Gypsum industry news

India: Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers says it has received approval from the Kochi bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for a debt resolution plan for FACT-RCF, a joint-venture that it runs with Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore, according to the Business Standard newspaper. The plan reportedly includes debt restructuring, transfer of assets including a plant to an asset reconstruction company and the possibility of reopening the business through the inclusion of new investors.

FACT-RCF Building Products was set up to manufacture gypsum-based building materials as a by-product using raw material from Rashtriya Chemicals’ plant. However, the joint venture made a loss, defaulted on loans of around US$2.5m and the manufacturing unit was shut down in 2019.

India: Preparations are reported to be 'in full swing' towards the commissioning of a new fibre-glass-reinforced gypsum wallboard and building materials plant at Kochi by Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore and Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers, Mumbai.

Engineers from Rapid Building Systems, Australia, the technology provider for the project, have been in Kochi over the past month putting the finishing touches to the plant before commercial production begins later in 2011. A test run to produce the large building boards has been successful and further tests are being carried out at present.