Richard Perrayon: appointed director of Union des Industries Chimiques IDF

Messer France, one of the leaders in the industrial gases industry, announces that its Chairman, Richard Perrayon, has been appointed Director of the Union des Industries Chimiques (UIC) Ile de France.

A graduate of the Ecole Supérieure de Chimie Industrielle de Lyon, with a Master of Business Administration in Management and Strategic Management, and Chairman of Messer France since 2008, Richard Perrayon, in his new role as director of the Union des Industries Chimiques (UIC) Ile de France, is committed to defending a sustainable chemical industry.

A member of UIC's national competitiveness commission, Richard Perrayon brings his expertise as an industrial gas producer to the debate on energy transition. Among other things, he recently spoke at the UIC General Meeting on the CO2 paradox, drawing on the example of Messer, which recovers CO2 from industrial emissions and valorizes it in numerous environmentally beneficial applications.

"The chemical industry accounts for 200,000 direct jobs in France, and 600,000 in total if indirect jobs are included. It generates 89 billion Euros in sales, 55 of which are exported. It is one of the few sectors in France to generate an export surplus. The chemical industry invested almost 4 billion Euros in 2012. It provides solutions that promote sustainable development. Energy is essential to its operation: on average, it accounts for 20 % of its cost price, and even more for the industrial gases sector. Obviously, competitive energy is essential to preserve our fine chemical industry in France. That's why I'm particularly committed to the debates on energy transition, which must be a lever for competitiveness and jobs," says Richard Perrayon.

At Messer France, Richard Perrayon has made a name for himself with initiatives such as the construction of the green CO2 capture unit at Lacq (investment of 12 million Euros) and the start-up of a new medical activity (7 million Euros). What's more, Richard Perrayon has stepped up his support for sustainable development in the precursor markets of sustainable mobility: sponsoring airships and various prototype vehicles powered by hydrogen or, more recently, nitrous oxide.