The evening marking the trade fair’s 60th anniversary brought together 700 people at MNAC
A resilient chemical industry looks to the future with optimism at the Expoquimia Gala Dinner
The Oval Hall of the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (MNAC) hosted the Expoquimia 2026 gala dinner last night, an event that brought together 700 attendees, including executives from chemical companies and other client sectors, as well as representatives from professional associations and public administration in Spain. The gathering highlighted the strength of the sector and its firm commitment to leading the industry’s green transition.
The Expoquimia Gala Dinner was chaired by the Minister of Industry and Tourism of Spain, Jordi Hereu, accompanied by the Catalan Minister of Business and Labour, Miquel Sàmper; the President of Fira de Barcelona, Pau Relat; and the Presidents of Expoquimia, Carles Navarro, and Equiplast, Bernd Roegele, among other personalities.
The keynote speaker of the evening was Katja Scharpwinkel, member of the Executive Board of BASF SE and former Vice-President of the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC). Scharpwinkel stressed that chemistry is a solid and resilient sector, ready to face the challenges of the green transition with the support of the public administration. In this regard, she highlighted that the current moment is key for investment decisions and for advancing towards a simpler regulatory framework that ensures the competitiveness and strategic autonomy of Europe’s industry.
Prior to the evening event, a pre-meeting was held bringing together around thirty CEOs and managing directors from the Spain’s leading chemical companies and organisations with political representatives. Participating companies and associations included AEQT, Air Liquide, Archroma, Atlantic Copper, BASF, Bondalti, Covestro, Domo Chemicals, Dow, DuPont, Feique, Fedequim, Henkel Ibérica, Ineos Inovyn, IQOXE, Kemira Ibérica, Lleal, Messer Ibérica, Moeve Chemicals, Nippon Gases, Carburos Metálicos, Ferrer, Siemens Digital Industries, Sener and Quimidroga, among others.
Celebration and recognitions
The Gala Dinner also served to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Expoquimia and the 40th anniversary of Equiplast. During the dinner, best-in-class awards were presented to various industrial transformation projects thanks to chemistry, in the cases of Lefance, L’Oréal Groupe, Almirall and Moeve, and to plastic circularity in the case of Seat & Cupra.
Expoquimia also presented three special recognitions. One was awarded to Vicenç Muñoz, CEO of Quimidroga, in recognition of his professional career. Another went to Moeve, represented by its CEO José María Solana, for its corporate strategy. In addition, a posthumous recognition was granted to Miguel Burdeos, President of SPB and Quimacova, for his outstanding contribution to the sector. Burdeos passed away at the end of 2024 as a result of the DANA weather event.
Gala attendees received as a gift the Perfume of Chemistry, an exclusive creation developed for the occasion by Grupo Carinsa. The fragrance was conceived as a tribute to the role of chemistry as a driver of innovation, wellbeing and social transformation.
In organising the Gala Dinner, Expoquimia was supported by Bondalti, Carburos Metálicos, Fedequim, Grupo IQE, Nippon Sanso, QCinca, QD Quimidroga, Siemens, BASF, Covestro, Feique, Institut Químic de Sarrià (IQS), Kemira, Lleal, Leitat, Messer, Net-Pharma Hub, Quimacova and Sener.
Organised by Fira de Barcelona, Expoquimia runs until tomorrow, Friday 5 June, at the Gran Via venue alongside Equiplast, bringing together 800 exhibitors from the chemical and plastics sectors.
Barcelona, 4 June 2026
PHOTOGRAPHS available here
Maria Dolores Herranz / Josep Lluís Mérida
Tel. +34 93 233 25 41 – 2114
[email protected]
[email protected]