Can you update us on Braskem Idesa’s activities in the last two quarters, and what your priorities as new leader of the company encompasses?

In December 2024, I received an invitation to become the new CEO of Braskem Idesa. I was very enthusiastic about this challenge, which for me means leading an operation in a highly competitive region where North American producers have increased their capacities in recent years and Braskem has managed to position itself as a leader in polypropylene in the US and Braskem Idesa in polyethylene in Mexico.

Braskem Idesa's main priority has been to advance the development of the raw material import terminal project with the aim of increasing our operating rate and strengthening our supply capacity to the domestic market, which is made up of 75 to 80% imports, offering a very attractive scenario in the local plastics industry.

Braskem Idesa is a very competitive player, benefiting from its gas-based production, its location in the Gulf of Mexico, which allows it to access logistics routes in North America, Central Mexico and South America, as well as very competitive energy costs derived from the shale gas boom in the United States.

What trends in demand is Braskem Idesa observing across its product portfolio?

The petrochemical industry around the world has been facing a highly volatile environment and a very prolonged down cycle that has been further stressed by a tense geopolitical environment. In 2024, we saw some recovery in margins that allowed Braskem Idesa to close with a solid 3Q and 4Q, standing out from naphtha producers, which are less competitive compared to gas producers 

Locally, through ANIQ, we have maintained a very productive dialogue with the Government seeking to look after synergies with other industries on priorities such as increasing national content, greater competitiveness and stability of the national electricity grid, increasing the availability of renewable energy and raw materials, as well as the generation of legislation that promotes higher rates of collection of plastic waste to be recycled.

In parallel, we have made progress in our sustainability initiatives in the industry with post-consumer recycled resins (PCR), which allow us to move on in mitigating plastic pollution and where we have been advancing in FDA (Food and Drug Administration) certification to provide confidence to Brand Owners who also seek to increase the incorporation of recycled plastics in everyday consumer products.

How will Braskem Idesa’s new import terminal impact the Mexican chemical landscape, and Braskem Idesa’s position in the market?

The raw material import terminal will be a very important achievement for Braskem Idesa, allowing us to strengthen our presence in the plastic resin market both regionally and locally. 

With potential trade conflicts within North America and a new government in Mexico, how important is private-public collaboration and dialogue to strengthen the chemical industry?

The year 2024 was guided by elections in both Mexico and the United States. Braskem Idesa collaborates with the National Association of the Chemical Industry (ANIQ) seeking to contribute with our vision to the public policies of the Mexican government.

North America is a highly integrated commercial region, both in terms of logistics chains and product exchange. In 2024, Mexico was the United States' main trading partner with trade worth US$800 billion, surpassing Canada and China.

Trade within the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) free trade zone has made us the most competitive region in the world, and we trust that our governments will continue to promote productive, efficient and integrated trade that strengthens the region's companies that generate development for our countries.

What Is the company’s outlook for the coming 12 months?

Our pillars this year will be focused on increasing  the stability of our operation, ensuring reliability and competitiveness in the supply of raw materials, where the start-up of the terminal in 2Q 2025 will play a crucial role; we will also have our ethane cracker first major maintenance turnaround in 2Q after our start-up of operations in 2016, which we will do with a complete focus on operational safety and, finally, a cross-cutting priority for the teams will be customer service.  We are getting prepared not only to run our PE plants at full capacity, but also to deliver our products with quality and logistics reliability to our customers.