Business Trends: Crude-to-chemicals—An opportunity or threat?

Sushant Gupta has more than 15 yr of experience in the energy industry, with a strong focus on the refining, crude oil and chemicals industries. Mr. Gupta is head of Wood Mackenzie’s Asia group, which is responsible for analysis of key trends and issues in the oil and refining markets, both regionally and globally. He has authored several research and consulting reports. Prior to joining Wood Mackenzie, Mr. Gupta worked for Singapore Refining Co., where he gained extensive experience in crude evaluation and purchase, refinery production planning, refinery economics and product supply planning. He also has more than 3 yr of experience with Schenectady International Group, a leading petrochemicals manufacturer in India. He earned a First Class MS degree in chemical engineering from the National University of Singapore.

Darryl Xu joined Wood Mackenzie’s chemical research team in 2012, with a specialization in aromatics. He simultaneously manages benzene and PX research in Asia, while developing new chemical research products and analytics. He also contributes to research, multi-client and private consulting studies using his expertise in refining and chemical integration. He began his career at ExxonMobil Chemicals, taking on roles in process engineering, project startup and logistics. He spent several years in site optimization and coordination, covering feedstocks and products ranging from crude oil and naphtha to aromatics and olefins. Mr. Xu earned a Bch degree in chemical engineering from the National University of Singapore.