Guest Speaker:
Nicholas Burns

• Former US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs
• Former US Ambassador to Greece and NATO
• Former White House Special Assistant
• Current Harvard Professor

Guest Speaker:
Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense (2006-2011); Author, New York Times Best Seller, DUTY: Memoirs of a Secretary at War and A Passion for Leadership

• Global arbitrage opportunities: What are the trading opportunities for US supply in the international market? How do the Middle East and other regions compete
• OPEC strategy: Oil exports from the US are rising dramatically, rivaling several OPEC member countries. Even so, OPEC and participating non-OPEC producers have largely complied with their late-2016 agreement to cut supply. Will cooperation or competition prevail as the market balances? What are the challenges that OPEC is facing to sustain global supply discipline?

Speakers:
Corey Prologo, Director of Oil Trading - North America, Head of Houston Branch, Trafigura Trading LLC
Michael Cohen, Head of Energy Commodities, Barclays 

Moderator:
Stephen Jones, Senior Vice President, Petroleum, Argus

Sponsored by Oiltanking

• Global LPG outlook: With the increasing availability of LPG out of the US, the Middle East and other regions, where is the incremental demand growing, and is growth sustainable over the coming years?
• India rising: India's demand is growing and is now passing Japan as the #2 importer for LPG. But most term contracts are currently going to major Middle East exporters. What is LPG consumption, production and imports?
• Autogas market: How much growth might we see in autogas demand for transportation fuels? What are the government incentives by region? How is the alternative fuel and battery powered vehicle market impacting autogas?

• In the petroleum and petrochemical markets, we have come to expect extreme price volatility due to extreme weather events, macroeconomic pressures, geopolitical issues, capital flows and currency fluctuations which frequently cause dramatic swings in underlying values. But how do you effectively manage your risk in this market, whether you are a consumer or producer? Explore the challenges and opportunities in using financial risk management strategies to create a boost to your bottom line in an otherwise challenging market environment.

• LPG distribution in Mexico: How does LPG distribution work in Mexico? How is pricing structured and what are the obstacles for market participants competing in the current system?
• Developing a supply portfolio: Since Mexico’s deregulation, buyers are now exposed to the risk that Pemex used to handle. How can buyers manage their currency price risk and get fully integrated into the North American market? What are some of the strategies for the upcoming propane year?
• Supply chain logistics: From origination to destination, understand the dynamics of moving North American propane by rail into the Mexican market

Speakers:
Luis Landeros, President, LPGas Distributors Association
David Schultz, Gas and Power, New World Fuel
Jay Harbison, Jr., President, 4J Energy
Ross Weisser, VP and Principal, 4J Energy

Moderator:
Amy Strahan, Editor Petrochemicals, Argus

• Infrastructure to support the Permian boom: Production is surging in the prolific Permian basin where operating costs are low and rig counts are growing. What is pipeline capacity for NGLs and where is it headed? How much is going to Houston and how much is going to Corpus Christi?
• LPG rail car market: What are the projected rail movements of LPG and the cars required for those movements?

• Global demand: Growing PDH capacity in China and other regions increasingly relies on imported feedstock. What is driving demand and how big is the opportunity for supply from the US vs the Middle East? And how will Canada fit into this picture? 
• Naphtha market: Will the naphtha market continue to be well supplied? What are the commercial considerations for feedstock selection in petrochemical operations?
• Cracker optimization: How are petrochemicals optimizing their cracker operations in a high capacity NGL market?
• Ethylene production: Case study of DowDuPont's world-scale ethylene production facility and outlook for ethane demand

• Shipping capacity for exports: Proposed ethylene export terminals will be a new route for petrochemical companies looking to diversify their product exports. What new projects are coming online and what is the shipping capability to handle ethylene supply in the export market? 
• The latest on the Panama Canal – Traffic, tolls and other considerations: What are the limitations on LPG vessels through the canal? What is the booking process? What is the schedule ahead of time fee? How long is the waiting time? What happens if there is a delay?
• Seaborne market: What are the fundamentals shaping North American propane to Asia and when might the ARB widen? What might that mean for propane exports this season?

• Understand how LPG is trading internationally for seaborne cargoes and why global markets are netting forward North American exports to consumer markets