Gypsum industry news

Australia: Gavin Burton, the managing director of Knauf Australia, has denied speculation in the local press that the company was planning to sell its Bundaberg gypsum wallboard plant in Queensland. Burton told the Bundaberg NewsMail newspaper that the company was ‘very happy’ with its plant.

The response followed speculation in the Australian newspaper that Knauf might want to sell assets in the country in order to preserve a 50% stake in USG Boral’s business in Australia and New Zealand. Germany’s Knauf acquired USG in April 2019. In August 2019 Boral said it had entered into an agreement with Germany’s Knauf to form an expanded 50:50 plasterboard joint venture in Asia and for Boral to return to 100% ownership of USG Boral Australia & New Zealand. However, this was subject to regulatory approval.

Australia: US-based private equity company Lone Star Funds is considering acquiring Boral, according to the Australian newspaper. Lone Star Funds purchased building materials manufacturer Forterra from Heidelberg Cement. Boral later formed a joint venture with Forterra Brick in the US in 2016. In a separate deal Lone Star Funds later purchased German building materials producer Xella. Despite growing revenue from continuing operations, Boral’s net profit after tax fell by 7% year-on-year to US$301m in the year to 30 June 2019.

Australia: USG-Boral’s earnings have fallen due to a poor construction market in South Korea. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 6% year-on-year to US$170m in the financial year to 30 June 2019 from US$181m in the previous year. Its revenue grew by 2% to US$1.08bn from US$1.06bn. The joint venture said that, excluding South Korea, earnings were ‘steady’ as lower earnings from Indonesia, China and the Philippines were offset by increased contributions from Thailand, Vietnam and India, as well as a continued strong contribution from Australia.

The company also announced that Boral has entered into an agreement with Germany’s Knauf to form an expanded 50:50 plasterboard joint venture in Asia and for Boral to return to 100% ownership of USG Boral Australia & New Zealand. Completion of the deal is subject to regulatory approval. It follows the acquisition of USG by Germany’s Knauf in early 2019.

Australia/US: USG-Boral will resume 100% ownership of its Australia and New Zealand gypsum wallboard operations, subject to a call option for Knauf to buy back 50% within five years.

Boral CEO Michael Kane has commended Boral’s Sheetrock brand’s substantially strengthened position by comparison to that at the time of Knauf’s US$7bn acquisition of USG in April 2019, since which time Knauf has held 50% of USG-Boral’s gypsum wallboard business in Australia and New Zealand.

Boral will continue its joint operations with Knauf across Asia, at the centre of which are USG-Boral Asia’s purchase of Knauf Asian Plasterboard for US$533m, and its sale of its Middle Eastern ventures to Knauf for US$50m.

Australia: BGC Australia is considering selling its gypsum wallboard and fibre cement businesses. Roger Brynjulfsen, the general manager of BGC Plasterboard, told customers in a letter that the company's board of directors had brought forward plans for a possible sale of BGC Fibre Cement and BGC Plasterboard, with evaluations under way, according to the Business News newspaper. The company wants to sell both businesses as going concerns with the new owner to continue to supply plasterboard and fibre cement to BGC's existing customers. It is also considering selling parts of the business or changing its operating model.

BGC previously tried to sell its building materials subsidiaries in 2018. However, it deferred the sale in February2019 due to poor market conditions. It appointed a new chief executive officer (CEO), Daniel Cooper, in late June 2019.

Australia: Boral says that it may be ready to announce its plans with its USG Boral joint venture in August 2019. It is currently conducting due diligence on the joint venture’s operations in Asia following Knauf’s acquisition of USG in early 2019, according to the Australian newspaper. Forward options include established a new Asian joint-venture with Knauf or buying USG Boral’s gypsum wallboard business in Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and islands in the South West Pacific. However, Boral’s chief executive officer (CEO) Mike Kane said that there might not be enough time to arrange a deal by the publication of Boral’s full year results in August 2019.

US: Germany’s Knauf has completed its acquisition of USG. The company said that the purchase would create, “a global building materials industry leader that will be even better positioned to meet customers' needs by leveraging two highly complementary businesses, product portfolios and global footprints.”

"We greatly admire USG's strong brands, leading market positions in North American wallboard and ceilings, and highly talented employee base,” said Alexander Knauf, General Partner of Knauf. He added that the transaction was the largest acquisition in Knauf’s history.

Knauf agreed to buy USG in mid-2018 for US$7bn. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has approved the deal in late March 2019 subject to asset divestments relating to its Boral-USG joint venture.

Australia: Senex Energy has agreed a deal with CSR Gyprock to supply natural gas to its gypsum wallboard plant at Coopers Plains in Queensland. The agreement also covers gas supplies to CSR’s brick and insulation plants in the state. Under the initial three-year agreement, Senex will supply CSR Building Products, a subsidiary of CSR, with 0.65PJ/yr of gas, starting on 1 January 2020. CSR can extend the agreement by up to a further two years, taking the total contract quantity to 3.25PJ. Gas will be supplied at the Wallumbilla Gas Hub in Queensland at a fixed price in line with current market levels, indexed annually.

Australia: The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has approved Knauf’s acquisition of USG subject to asset divestments. The ACCC’s review focused on competition for the supply of wallboard, joint plaster compounds and treatments, metal profiles, fixed and modular suspended ceilings and insulation.

USG has a presence in Australia through its USG-Boral joint venture, which the ACCC says competes with Knauf and with Armstrong World Industries. The commission requires Knauf to divest USG’s interest in the joint venture, either entirely or just in Australasia, to a buyer approved by the ACCC. If divestiture of the joint venture interest is not achieved within a certain period, Knauf has agreed to divest certain other assets.

“The transactions raised some significant concerns as it would lead to Knauf owning a 50% in the joint venture, which is a significant competitor in several markets, including markets with limited alternatives for customers,” said ACCC Commissioner Roger Featherston.

Each acquisition is subject to review by different international competition agencies given the global nature of the Knauf’s acquisition of USG.

Australia: USG Boral’s earnings fell in the first half of its financial year due to a slowdown in South Korea. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped by 16% year-on-year to US$89.3m in the half-year to 31 December 2018 from US$107m in the same period in 2017. Its revenue grew by 2% to US$594m from US$583m. This was attributed to sales volumes growth in Australia, Indonesia, Vietnam and India.