News
15 October 2014

UKLPG Annual Conference – A Huge Success in York

The UKLPG Annual Conference is one of the most important events in the global LPG events calendar and WLPGA looks forward to attending and supporting this conference each year

This year’s conference was held on 6th October at the Royal York Hotel in the beautiful and historic city of York.  The number of members who attended was exceptional and feedback received indicated that the wide range of presentations and roundtable discussions delivered were of real interest and value.

Many topical presentations were given during the afternoon leading to detailed discussions on many subjects. One such discussion was around the employment record of the LPG industry which was felt to be most encouraging and left members with some thought-provoking questions on the shape of the energy workforce of the future. This subject was considered alongside a presentation on the most effective methods of promoting LPG in a mature market.

On a technical note, topics included heating technology and policy as well as the potential for LPG to be part of the future mix. Members heard from a Detective Sergeant from the Metal Theft Team of the British Transport Police who explained the efforts that the police are doing as part of Operation Amelia to cut down on metal theft across the industry.  Howard Cox, founder of the highly successful FairFuelUK Campaign gave a most interesting presentation on the successes the campaign has achieved since its conception and showed the audience footage of Tessa Munt MP talking about how she supports Autogas driving a LPG car herself.

Michael Kelly gave a rousing presentation warning delegates that they faced a ‘tipping point’ of change rippling through the industry which will force it to think more strategically about its place in the energy matrix particularly in developed countries like the UK. He gave an overview of a vast array of appliances that can be run on LPG and underlined that WLPGA is creating the definitive database of appliances as part of its Exceptional Energy in Action initiative. This database will be launched at the upcoming 27th World LP Gas Forum in Miami.     The General Manager of AEGPL explained about how the national LPG trade associations are working together for mutual benefit. He confirmed UKLPG’s view that lobbying on the same message leads to stronger results as shown by the RID/ADR case. Working closely with AEGPL gives UKLPG members an opportunity to have a voice on a much wider scale. Julie Johnson, owner of Ted Johnson Propane in California regaled delegates with a heartfelt account of how her family business had got to where it is today.

The US industry has been founded on industry self-regulation and taxation.  Members also attended a selection of roundtable sessions covering topics such as EU directives, an analysis of the industry survey, the LPG industry in the US and an open forum run by the UKLPG Director of Technical Policy and Safety. For the evening entertainment, delegates enjoyed a ghost walk tour of York before sitting down to a gala dinner at the Royal York Hotel. UKLPG sincerely hopes that all delegates enjoyed the conference and found it worthwhile. Details will be published shortly regarding the date and location of the Annual Conference 2015.
For more information visit www.uklpg.org