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Heather Remley

BASF Corporation has appointed Heather Remley as its new president and chief executive officer, effective April 1, 2025. She takes the helm of the North American arm of BASF SE, one of the world’s largest chemical companies. Remley has a background in global leadership and operations. Most recently, she was president of BASF’s global engineering services division in Ludwigshafen, Germany. Before that, she led the company’s North American petrochemicals business as senior vice president in Houston. Since joining BASF in 2016, she has held key positions across the US, China, and Germany.

Prior to her tenure with the company, Remley spent nearly 20 years at Air Products & Chemicals Inc., holding executive roles in industrial gases and global engineering across the U.S. and Asia. Her career has included oversight of commercial operations, manufacturing, and engineering in multiple markets.

“Heather’s industry expertise and leadership make her the right person to drive our U.S. business forward,” said Anup Kothari, a member of BASF SE’s board of executive directors responsible for North America. “She will play a critical role in strengthening our market position while advancing the company’s global strategy.”

Magnus Krogh Ankarstrand has been appointed executive vice president and Chief Financial Officer at Yara. Ankarstrand has been a member of Yara’s Group Executive Board since 2023 as EVP Corporate Development. He has previously held positions as CEO Yara Clean Ammonia, SVP Yara North America, CFO of the Industrial segment and Director of Strategy & Business Development in Yara. Thor Giæver has been appointed as acting EVP Corporate Strategy & Business Development until August and will thereafter serve as SVP Strategic Advisor to the CEO. Giæver has served as Yara CFO since 2021.

In other changes at Yara, Fernanda Lopes Larsen has been named as EVP Corporate Development. Lopes Larsen has been a member of Yara’s Group Executive Board since 2020 in the position of EVP Africa & Asia. Lopes Larsen has held several other senior positions since she joined Yara in 2012. The process to identify Lopes Larsen´s successor as EVP Africa & Asia has been initiated, and during a transition phase Lopes Larsen will retain this responsibility until August 2025. Hanna Opsahl-Ben Ammar has been appointed EVP People & External Affairs, Chief of staff. Opsahl-Ben Ammar joined Yara in 2021, and comes from the role as VP CEO Office, working closely with the CEO on corporate affairs, strategic positioning, partnerships and as Company Secretary. Finally, Solveig Hellebust, EVP & Chief HR Officer has decided to leave Yara to pursue opportunities outside the company.

“I want to thank Hellebust for her significant effort during a time of volatility and rapid change,” said Holsether. “Amidst a volatile business environment, delivering on the strategy with a sharpened focus is our main priority. I am pleased to strengthen the Group Executive Board with Opsahl-Ben Ammar and making use of the extensive experience held by Lopes Larsen and Ankarstrand in new roles that are key to strategy execution.”

Joy Archer has been confirmed as CRU’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) from 1 April 2025. Having joined CRU in 2020, Joy has successfully overseen multiple areas at CRU such as Finance, Enterprise Systems and Programme Management (PGMO) teams. Since October 2024 Joy has taken the full remit of global finance, PGMO and customer care functions for the business, working successfully with members of the board and executive committee to drive the company’s financial strategy and in particular to partner with the business to achieve this through the newly created Business Partnering Team.