energy, financial/project analysis, trade and industrial policy.

She has 25 years' experience across various business areas in Hydro, including the Petrochemicals Division, Oil & Energy Markets, Energy Business Area, as well as corporate projects. Her areas of experience include commercial responsibilities, contract negotiations, raw materials supply and purchasing, market analysis, strategy development, political framework conditions and policy positioning.

Mrs Fog graduated from Norwegian School of Management (BI) in Oslo, Norway.

Executive Chairman,  Liberty House Group

Sanjeev Gupta is the Executive Chairman of the GFG Alliance, a diversified international group of companies which encompasses commodities, supply chain management, steel, energy, engineering industries, estate development and banking.

Mr Gupta started the Group in 1992 while reading Economics and Management at Cambridge University. From a general merchant business, focused on Africa, in 25 years the Group has grown to a global enterprise with a network of offices spread across 30 countries and a significant presence in the United Kingdom. At present the Group’s turnover is approximately $9.4 billion and it employs c. 5,000 people globally.

Head of Aluminium,  CRU

Paul Williams is the Head of Aluminium at CRU, responsible for the team's research programme. Mr Williams joined CRU in 1986 and for many years ran the Aluminium Semis and Downstream areas specialising in flat rolled product markets and demand analysis. A regular speaker at major aluminium events, he also contributes to aluminium association publications including those of the Aluminum Association and the Gulf Aluminium Council. Mr Williams has a MSc in Economics, London School of Economics. BA in Economics, University of Swansea.

 

President, Chief Executive Officer and Director,  Century Aluminum

Michael A. Bless joined Century in 2006 as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Bless was elected President and Chief Executive Officer in November 2011 and elected to the Board of Directors in December 2012. Prior to joining Century, Mr Bless served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Rockwell Automation, Inc.   Earlier in his career, he spent ten years as an investment banker, principally at Dillon, Read & Co. Mr Bless is a graduate of Princeton University.

Partner,  Wiley Rein

Senior North American Aluminum Analyst,  CRU
Doug Hilderhoff joined CRU as the Team Leader for North American Aluminum in 2017. He is based in CRU’s Pittsburgh office and his responsibilities encompass the entire aluminium value chain. Mr Hilderhoff provides key insights into the North American aluminum market and contributes to many of CRU’s aluminum publications. 
Prior to joining CRU, he spent 11 years at Alcoa, most recently as the Sr. Manager of Global Market Intelligence where he led a team of analysts focused primarily on refining, smelting, and casting raw materials.
Mr Hilderhoff holds an undergraduate degree in Management Information Systems from the Pennsylvania State University and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh. 

Global Chief Economist,  Capital Economics

Andrew Kenningham joined Capital Economics in 2011 and became the company’s Chief Global Economist in January 2017. He has extensive experience as an international economist, most recently as Deputy Chief Economist in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He has previously worked for Merrill Lynch for eight years, heading the Emerging Europe, Middle East and Africa analysis for their fixed income business during the 1990s. In addition, Mr Kenningham has lived and worked as an economist in Bulgaria, in the early 1990s, and in India, between 2003 and 2007. Mr Kenningham has degrees in Economics and Economic History from Manchester University, Southampton University and the London School of Economics.

Chief Executive,  ALFED

The ALUMINIUM FEDERATION LTD is the Trade Association representing the UK’s Aluminium Industry. ALFED has 120 Members representing the complete supply chain for Aluminium. ALFED Membership comprises a number of multinational companies - for example Rio Tinto Alcan (RTA), Hydro Aluminium, Arconic, Novelis, Real Alloy, Sapa and Liberty Industries Group - however Membership is dominated by smaller companies (SMEs).
Will Savage has held previous positions in other metals-related businesses, and in manufacturing in Europe, Africa and the USA. Trained as a Cast Metals Engineer and a Metallurgist, Mr Savage has spent his whole career in the metals industry.

Sustainable Aluminium Strategies, Materials Engineering, Body Engineering,  Jaguar/Land Rover
Adrian Tautscher has worked at Jaguar Land Rover for 15 years and is responsible for Sustainable Aluminium Strategies. His role is leading Circular Economy initiatives with a focus on aluminium and a number of research projects pioneering new closed-loop and recycling approaches. Mr Tautscher has led the long term ‘REALCAR’ (REcycled ALuminium CAR) project that has developed greater recycling from closed-loop sources. REALCAR and further projects have investigated opportunities to exploit additional recycled aluminium from post-consumer and End-of-Life vehicles and potential for re-use and re-manufacture. These projects are developing strategies for use in the next generation Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles.

Chief Scientific Officer,  Innoval Technology

Geoff Scamans is the Chief Scientific Officer at Innoval Technology and is a Professor of Metallurgy at Brunel University. His expertise is in light metals and their applications in the automotive and aerospace industries, and in knowledge transfer from the research base to industry. Over the last 40 years he has initiated and managed a number of R&D programmes on both materials development and technological innovation, making scientific and technological contributions to the light metals sector, described in over 150 publications. His main interests are in the closed loop recycling of aluminium alloys as an alternative to primary production, in understanding the development and properties of deformed surface layers and their control through efficient cleaning and pretreatment processes.

Deputy Secretary General,  International Aluminium Institute

Chris Bayliss has over twelve years experience in the sustainability of the aluminium industry, as part of the International Aluminium Institute team. In that time his work and interests have developed, as has the industry’s, from a "licence to operate" focus to one that addresses increasing "licence to market" issues. He is involved in all aspects of the Institute’s activities, from data collection and analysis to communication and has played a leading role in collaborative projects to develop, among other things, the industry’s greenhouse gas accounting protocols, occupational health performance measurement tools, the global aluminium mass flow model and The Aluminium Story (www.thealuminiumstory.com). Mr Bayliss holds Masters degrees from the Universities of Cambridge and London and has conducted fieldwork around the globe, with a particular focus on China, India and Pakistan.

Principal Consultant, Aluminium,  CRU

Principal Consultant, Aluminium,  CRU

Vice President, Communications & CSR,  Sapa
Susanne Rothstein has a background in finance and strategy, and is now part of shaping a more sustainable future at the global leader in aluminium solutions Sapa. Right now she gets to combine formulating a sustainable value proposition with being responsible for internal communication and branding for the Sapa group. A challenging task given operations in 40 countries and more than 100 locations, but definitely a stimulating one. Talk to her about Sapa’s contribution to the sustainability agenda.

Executive Vice President, Communication & CSR,  Sapa
Erika Ahlqvist has been part of the Corporate Management in Sapa since 2010, and leads the group’s sustainability, communication and branding function. Sapa is the world-leader in aluminium extrusion-based solutions and employs 22.400 people in 40 countries. With a broad background from the branded consumer goods business in sales, human resources and M&A, Mrs Ahlqvist is now dedicated to shaping a more sustainable future through innovative aluminium solutions. Talk to her about Sapa’s solutions for energy-positive buildings, e-mobility or reusable furniture.

Senior Consultant,  CRU
Anthony Everiss is a Senior Consultant in the Aluminium Raw Materials Team, and is editor of the Bauxite and Alumina Monitor, Bauxite and Alumina Market Outlook, and Bauxite and Alumina Long Term Market Outlook. His main areas of specialism include bauxite and alumina price forecasting and market fundamental analysis. He is a speaker at industry events and has developed expertise across the aluminium value chain.
Mr Everiss joined CRU in 2011 after achieving a BSc (Hons) in Economics from the University of Warwick.

Group Executive Strategy & Development,  Alumina Limited

Andrew Wood has responsibility at Alumina for strategy and development. Alumina holds 40% of the AWAC joint venture, one of the largest bauxite and alumina producers. He worked for 15 years at WMC in commercial and legal roles in corporate, energy and the nickel and gold businesses. He was then a consultant in Hamburg for 2 years, followed by 5 years in Sydney at Sibelco, a Belgian industrial minerals producer, as Executive General Manager, with management, legal and EHS responsibilities. Mr Wood holds Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts degrees from Monash University and a Graduate Diploma of Applied Corporate Governance.

Bulk Raw Materials Supply Side Analyst,  CRU
Adam Parums is responsible for CRU’s research and publications on the Metallurgical Coal sector. He follows international coal markets on a day to day basis and contributes to CRU’s views of steel raw materials supply and demand.  
After studying economics at the University of Sheffield, Mr Parums joined CRU in May 2010 and initially worked as an analyst for the finished steel market of Latin America. In this role he carried out finished steel demand-side modelling and forecasting, as well as initiating CRU’s Latin American steel price assessment programme. After a year in this post, he became responsible for CRU’s analysis of the global steel long products market, specialising in the European steel industry, and leading a team of analysts to produce regular market reports. He joined the steel raw materials team in November 2011 as supply-side analyst for Australasia with an overall responsibility for metallurgical coal. 
Mr Parums has a BA Honours Economics at University of Sheffield, UK.

Senior Adviser,  European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

Christopher Beauman is a Senior Adviser at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which he joined at its inauguration in 1991. He has worked on major projects in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania and Turkey in particular in the Steel Industry. He is also involved in initiatives on Energy Efficiency and Climate Change, and is a member of the Advisory Board of the LSE Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy.
Before joining the Bank, Mr Beauman had worked for three London merchant banks in corporate finance, for the UK Cabinet Office, and as a strategic and restructuring adviser at British Steel Corporation.

Vice President,  Energia Potior

Geoff Matthews was appointed Vice President of Energia Potior Ltd, in July 2015, with the responsibility of commercialising the patented EnPot technology.

After acting as Personal Private Secretary to New Zealand’s Prime Minister for ten years between 1987 and 1997, Mr Matthews embarked on a successful career in advertising and public relations before establishing multi award-winning branding and marketing company, BrandCom Ltd in 2001.

Over the next decade, he took up a number of executive and board positions of companies operating across the economic spectrum, that were seeking his particular skillset of strategic vision, business acumen, and the hands-on management of fast-growth companies.

A five-time winner of the New Zealand Marketing Awards, Mr Matthews was elected a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketers (UK) in 2012.

In his current role for Energia Potior, Mr Matthews is immersed in the world of aluminium smelting with a particular focus on sustainability issues, and how flexible operating scenarios can change the financial outlook for smelters.

Principal Consultant,  CRU

Senior Market Analyst,  Eurasian Resources Group

Michael Insulan is a commodity analyst with Eurasian Resources Group (ERG), focusing on non-ferrous metals including aluminium, copper, nickel, and cobalt. He has been involved with the commodities industry since 2003, working with Shell in business portfolio analysis. Prior to joining ERG, Michael worked at CRU in London and Santiago, in both consulting and analysis. Most recently he managed CRU’s aluminium raw materials team, covering bauxite, alumina, and carbon products. Mr Insulan holds a B.A. in International Business, Finance and Economics from the University of Manchester, and a PhD in Economics from Manchester Business School.

Managing Director, Commodities Research, Global Investment Research,  Goldman Sachs
Maximilian (Max) J. R. Layton is head of European Commodities Research. He joined Goldman Sachs in 2011 and was named managing director in 2015.
Prior to joining the firm, Mr Layton was head of Metals Research at Macquarie Bank. Previously, he was a commodities economist at the Reserve Bank of Australia. 
Mr Layton earned a bachelor's degree in finance and a first class honors degree in economics from Macquarie University.

Director, Metals Research and Strategy,  Citi Research

Managing Consultant, Aluminium,  CRU
Marco Georgiou joined CRU in 2007 from Sumitomo Corporation. He is head of the Primary and Products team and is responsible for our aluminium primary and products publications. He is a regular speaker at aluminium at conferences and his career encompasses the aluminium, carbon composites and semiconductor industries.
Mr Georgiou has been involved in the aluminium, carbon composites and semiconductor materials sectors since 1995. He has a MBA from the OUBS, an MSc in Physics from Bristol University and a BEng (Hons) Materials Engineering from Liverpool University in the UK.

Base Metals Analyst,  Macquarie

As a member of Macquarie’s commodities research team, based in London, Vivienne Lloyd leads the global copper, zinc and lead analysis work and supports the team’s research into aluminium, nickel and tin. The commodities team services the equity, LME trading and corporate advisory divisions of the bank with metals and bulks research and market intelligence. 
Prior to joining Macquarie in early 2014, Mrs Lloyd spent 8 years at metals and mining research company CRU, including six years in its copper team. She studied Mathematics at Manchester University and subsequently spent a year teaching English in Xiamen, China.

Aluminium Industry Executive,  
Jean-Baptiste Lucas has over 20 years of international experience in the aluminium upstream and downstream. He has held a number of executive positions with global industry leaders. He has been based in the Middle-East for the last 6 years where he was most recently CEO of GARMCO (2015- March 2017) and Chief Marketing Officer of Aluminium Bahrain (ALBA) where he was responsible for cast houses operations, operational excellence, metallurgy as well as worldwide sales and marketing. Previously, he was a Managing Director at Alcan Aluminium Valais in Switzerland, where he headed the aerospace, transport and industrial division. Other roles included Director of Sales & Marketing at Alcan Specialty Sheet, in Germany and France and various assignments in strategy and business development at Pechiney rolled products.

Group Economist,  CRU

Grant Colquhoun has been part of CRU's Economics Team for 10 years, becoming Group Economist in 2012.  He leads CRU’s Economics team and, working closely with colleagues in China, is responsible for the economic and end-use analysis of China, a country he has analysed for over ten years. He is a regular speaker at CRU events, including the CRU Breakfast during LME Week. Mr Colquhoun was previously Head of International Industry Service at the economic consultancy Oxford Economics, an Economic Advisor for HM Treasury and an Economist for British Steel, having started his career in CRU's Steel business unit in 1994. He holds a BSc in Economics from the University of Bath and an MSc in Economics and Finance from the University of Bristol.

Senior Consultant,  CRU

Dr Yanchen Wang, based in our London office, is a Senior Consultant in our aluminium cost team. He joined CRU in June 2006, after obtaining his doctoral degree in Engineering from China. He is directly responsible for the development and improvement of CRU's Primary Aluminium Smelting Cost Service, the Alumina Refining Cost Model Service, the Bauxite Mining Cost Service and Aluminium Smelter Power Tariffs. He also contributes to single-client reports and cost analysis for other CRU products.

He is also an expert in the technology of aluminium industry. He regularly attends aluminium market and technology conferences and gives presentations. Dr Wang has visited more than 50 bauxite mines, alumina refineries and aluminium smelters around the world, in China, Australia, Europe, Malaysia, the Middle East and the USA

Senior Vice President Technology & Business Development,  Gränges AB
Torbjörn Sternsjö works as a SVP Technology & Business Development for Gränges AB in Stockholm. Gränges is global market leader in rolled aluminium coils and strips used in heat exchangers mainly for the automotive industry. Prior to his present position, Mr Sternsjö spent more than 17 years in the aluminium fabrication industry in China. Between 2011 and 2014 he was acting as a CEO of Sapa Chalco and during 2008 – 2010 as Managing Director for Sapa Profiles China. Prior to the latter position he was acting as a Managing Director of Gränges Shanghai. Mr Sternsjo was leading Gränges’ rolled aluminium company in Shanghai from the start of operation in 1999 until 2008. In 2010 he was awarded as an honorary citizen of the city of Shanghai. Mr Sternsjö received a similar award from the city of Chongqing year 2013.

General Manager,  Assan Alüminyum

Göksal Güngör started his career in 1994 and joined Assan Alüminyum in 1999 in the sales department. Between 1999 – 2016, he has taken on a series of roles with increasing responsibilites including Sales Director, Global Sales and Marketing Director, and Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), in charge of Sales, Marketing and all functions of the Supply Chain. As of July 2016, he has been appointed as the General Manager of Assan Alüminyum.

Mr Güngör has a degree in Business Administration and received an Executive MBA degree from the Sabanci University. He is currently working on his PhD degree in Business Administration and serving as the Vice President of GLAFRI (Global Aluminium Foil Rollers Initiative) and Member of the Executive Committee of Columbia, Venezuela and Mexico at DEIK (Foreign Economic Relations Board).