Glenn Stroud has been appointed to the new position of general manager of Agrium U.S. manufacturing, assuming overall responsibility for Agrium’s U.S. nitrogen and phosphate operations. Stroud will remain based at Borger, Texas, and continue to report directly to Stephen Dyer, Agrium’s vice president of manufacturing, who announced Stroud’s promotion May 21.
Dyer also announced that Erik Vettergren has accepted the position of plant manager of Agrium’s Conda Phosphate Operations near Soda Springs, Idaho, overseeing processing operations at that phosphate fertilizer plant. Lin Kramer will continue to manage Conda mining operations and, like Vettergren, will report directly to Stroud.
Stroud has held numerous leadership positions within Agrium the past eight years, including general manager, U.S. Nitrogen; production manager, Conda Phosphate; and production manager, Kennewick, Wash., Nitrogen Operations. A Montana State University graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering, Stroud has more than 20 years of experience in the fertilizer and chemicals industry, including a wide spectrum of engineering, operations and maintenance responsibilities. Prior to joining Agrium in 2000, he held a number of leadership positions with the Unocal Corp.
It also was announced that Charles Ross, who managed Conda Phosphate Operations for a number of years, has been named start-up manager of Agrium’s $1.2 billion nitrogen complex in Damietta, Egypt, which will have a combined capacity of 1.3 million mt of urea and 100,000 mt of net ammonia after it is completed in 2010.
Agrium will have a 60 percent interest in the EAgrium venture and be the exclusive marketer of its exported nitrogen products. EChem and EGas, which are owned by the Egyptian government, will hold a 24 percent interest. GASCO, the national operator of a gas distribution grid, will hold a 9 percent interest, and the Arab Petroleum Investment Corporation will hold a 7 percent interest.
The 2008 IFA International Crop Nutrition Award last week was presented to Dr. Achim Dobermann, Deputy Director General for Research of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), for promoting the ecological intensification of rice, maize, and soybean production systems in many countries. IFA noted that given the current food situation, Dr. Dobermann’s work on rice, a staple food for about two-thirds of the global population, is particularly relevant.
The International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI) said May 17 that Incitec Pivot of Australia is joining the group as a full member. IPNI, which was launched in January 2007, has as its mission to develop and promote scientific information about the responsible management of plant nutrients. Julian Segal, Incitec Pivot managing director and CEO, and James Whiteside, general manager, supply chain and trading, will join the IPNI board of directors.