Argus Bitumen & Roads Asia Conference

Morning networking and breakfast

Chairperson's opening remarks

Speaker:

Jonathan Weston

Europe & Asia Bitumen Lead

Argus

Argus spotlight session: An overview of pricing trends and fundamentals across Asia-Pacific

- A view of how evolving trade flows have impacted price movements across the Asia-Pacific bitumen market, and who some of the new players are
- Demand fundamentals across southeast Asia over the past year and what could be to come
- A closer look at China’s bitumen market as suppliers there look to expand their reach to the international market through exports

Speaker:

Leanne Tan

Editor

Argus

Claire Ng

Reporter

Argus

Refineries spotlight

Speakers:

Gede Wahyudi Mahendra Putra

Senior Account Manager Bitumen

PT Pertamina

Sathya Narayanan

Associate Reporter

Argus

Morning networking and refreshments break

Argus spotlight session: Paving the way between Middle East and Asia – an overview on Middle East trade flows, price trends, and arbitrage

- An overview of Middle East trade flows and India fundamentals
- How reliant are India and Southeast Asia on Middle East-origin bitumen?
- Key factors impacting and driving arbitrage opportunities between the Middle East and Asia

Speakers Include:

Sathya Narayanan

Associate Reporter

Argus

Construction and sustainability outlook

- How can New Zealand foster competition and innovation in a market dominated by a few players?
- How NZ utilises the bitumen that it imports?
- How are sustainability goals such as carbon reduction and circular construction adding complexity to already strained supply chains?
- Looming challenges foreseen in the bitumen market and success stories in the GCC

Speaker:

Doug Carrasco

General Manager Road Science & Asphalt Production

Downer Group

Leanne Tan

Editor

Argus

Leticia Parra Rodriguez

General Manager

Sustainable Road Solutions - Total Energies

Mark Ford

General Manager - Bitumen

Fulton Hogan New Zealand

Networking lunch

What’s happening in Iraq, Iran and India?

- Is Iraq becoming a dominant player in the regional bitumen market, and how is its growing export capacity reshaping trade flows in the Middle East and Asia?
- How are Iraq’s refinery upgrades and increased crude distillation capacity impacting bitumen availability and pricing?
- What procurement and logistics challenges do buyers face when sourcing from Iraq?
- How is India balancing its reliance on imports, currently covering nearly 50% of demand, with rising investments in domestic production and bio-bitumen integration?

Speaker:

Dhruv Nanda

Trading Manager

Sapco Global

Sathya Narayanan

Associate Reporter

Argus

Bhavin Shah

Managing Director

AGEE EXIM DMCC

Introduction to Argus and our global bitumen coverage (Contd.)

- Global bitumen pricing and fuel oil – a volatile relationship
- How do Mediterranean bitumen trade flows differ from those in the Middle East Gulf, Southeast Asia, and the Americas and what does this mean for global supply chains?
- Which African regions are poised to drive future bitumen demand, and what infrastructure projects are shaping this growth?
- With South Africa relying entirely on imports, what are the viable supply routes and trading partners for meeting its growing bitumen needs?

Speakers Include:

Jonathan Weston

Europe & Asia Bitumen Lead

Argus

Evening networking and coffee break

Demand and business in Africa: Coverage of growing imports

- How have global economic and other trends, including US tariffs, affected economic growth in sub-Saharan and north African markets, with potential impacts on infrastructure investment.
- A focus on infrastructure funding and bitumen demand and supply developments in key markets like Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya;
- Evolving pricing and trade flow for bitumen shipments into African markets and factors influencing those trends.

Moderator:

Jonathan Weston

Europe & Asia Bitumen Lead

Argus

Rory Botha

Managing Director

Bitumen Supplies & Services

Chairperson's closing remarks

Conference concludes and drinks reception

Morning registration and networking breakfast

Chairperson's opening remarks

Speaker:

Sathya Narayanan

Associate Reporter

Argus

What are some of the challenges that traders have faced and how have you repositioned your business to adapt to these changes?

- How has the industry landscape evolved over the past three-to-five years? What are some of the challenges that traders have faced and how have you repositioned your business to adapt to these changes?
- What are some of the upcoming capacities in the Middle East and how do you foresee these supplies impacting the Asia-Pacific market?
- Competition in Asia-Pacific has grown more intense over the past years – are we at a saturation point, or is there more room to expand?

G.K. Goyal

CEO

Bright Fortune Singapore

Leanne Tan

Editor

Argus

Vivek Dwivedi

Managing Director

Gayatram Pte Ltd

Morning networking and refreshments break

Shipping and freight trends: Industry and Argus

Poll for rating trends to gather real-time insights from attendees on how freight rates are impacting their operations, and to use this data to guide discussion during the session:

- What are the top 3 cost drivers in bitumen freight across Asia-Pacific?
- What is the upcoming season’s scenario for shipping reliability and pricing?
- What role can blockchain or digital freight platforms play in reducing fraud or delays?
- How are companies measuring and reducing Scope 3 emissions in bitumen logistics?
- What are the trade-offs between bulk shipping vs. containerized bitumen transport?

Speakers Include:

Τheocharis Terzis

Director

Queensway Navigation Co. Ltd.

Rethina Kumar

Managing Director

Lilly Maritime Pvt. Ltd.

Sathya Narayanan

Associate Reporter

Argus

Chairperson's closing remarks and day two concludes

Networking lunch