About

Incitec Pivot is a manufacturer and distributor of industrial explosives, chemicals and fertilisers. With operations on five continents, including seven ammonia plants and seven initiating systems plants it is the largest supplier of fertilisers in Australia and the largest supplier of explosives products and services in North America. The Australian legal team is comprised of five lawyers plus one legal secretary with group general counsel Tamara Kayser who leads the function. When Incitec Pivot took over management and operation of its US ammonia plant in Louisiana, the legal team was involved in all facets of the project which saw the transition from its origins as a fertiliser co-operative in eastern Australia to a global diversified industrial chemicals company. As part of the project it advised on a substantial delay liquidated damages claim under the construction contract resulting in $35m USD being included in the company’s 2017 financial reports. In the last 12 months, the team has also been advising the business across multiple jurisdictions with respect to a number of significant regulatory investigations in Australia, the United States and Turkey. The team was also praised for its role in providing advice to the company’s Crisis Management Team when a train containing 26 wagons and carrying 800,000 litres of sulphuric acid belonging to the company derailed on the only rail line between Townsville and Mount Isa. ‘These roles required the exercise of judgment, particularly in the making of time-sensitive decisions, to manage the balance between legal, safety, environmental, reputational and commercial facets of the incident’, according to Kayser. Incitec Pivot announced its entry into a long term gas supply agreement for its Phosphate Hill fertiliser manufacturing plant in North West Queensland in 2015, and the legal team played a central role in the agreement with a Northern Territory Government owned corporation as part of the Northern Gas Pipeline project which is expected to result in a reduction of gas costs for IP by approximately $55m AUD per year. Other notable members of the talented legal team include senior legal counsel, Loretta O’Hanlon who has been a strong advocate for legal team members embedding in the business and ‘is regarded as commercial and pragmatic in her approach to dealing with complex issues and also recognised for her ability to influence at all levels of the organisation’. Also highlighted is senior legal counsel Jason Pavy who ‘is able to bring a unique perspective to key business decisions above and beyond the traditional role of a lawyer as a trusted legal advisor’. Kayser also highlighted corporate counsels Tatiana Rudometova and Caroline Tait for their contribution in delivering expert legal advice. With such a track record and expertise it is no wonder that Incitec Pivot’s CEO James Fazzino claims the legal team ‘is critical to the success of the group, ensuring our licence to operate is maintained through compliance with laws in a highly regulated environment as well as playing a further vital role in managing our corporate reputation’.