Reuters – Fertilizer maker Mosaic’s CEO, James O’Rourke, will step down from his position effective Dec. 31, ahead of his planned retirement next year, the company said Aug. 29.
Shares of the top U.S. phosphate maker fell 1.7 per cent in extended trading.
Bruce Bodine, Mosaic’s senior vice-president of North America, will take charge as the new CEO in January next year, the company added. Bodine has been part of Mosaic since its formation in 2004.
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O’Rourke has been at the helm of the company since 2015 and helped Mosaic cement its position as the leading phosphate maker through the acquisition of Vale SA’s fertilizer business.
O’Rourke will remain as a senior advisor with the company until his retirement in mid-2024.
Mosaic had previously missed second-quarter profit estimates due to falling fertilizer prices. In early August, reported that the company had seen a 37 per cent slip in revenue (down to US$3.39 billion) at the end of the quarter and that its price for phosphate was likewise down 36 per cent to $585 per tonne.
At the time, the company said it was expecting lower costs to buoy its third-quarter performance and also pointed to rising phosphate demand in North America and expected tight potash supplies globally.
The company also announced plans to re-open a potash mine in Colonsay, Sask., in August, which it said was to balance out production drops at another Saskatchewan plant.
