Gypsum industry news

US: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will be receiving public comment until 6 Feb 2020 on Eagle Materials' proposed 100 acre expansion of its 830 acre mine near Gypsum in Eagle County, Colorado. The mine supplies gypsum to its 67Mm2-capacity Eagle Materials gypsum wallboard plant in gypsum. BLM Colorado River Valley field manager Larry Sandoval said, “Responsible mineral development is part of BLM’s multiple-use mission,” according to RealVail newspaper.

US: A shareholder in Continental Building Products is taking legal action against the company over its acquisition by France’s Saint-Gobain on 14 October 2019. The claimant alleges that company withheld necessary information from shareholders prior to the transaction, in violation of Securities and Exchange Commission regulations.

US: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for US Gypsum’s proposed upgrades to its Split Mountain quarry near Plaster City. Imperial Valley Press has reported that the FSEIS will provide the basis for the BLM’s decision as to how much if any of the proposed US$110m’s-worth upgrade to grant clearance to proceed with. US Gypsum’s plans consist of a new water line and associated buried electrical lines between the quarry and its Plaster City plant and a water line between the plant and the Imperial Irrigation District's Westside Main Canal.

France: Saint-Gobain has entered an agreement with US-based Continental for the acquisition of the latter’s Building Products section at an estimated value of Euro1.4bn. Saint-Gobain stated that the North American plasterboard producer has ‘strong geographic complementary’ with its existing operations in the continent, with a possible gain of Euro45.3m in cost synergies and performance improvements. It also noted Continental Building Products’ good positioning in its Eastern and South-Eastern United States growth regions and strong profitability.

US: Eagle Materials has reported financial results for the second quarter of its 2020 fiscal year, a period that ended on 30 September 2019. Its overall revenue was US$414.5m for the period, a 9% year-on-year improvement.

Gypsum wallboard and paperboard revenue declined slightly from the prior year, as improved sales volume was offset by lower pricing. Gypsum Wallboard sales volume reached 63.3Mm3 (681Mft2), a rise of around 8% year-on-year, while the average Gypsum Wallboard net sales price declined by 10% to US$13.78Mm2 (US$148.16/Mft2).
Paperboard sales volume for the quarter also increased, up by 9% to a record 86,000t. The average paperboard net sales price was US$475.98/t, down by 6% from the prior year, consistent with the pricing provisions in our long-term sales agreements.
Operating earnings were US$48.6m in the sector, a decline of 11%, reflecting improved wallboard and paperboard sales volume offset by lower net sales prices. Operating costs during the quarter declined primarily due to lower recycled fibre costs.

India: US-based moisture measurement specialist MoistTech has deployed a manager and technical staff to India to liaise directly with its customers there. The new branch will take up all customer support functions previously enacted by Earthtekniks.

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.

US: The American Coal Ash Association (ACAA) has criticised a proposed revision of coal ash regulations by the Environmental Protection Agency because it will restrict the recycling of coal ash.

"EPA's proposals related to the definition of coal ash beneficial use are the opposite of a regulatory roll-back," said Thomas H Adams, ACAA Executive Director ahead of a hearing with the EPA. "Without any damage cases or scientific analysis to justify its actions, the agency is seeking to impose burdensome new restrictions that will cause millions more tons of material to be disposed rather than be used in ways that safely conserve natural resources and energy."

Adams and the ACCA argue that previous EPA rules concluded that beneficial use of coal ash should be exempt from regulation and encouraged to contribute to sustainability. However, the ACCA has taken exception with a 2015 definition of beneficial use, which was intended to prevent ‘disposal activities masquerading as beneficial use.’ By expanding the scope of this definition the ACCA says that more coal ash will be landfilled instead of being recycled.

Coal is the fuel source for approximately one-third of electricity generation in the US and produces large volumes of solid coal combustion products - primarily ash and synthetic gypsum from emissions control devices. This family of diverse products is referred to as coal combustion residuals in a disposal setting and is often generically referred to as ‘coal ash.’

According to ACAA's most recent ‘Production and Use Survey,’ 64.4% of the coal ash produced during 2017 was recycled. By volume, 71.8Mt of coal combustion products were beneficially used in 2017 out of 111Mt that were produced. Coal ash production volume increased by 4% year-on-year from 2016.

US: Munson has launched a ribbon blender for the homogenisation of dry bulk solids, including gypsum plaster. The unit, which can also blend solids with liquids from its spray lines to pastes or slurries, has a volume of 2.4m³. The company reports that its novel bag dump, which draws dust into filter cartridges by intermittent blasts from a number of nozzles, will improve worker safety and plant hygiene.

US: National Gypsum’s Shippingport wallboard plant in Pennsylvania and its Anniston paper plant in Alabama have both won the Lloyd H Yeager Award for working 1 million hours or more worked without a lost time accident (LTA). The Shippingport plant reached 2 million hours without a LTA. The award is organised by the Gypsum Association (GA) and 13 plants have been recognised on this occasion. The Anniston paper plant makes face paper for National Gypsum’s wallboard products including the distinctive purple paper used in the company’s Purple product line.

“Under Lloyd H Yeager’s leadership, the GA ran a robust safety training program for the gypsum industry and was very successful in emphasising the importance of workplace safety among GA member companies,” said Stephen H Meima, executive director of the GA.