Nghiem Xuan Da holds a Bachelor degree in Industrial Economy Mines from Moscow State Mining University and MSC in Finance from University of London and a Bachelor of Law from Hanoi Law University. Nghiem Xuan Da is the President of Vietnam Steel Corporation and Chairman of Vietnam Steel Association (VSA). Prior to this, he has held the positions of Chairman, CEO, Vice-President, Chief Accountant and Director of Accounting at Vietnam Steel Corporation.    

Kazuo Fujisawa joined NKK Corporation in 1982 and has held management positions in sales, engineering and in an assistant role to CEOs. After NKK merged with Kawasaki Steel to create JFE Steel in 2003, he has held positions in the Corporate Planning Department and Overseas Business Planning Dept. He was on the committees and the Board of Directors of California Steel Industries from 2003 to 2016.  He is the member of worldsteel’s Communication Committee and Economic Committee.  He has spoken at a number of steel conferences around the world. He graduated from Seattle University, USA and from Sophia University, Japan.

Subhendu is Managing Director for Duferco Asia, based in Singapore. He has dealt with all major markets worldwide, both as a producer and as a trader. An engineer with a MBA, Subhendu has been in the steel industry since 1991, holding several positions. He has worked at Tata Steel for 10 years, at Mittal Steel for 5 years and at Duferco Switzerland for 5 years before he moved to Asia where he has been leading all Duferco operations since 2009. 

Handy Rachmat was born in Jakarta, in 1985. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in Economics, majoring in International Business from Pelita Harapan University. In 2011, he started his professional career in the steel industry by working at a Japanese trading company in Jakarta. During his time there, he developed a passion for the industry and set his goal to establish a career in it. With a strong passion for steel, he ventured into developing a steel business, focusing on flat and long products from China, Japan, and Korea to Indonesia. Later, he was entrusted by the company to expand the business to several countries such as Malaysia, Thailand, and India. As the leader of the business line, he guided the company to achieve its targets, developed teams, and successfully expanded their business in Indonesia, establishing themselves as a crucial trading company in the Indonesian market. In 2019, Handy decided to join Dexin Steel Indonesia to further advance his career in the steel industry. Dexin Steel Indonesia is a joint venture company focused on developing the steel industry in Indonesia. As a sales professional, he played a key role in expanding their market presence in both domestic and international markets.

Martin graduated from Imperial College, London with a degree in Process Metallurgy in 1987.  An initial engagement with the steel industry started with British Steel Teesside both before and during study.  This was followed by employment with the then Davy McKee Iron and Steel group, with a focus on iron and steelmaking related technologies.  Following overseas secondments to many of the world's most famous iron and steel makers for commissioning and troubleshooting type roles, Martin was promoted to become Manager of Process Engineering and then to Head of Blast Furnace Technology whilst the company transformed through various guises to be the Primetals that is now a leader in the iron and steel technology supplier market.  In 2017, Martin took a long-term secondment to work in Asia for business development for the blast furnace business.  This has now been followed with a permanent transfer to the Primetals Taiwan office, with a responsibility for business development over iron and steel technologies in the Asia region.  Decarbonisation is a natural and logical key area of this business development.  Martin is a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, a member of its Iron and Steel Division subcommittee and a nominated reviewer of papers for the Ironmaking and Steelmaking journal.

Tomas is the Managing Editor Asia for Kallanish and produces editorial content on the region, with a focus on China, as well as overseeing Kallanish's operations in East Asia. He is based in Shanghai, where he has lived and worked for the last six years. Tomas speaks Mandarin as well as English and Spanish. He has also spent three years in Beijing studying and working. Previously, Tomas worked at Steel Business Briefing, where he joined shortly after graduating with a masters degree in Asian politics from SOAS in London.

Meranti Steel is a Singapore based company active in the steel industry in South-East Asia. Its first joint venture is JFE MERANTI, a business for painting and coating of flat steel with a focus on building & construction markets. Sebastian has led JFE MERANTI as founding CEO, and serves now on JFE MERANTI’s Board of Directors. Meranti Steel is currently working on a new venture in South-East Asia. Sebastian has 20 years of experience in executive, operational, strategy, finance, and legal roles. He has previously worked across the globe with an international steel company, a leading strategy consulting firm, multilateral banks, and an international law firm. Sebastian has a particular passion for the steel industry in emerging countries. Sebastian holds a doctor in law from Ruprecht-Karls University in Heidelberg, Germany, and an MBA from INSEAD in Singapore/France.

Miller joined the Ferrous team in May 2023 as a Principal Consultant focused on steel decarbonisation. He is leading WMC analysis on steel decarbonisation, primarily focusing on the benchmark of emerging green steelmaking technologies. Miller has both technical and industry background. His initial steps were at Benxi Steel, where he acted as an ironmaking engineer for 13 years, during which he also spent one year at MIT as research fellow to support their research on China steel industry’s energy intensity evolution. Miller joined Rio Tinto’s Technical Marketing team in 2011, where he was responsible, among other things, for the company’s VIU cost build-up and iron ore market analysis and segmentation. In 2017, Miller then moved to Roy Hill to hold similar responsibilities as he held at Rio, and in 2020, Miller joined FMG as a Manager of Technical Marketing. Miller has a bachelor’s degree in metallurgical engineering from the Xi’An University of Architecture and Technology in China. He speaks fluent Mandarin and English.

Bernhard was born in Haselünne, Germany, in 1987. In 2017, Bernhard joined SMS group GmbH in Düsseldorf, Germany. He began his career in corporate development before becoming CEO at SMS Digital GmbH, a division of SMS group. Bernhard served as Executive Vice President of Digital Solutions at SMS Group GmbH in 2019. He took on the role of Executive Vice President of Services Business at SMS Group GmbH in 2021, showcasing his versatility beyond the digital sector. During his tenure on the advisory board of Vetta Tecnologia S.A. in Belo Horizonte, Brazil from 2022 to 2023, he demonstrated a global perspective. In 2023, he took on the important role of SMS group's Chief Sales Officer for the APAC & MEA (Asia-Pacific & Middle East & Africa) Region. Bernhard holds a Master of Science in Metallurgical Engineering from RWTH Aachen University, Germany. He also served as a Research Assistant at the Institute for Iron Science at RWTH Aachen University.

Franz, an experienced IT professional and digital transformation expert, currently serves as the Head of Sales at Metalshub. Over the past six years, he has successfully digitised operations in steel plants and mining organisations, underscoring his commitment to innovation. Franz’s extensive expertise spans beyond steel, providing a comprehensive understanding of the metals and mining industry. Excited to apply his insights and capabilities, he is well-prepared to make meaningful contributions to upcoming projects in this dynamic field.

Derek Langston has worked for two of the largest shipbrokers in the world in a career spanning more than 20 years, and was appointed Global Head of Dry Cargo Research at Braemar in 2023. Previously, Derek was Head of Research at SSY from 2019 to 2023. Derek has been engaged for shipping research and consultancy work by a diverse client base including shipowners, operators, trading houses, utilities, mining companies, agricultural producers, government departments, banks and investment funds.  

Gorkem received his master's degree in Management of Business Administration in 2002 from La Salle University, Philadelphia, USA. He started his career in the US, working in multinational companies such as Saint Gobain. Later, he went on to work in the stock market fortune 500 company SEI Investments as a mutual fund trader in the US. In 2005, he took a challenge in the steel industry and started to work for steel producers as an executive for export markets. Then, he was appointed as a director of the steel desk of LN metals, a commodity trading company in London. In 2012, Gorkem founded Galex Steel International -- a trading house mainly focused on flat steel products and exports to Europe, Turkey, South America, Middle East and Far East. Galex represents reputable government and private mills from China, India and Turkey on regional or project basis. The company covers global markets through its offices in Turkey, China, India and Russia.

Jiao Yong, Executive Deputy General Manager of the International Business Division in China Risun Group Limited, holds a master's degree in English Language and Literature from Beijing Institute of Technology. Since joining China Risun Group at the end of 2007, Jiao has steadily progressed from an administrative commissioner to Deputy Manager of the Group's Operations Management Department, then serving as Manager of the Coke Import and Export Department and Chemical Import and Export Department, and ultimately becoming Deputy General Manager of the Coke Business Department. Currently, Jiao Yong is responsible for overall sales operations and coke import-export affairs in China's East and South regions, as well as sales in the Indonesian coking plant.

Philip grew up in the scrap industry working as a laborer at the Luntz Iron and Steel plant next to Timken steel in Canton, Ohio. After graduating university, for 15 years Hoffman worked for both Hugo Neu Corporation and Derichebourg Recycling where he traded ferrous scrap throughout the gulf coast, mills on the Mississippi river and in bulk internationally. In 2005 he became a lawyer receiving his Juris Doctor in both maritime and international trade law from the University of Queensland, Australia. In 2008 he started Hoffman Iron and Steel trading containerized scrap from the US west coast to Asia and also supplying bulk cargos to one of Turkey’s largest steel mills. In 2015 Hoffman foresaw that Vietnam was going to rapidly expand its steel-making capacity and in 2016 Hoffman opened a trading office in Ho Chi Minh City while at the same time he personally lived at and consulted for Gunung Garuda Steel one of Indonesia’s largest steel mills. In 2020 Philip opened a scrap operation in Indonesia to service domestic steel mills and non-ferrous smelters to supplement Hoffman’s imported scrap to Indonesia. Philip continues to work with suppliers and consumers to trade scrap throughout the Pacific Rim.  

Tanmoy has about 15 years of experience working at the highest level with global metals & mining players, financial and asset restructuring firms. He has both worked at management consulting, operations, overseen projects in iron & steel making, due diligence, energy transition and techno economic appraisal of projects at some of the largest plants across Europe, S-E Asia, Middle East, and in North America. He is currently working with Research and Consulting Group AG, Switzerland, leading the metals & mining team globally, before at Frost & Sullivan, TATA and JSW Steel, he was managing the transformation team for corporate strategy, capital projects and operations for one of the world’s most advanced plant. According to Tanmoy, green steel and clean energy transitions need to have economic merit, and the RCG AG team leaves no stone unturned in designing and improving operations for the most CAPEX/OPEX efficient portfolios to ensure the lowest “carbon premium” possible considering market, technical feasibility, and economics of operations. Tanmoy has BS Degree in Metallurgy & Materials Science and MBA from Indian Institute of Technology, IIT, Kharagpur. Outside of work, Tanmoy’s interests include long distance running and experiencing new cultures.

Edric joined the LME in 2014 and is based in our Singapore office, where he is Head of Corporate Sales in Asia. He has many years of experience in commodity price risk management. Previously, he worked at Mizuho Bank and was responsible for marketing commodity derivatives and advising hedging strategies to corporate customers. Prior to that, he worked for a world-renowned airline, managing their jet fuel risk book. Edric delivers our bespoke training courses in the Asia-Pacific region.

Hai Phan is an expert on mining, metals and construction business in Vietnam and Southeast Asia. He has been the CEO of Ferominco since 2010 and represented Trafigura on steel-making raw materials, non-ferrous and mining products. He is now acting as Southeast Asia consultant of business strategy and steel sourcing for Tata International.

David is the Manager of Technical Marketing for Anglo American Iron Ore. David has 14 years of working experience in Ma’anshan Iron&Steel, a large integrated steel mill in China; he started by running the Blast Furnace in the iron-making plant and leading the technical team in the technical centre of the organisation. Later, David joined BHP and took on the roles of technical manager (5 years) and sales manager (1 year). Starting in May 2012, David started at Anglo-American Iron Ore as a technical manager to look after Asian customers and as a project manager to look after global decarbonisation projects. David has long service in the iron ore and steel industry and is rich in project management, product quality management, and technical service to mining and steelmaking.

Ronald is the AVP for Industry Affairs and Communications of the SteelAsia Manufacturing Corporation. He is the current President for the Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI) after serving several years as Board Member and PRO. Currently representing the Philippines on several committees in the South East Asia Iron and Steel Institute (SEAISI). He is involved in SteelAsia’s growth and strategic expansions, contributing to the realization of the group’s expansion from 500,000 tpy to 3 million tpy capacity and becoming the Philippines and South East Asia’s largest rebar manufacturer. At present, he plays a significant role in SteelAsia’s diversification of its manufacturing capabilities. He has acted as the group’s representative in several forums and conferences, reading papers on SteelAsia’s growth and contribution to industrialization and national development.

Vaibhav is based in Singapore and is Manager of Asia Business Unit at Deltasteel Group, focussing on steel and ferrous scrap trading across the region. Deltasteel, headquartered in Switzerland, was founded in 1994 by three managers with over 20 years of experience. Deltasteel’s team of professionals is the company’s core strength: constantly engaged in the accurate selection, analysis, and knowledge of suppliers and with the aim to facilitate a cost-effective supply chain management that can rely on an established sales network. In addition to local partners & close associations in a number of markets, Deltasteel has offices in Switzerland, Spain, Ireland, and Singapore that aim to provide all the necessary strategic and operational support to our customers & suppliers.  Vaibhav has varied experience in the regional steel industry, being previously working at Swiss Singapore Overseas Enterprises based in Singapore, and prior to that with Stemcor based in Mumbai & Dubai.

Sachin is a Mining Engineer from National institute of Technology and is Founder of Quesrow Management Consulting, a startup consulting company with focus on Minerals, Material and Metals across India, ME, South East Asia. His work experience includes operations and strategic planning (Shapoorji & Pallonji), Marketing and Key Account Management (IT company) and over 19 years in Business Research, Growth and Transformation Consulting domain. His work experience in consulting expands across Construction & Infra, Power, Oil & gas, Chemicals, Pharma, IT, Telecom and Retail sectors. He has been a Team Lead for 150+ Consulting, Business Research and Advisory engagements. Before Quesrow, Sachin setup Mining and Metals division for Feedback Consulting and ran successfully for 5 years, developed new clients globally assisting them across various growth initiatives. Sachin was also associated with Living Steel (World Steel Association initiative to promote Steel in residential construction) as Project Manager and led several successful initiatives across 11 countries.  Sachin is also on the board of 2 Metal trading companies and is responsible for professionalising their business through process restructuring, automation and mentoring to drive profitable growth.

Sowmi is a sales professional based in Indonesia. In 2017, he joined as Head of Marketing of PT Ispat Indo - the first company Mr L N Mittal established in 1976. He focuses scaling up business of various value-added grade wire rods. Previously he worked with PT Essar Indonesia since its inception in the 1990s where he had handled flat products selling for better part of his tenure. He had exposure to establishing and maintaining retail sales branches as well. He has seen many crisis cycles in his career, from the ASEAN monetary crisis to the last couple of years of economically challenging steel business. His motto is “Stay strong with a positive attitude always”. 

Hu Hongsheng is Director of Scrap Department at Fubao Information Company, Head of Fubao Scrap Research Team and Scrap Data Products. Hu Hongsheng has been engaged in bulk commodity and scrap industry research for more than ten years.