CF Industries Holdings Inc. has announced the restructuring of operations responsibilities to improve the alignment of operations with the company’s strategic direction, effective March 31, 2009. As a result, David Pruett, who has served as senior vice president, operations, since 2005, will leave the company on that date.
Under the restructuring, W. Anthony Will, presently vice president, corporate development, will become vice president, manufacturing and distribution. Philipp Koch will remain vice president, supply chain. Both men will report to CF Chairman and CEO Stephen Wilson.
“We appreciate the contributions that Dave made to CF Industries as we made the transition from a cooperative to a public company. He has been instrumental in developing our proposed nitrogen complex in Perú while maintaining and improving the company’s excellent records in safety and productivity at its nitrogen, phosphate, and distribution operations. We wish him the best in his future endeavors. We’re confident that, under our realigned structure, Tony Will and Phil Koch, together with Bert Frost, vice president, sales and market development, will advance the company’s traditions of operational excellence and continuous improvement,” said Wilson.
CF intends to name Will’s successor as vice president, corporate development, in the near future.
CVR Energy Inc. reports that CFO Tim Rens will separate from the company no later than June 30, 2009, as a result of CVR’s decision to relocate the CFO position from Kansas City to Sugar Land, Texas. CVR is in the process of selecting a replacement. Rens will stay on as CFO until a successor is hired and will remain on in an advisory capacity to assure a smooth transition.
CVR’s office staff in Kansas City will remain largely in place, although the new CFO may choose to relocate certain staff members to Sugar Land in the future.
West Central, a farmer-owned cooperative headquartered in Ralston, Iowa, announced that it is expanding its focus on crop nutrients purchasing and merchandising with the hire of J. Paul Konrad as crop nutrient merchandising manager. Konrad will work to grow existing programs and develop new ones, with primary responsibilities focused on procurement, distribution, and inventory management of crop nutrients for the co-op. Konrad has more than 15 years of experience in the agronomy, crop nutrient, and crop protection fields, having previously worked for Agriliance, Winfield Solutions, and Farmland Industries, where he held management positions that included agronomy department manager, crop nutrients manager, and region director. “The volatility in crop nutrient prices and supply has created extraordinary challenges, as well as opportunities,” said Harry Ahrenholtz, vice president of agronomy for West Central. “Paul is a seasoned professional in the agronomy and crop nutrient fields, and brings solid experience to this position. We’re very pleased to welcome Paul to the West Central team.”