My name is Frank Biel and I was the President of Eurobitume between April 2021 and the end of March 2022. At the same time, I was (and still am) responsible for international marketing and business development for the bitumen business line of TotalEnergies.

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I am pleased to say that despite all the various COVID restrictions in place during the year, Eurobitume maintained a high level of activity and visibility in 2021.

Frustratingly, these restrictions did prevent me from physically meeting every one of our members during my year-long Presidency, although fortunately I was able to participate in the “Bitumen Fachtagung” in Bern and visit the Eurobitume office in Brussels.

Today, I can proudly look back on what the organisation achieved in 2021:

First, I should make a special mention of the E&E Congress, which was postponed from 2020 and then transformed to a virtual platform which was exceptional – providing a congress that the 800 participants and sponsors deserved.

The E&E Congress is our flagship event, an important industry platform which presented a very important opportunity to:

  • Promote the work completed under the umbrella of the Bitumen Sustainability Steering Group (BSSG).
  • Communicate many documents delivered to the industry as output from the HSE, Technical and Safe Handling of Bitumen committees.

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I was also very pleased to see the high participation at both the Spring and Autumn General Meetings and Member Seminars – the background work and preparation was evident and the end result was greatly appreciated by the members.

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The second highlight for me during 2021 was the strategic review conducted within the Task Force Vision and Strategy. The key objectives were:

  • Eurobitume’s high level of attractiveness to our members and stakeholders.
  • To identify areas for future development.
  • To assess the organisational structure.

The first outcome was an updated Vision and Mission, which has already been approved by the board and is there for all to see on our website.

We also identified the need to further strengthen the coordination and synergies across Europe, and especially maximise the opportunities of communicating our common messages at a local level.

Third, I will underline the need for even greater collaboration with our main stakeholders, especially the positive ways of working between Eurobitume and partners such as the Asphalt institute and EAPA. Having access to additional experts strengthens any review process when alignment of positions is shared by partner stakeholders.

Lastly, as my year as President draws to an end, I would like to thank:

  • All the Eurobitume members for their trust.
  • The Eurobitume team for managing activities at distance and being so open to changes, and especially Siobhan for your excellent support.

I´m convinced that we have, with all this, a very solid foundation for our future.