Yara Clean Ammonia appoints new CEO to spearhead ‘rapidly growing’ business

Oslo-headquartered Yara Clean Ammonia, a decarbonization-focused subsidiary of global ammonia producer Yara International, has appointed a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to lead the company through the “rapidly growing” clean ammonia business.

Hans Olav Raen, who served as Business Director and Head of OCI’s fertilizers business in Europe, has been named the new CEO, effective May 1, 2024.

As the new CEO, Raen brings more than 25 years of experience in the fertilizers industry to the Norwegian company, including 12 years with Norsk Hydro and Yara International (between 1997 and 2009), where he held commercial and managerial roles in Europe and Africa.

Magnus Krogh Ankarstrand, EVP Corporate Development at Yara International, said: “We are pleased to announce that Hans Olav will be heading Yara Clean Ammonia. Together with the strong YCA-team, I am confident that Hans Olav will support and lead the company to the next level, spearheading the rapidly growing clean ammonia business.”

Ankarstrand will continue as Chairman of the Yara Clean Ammonia Board.

Yara Clean Ammonia was established as a separate segment and business unit in February 2021 to focus on capturing growth opportunities in low-emission fuel for shipping, power generation, carbon-free food production, and ammonia for industrial applications.

The company operates what is said to be the largest global ammonia network with 15 ships and has, through Yara, access to 18 ammonia terminals and multiple ammonia production and consumption sites across the world.

Last month, Yara Clean Ammonia, together with its project partners Azane and Fjord Base, secured approval from the Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB) for the construction of an ammonia bunkering facility at Fjord Base in Florø.

The planned terminal consists of a floating stationary barge with a capacity of 1,000 cubic meters, or 650 tons, of low-emission ammonia, and the permit allows for up to 416 operations annually, many of these expected to be bunkering operations for offshore supply vessels that regularly call at Fjord Base in Florø.

The Norwegian company is also a developer and soon-to-be owner of Yara Eyde, also known as the world’s first ammonia-powered containership.

The 1,400 TEU ice-class containership will be built at Qingdao Yangfan Shipbuilding in China. The vessel will be owned by Delphis, the container division of CMB.TECH, and operated by NCL Oslofjord AS, a joint venture (JV) between North Sea Container Line and Yara Clean Ammonia.

The commercial operations will be managed by NCL’s existing set-up while Yara Clean Ammonia will deliver ammonia fuel to the vessel.

Expected to be delivered by mid-2026, Yara Eyde will serve routes between Norway and Germany.