Ireland Canada Trade Briefing
The EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is a new trade agreement between the EU and Canada, which aims to boost goods and services trade and investment flow. It will remove over 99% of tariffs between the EU and Canada and will create sizeable new market access opportunities. In this context, the Enterprise Europe Network at Cork Chamber, in association with the Ireland Canada Business Association (ICBA) and the Embassy of Canada to Ireland, are running an informative networking seminar. The seminar will offer attendees the opportunity to learn more about the opportunities for increased Ireland-Canada trade arising from the CETA agreement.
The seminar is designed for people already doing business in Canada, considering an expansion into this market, or just looking for information about business/investment opportunities in Canada.
Speakers on the day will include:
- Barrie O’Connell, President, Cork Chamber
- Deirdre Giblin, Vice Chair, Ireland Canada Business Association
- Ambassador Kevin Vickers, Canadian Embassy Dublin
- John Roxburgh, Senior Trade Commissioner, Canadian Embassy Dublin
- Tom O'Brien, Chief Executive Officer, Brookfield Renewable
- Dave Austin, General Manager, Irving Oil Whitegate Refinery
- David Skelton, Chairman, Leading Edge Group
About the organisations and speakers:
John Roxburgh is Senior Trade Commissioner and manages the commercial section of the Canadian Embassy in Dublin. During his nineteen years as a Foreign Service Officer at Global Affairs Canada, his previous postings abroad have included San Francisco and Moscow. At the event, John will speak about the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service (TCS). TCS provides Canadian businesses with on-the-ground intelligence, qualified contacts, partnership opportunities and practical advice on foreign markets to help them make better, timely and cost-effective decisions in order to achieve their goals abroad. If you’re looking to business in Canada, the TSC global network of trade professionals can assist foreign companies in making Canada their next investment destination.
Brookfield Renewable operates one of the world’s largest publicly traded, renewable power platforms, operating cross Europe, North America and South America. Its portfolio primarily consists of hydroelectric and wind facilities totally 10,700 MW of installed capacity and is diversified across 15 power markets in seven countries. Tom O’Brien is Chief Executive Officer of Brookfield Renewable Europe and is responsible for leading and developing the European platform. Tom joined Brookfield in 2014, following the acquisition of the Bord Gáis Energy. Prior to joining Brookfield, Tom held a number of senior commercial and financial roles across a variety of organisations. Tom is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.
Irving Oil operates Canada’s largest refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick, which is located 65 miles north of the U.S. border and has a production rate in excess of 320,000 barrels per day. In Ireland, Irving Oil owns and operates the Whitegate Oil Refinery in Cork Harbour, Ireland’s only refinery. The Whitegate refinery is an important part of Ireland’s energy infrastructure. Together with the power generation facilities in Cork Harbour, Whitegate manufactures up to one-third of all of Ireland’s energy needs, making it Ireland’s energy hub. Dave Austin is General Manager at Irving Oil’s Whitegate Refinery. Dave is a Chartered Chemist, with over 36 years’ experience in the oil and gas industry. Dave is a Director of the Irish Petroleum Industry Association and sits on the IBEC National Council. He is also an active member of the Cork Chamber Economic and Enterprise Committee and is a Director of the ICBA.
Leading Edge Group is a global leader in continuous improvement consultancy and corporate training and education. Established in Cork in 1995, it has continued to grow and expand over the past two decades and now has operations in Canada, Australia, and the Middle East. With over 20 years’ international experience, Leading Edge Group has worked across a broad number of sectors including healthcare, engineering, life sciences, Government and the Public Sector. David Skelton is Chairman of the Leading Edge Group and holds a BAI Engineering and a BA Mathematics from Trinity College, Dublin. He has 30 years’ senior management / director experience in manufacturing, engineering and healthcare sectors working to ISO, FDA and financial regulatory standards. He also has extensive change management, people management, executive mentoring and organisational development skills.
The Ireland Canada Business Association (ICBA) was founded in 1978, with the mandate of promoting and developing trade links between Ireland and Canada. The Patron of the Association is the Canadian Ambassador to Ireland, Mr. Kevin Vickers. The Association’s members include a wide range of Irish and Canadian firms from the financial services, manufacturing and services sectors with operations in Canada and Ireland. A representative from the organisation will speak at the morning seminar.
Participants will have the option to participate in a Q&A session at the end of the seminar. Pre-booking is essential for this event. Contact Eimear for further information.
A light lunch, kindly sponsored by Irving Oil, will be provided on the day.
Date and Time
Wednesday Mar 29, 2017
10:30 AM - 1:00 PM IST
Location
River Lee Hotel, Western Road
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