Alacero – Lima, Peru 11th, 2013. Opening ceremony of Alacero-54, Latin American Steel Congress, took place this morning at the Westin Hotel and Convention & Center, in Lima. The event gathered the most relevant leaders of the Steel industry.
With an audience of around 800 people and the presence of Peru´s Vice-Minister of S&PE and Industry, Francisco Grippa, Congress Alacero-54 was officially inaugurated. As part of the opening ceremony, Ricardo Cillóniz, President of the Organizing Committee and Executive President of Aceros Arequipa (Peru) and Benjamin Baptista Filho, President of Alacero and President of ArcelorMittal Brazil, welcome the participants and referred to the topics that will be central during the Congress.
“This is moment to talk louder than ever about industrialization, about its advantages in terms of solidity, innovation, economic independence, qualified employment generation, social mobility, genuine GDP growth, long term investments, intra-regional trade development, among others”- underlined Benjamin Baptista.
About the host country: “The Peruvian steel industry is walking a path of growth and investment, with projects and initiatives aimed at expanding its productive capacity, improve the quality of its products and reduce the environmental impact of its operations, to go along with the increasing demand, especially in the construction sector.”, said Ricardo Cillóniz.
Congress activities will be developing today and tomorrow and include several panels that will analyze global and Latin American economies. This edition will be dedicated to emphasize the importance of industrialization and regional integration for Latin America’s long-run success and sustainability. Also, it will address topics related to raw materials, energy and the forces that drive steel consumption, such as middle class growth and infrastructure investments.
Entre los oradores de Alacero-54 destaca Osvaldo Rosales, Director de la División de Integración y Comercio Internacional de la CEPAL. También Parag Khanna, geopolítico de renombre internacional, que ha asesorado al presidente Barack Obama durante su campaña presidencial. El martes 12 el Dr. Germano Mendes de Paula presentará los resultados de un estudio inédito sobre “Cadena Metalmecánica en América Latina: Dinámica de las inversiones”, realizado durante 2013 y que completa una serie de estudios sobre este sector de la economía que Alacero ha encarado desde hace unos años.
One of the key speakers will be Osvaldo Rosales, Director of the Integration and International Trade Division of the ECLAC. Also Parag Khanna, outstanding geopolitics analyst that took part of Barack Obama´s presidential campaign consultancy team.
On Tuesday 12, Dr. Germano Mendes de Paula will present the results of an unpublished study: “Metalmechanic Value Chain in Latin America: Investment Dynamics”, that was sponsored by Alacero.
Along with the Congress, the most relevant companies of the steel industry, vendors and customers show their services and products in Expoalacero 2013.
As every year, Alacero Congress is home of the Steel Sculptures Exhibition with masterpieces of relevant local artists. Edition 2013 of this exhibition is currently displayed at the Westin Hotel. Next Thursday, it will move to the Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC) of Lima.
About Alacero
Alacero –Latin American Steel Association- is the organization that brings together the Steel Value Chain of Latin America to promote the values of regional integration, technological innovation, corporate responsibility and social and environmental sustainability. Founded in 1959, Alacero is formed by 45 companies of 25 countries, whose production –of about 70 million annual tons- represents 95% of the steel manufactured in Latin America. Alacero is a Special Consulting Organization to the United Nations and is recognized as International Non-Government Organization by the Republic of Chile, host country of Alacero´s headquarters.