Section: CRUFI News

The inclusion of several high-profile Russian business leaders on an EU sanctions list in March has led to round of high-level resignations from leading Russian fertilizer producers.

Ken Seitz has been named as Nutrien’s interim CEO following the resignation of the former CEO and president Mayo Schmidt on the 4th of January. Schmidt had only been in post for eight months, having taken over from Chuck Magro in April 2021. Mr Seitz was the company’s executive vice president and CEO of potash prior to the announcement. His appointment is a transitional arrangement.

CF Industries announced several interlinked board changes in mid-October. Current chair Stephen Furbacher is to retire at the company’s annual stockholders meeting in May next year. In a coordinated move, the board elected Stephen Hagge – currently an independent director of CF Industries – as Mr Furbacher’s successor with effect from the start of January 2022. The board also elected John Eaves, another independent director and the executive chairman of Arch Resources, as incoming chair of the company’s compensation and management development committee. He is taking over this role from the committee’s former chair Mr Hagge. This appointment also takes effect from the beginning of 2022.

The Sulphur Institute (TSI) has appointed Connor Dyck of Koch Sulfur as the chair of its board. The appointment was announced in August and follows TSI’s annual general meeting held in May.

The International Fertilizer Association (IFA) elected Svein Tore Holsether as its new chair on 14th June. He replaces Mostafa Terrab, the chairman and CEO of OCP Group. IFA said Holsether, who is the president and CEO of Yara International, would continue the fertilizer industry’s commitment to sustainability.

Mayo Schmidt , the former chair of Nutrien, became its president and CEO on 18th April. He succeeds Chuck Magro who is stepping down to pursue new opportunities outside the company. In a coordinated move, Nutrien also announced that Russ Girling , TC Energy’s former president and CEO, would replace Mr Schmidt as the new chair of its board. Mr Magro made himself available to Nutrien until 16th May to allow a smooth transition.

The Mosaic Company received the 2020 Robert W Campbell Award from the US National Safety Council in February. This prestigious award celebrates the company’s excellence in environment, health and safety (EHS) and its achievements over a decade of continuous improvement. During this period Mosaic’s commitment to EHS has delivered an 80 percent improvement in its recordable injury rate and led to the creation of its Risk Reduction Program.

Alexander Prygunkov became Uralchem’s new CEO on the 4th December. Mr Prygunkov, who was formerly PIK Group’s chief operating officer, will focus on the digital transformation of the company. He is also expected to strengthen Uralchem’s position in the chemicals and agricultural industries, and introduce a more modern approach to business management.

Alzbeta Klein will become the new director general (DG) of the International Fertilizer Association (IFA) on 11th January 2021. She succeeds Charlotte Hebebrand who resigned in May to become Nutrien’s chief sustainability officer and executive vice president (EVP) for stakeholder relations. Patrick Heffer is currently acting as IFA’s interim DG.

Nelson Silva was appointed to Nutrien’s board of directors in the second week of August. His appointment coincided with the retirement of David C Everitt from Nutrien’s board, where he has been a director since 2013.