BASF boss Brudermueller re-elected as Cefic president

Brussels – BASF chief executive officer Martin Brudermueller has been re-elected as the president of Cefic (European Chemical Industry Council) for a second term.

Effective 7 Oct, the tenure extends Brudermueller’s presidency for another two-year term, said Cefic in a statement following the association’s annual general assembly.

Upon his re-election, Brudermueller pointed to the challenges faced by the industry over the recent years, including the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Today, we have a war on our doorstep in Europe and an unprecedented energy crisis that is threatening the very existence of Europe’s industrial production,” he said.

According to the industry veteran, for the first time in decades, Europe imports more chemicals than it exports.

“Many of our value chains are breaking up as we speak. There is no more room for business as usual,” he added.

The BASF boss called for ‘fast appropriate political action’ by policy makers to safeguard the industrial base in Europe.

“At the same time, the chemical industry needs to re-invent how we produce and what we produce in less than 30 years from now to meet the European Green Deal goals,” he added.

Brudermueller went on to say that the next few years will become a “stress test” for the resilience and ingenuity of the European chemical industry.

“And robust progress with the ‘chemicals transition pathway’, including an appropriate prioritisation and sequencing of regulatory measures, will be crucial,” he concluded.