Gypsum industry news

Bosnia & Herzegovina: China-based BNBM plans to build a 40Mm²/yr gypsum wallboard plant in a joint venture with Rudnik i Termoelektrana Ugljevik (RiTE Ugljevik). The new company will be called BNBM Eastern Europe and based at Ugljevik, where RiTE Ugljevik operates the coal-fired Ugljevik Power Plant. The project has an investment of Euro50m with BNBM contributing Euro45m towards the total. Construction is expected to take 18 months, although a start date is subject to the joint-venture meeting certain conditions to the satisfaction of its parent companies. RiTE Ugljevik is a subsidiary of the state-owned power company Elektroprivreda.

Spain: Knauf has received a 30 year extension to its quarrying permit supporting its Escuzar wallboard plant in Granada. The company also plans to increase production capacity at the unit, according to Europa Press. The plant was established in 2008 and it has a capacity of 50Mm²/yr.

Tunisia: Elizabeth Knauf has expressed Knauf’s interest in growing its production capacity for the local market and export. The group president of the board of directors met with Prime Minister Najla Bouden in mid-January 2022, according to the Agence Tunis Afrique Presse. Bouden praised the success of Knauf Tunisia’s training centres at Tataouine and Meknassy (Sidi Bouzid). The group acquired Plâtres Tunisiens in 2004 and operates a plaster plant at Meknassy.

Turkmenistan: The government has announced plans for the construction of a 50,000t/yr calcite plant at Koytendag in Lebap region. Orient News has reported that calcite from the plant will supply regional gypsum wallboard production, which was 4Mm2 in 2021.

US: Saint-Gobain has agreed to buy construction chemicals producer GCP Applied Technologies. Reuters News has reported that the move continues Saint-Gobain’s industrial diversification, as it also seeks to maximise its growth opportunities from the US’s on-going infrastructure overhaul. Saint-Gobain expects to conclude the deal by 2023 and will finance the acquisition through cash on its balance sheet.

Chief executive officer Benoit Bazin said “After the successful acquisition of Chryso, GCP is the logical next step to expand Saint-Gobain's presence in admixtures and additives, which provide key solutions to de-carbonise the construction industry.” He added “This acquisition is a decisive step in establishing Saint-Gobain's leading position worldwide in construction chemicals, with total sales of more than US$4.51bn [combined], up from US$3.39bn.”

Australia: Cohiba Minerals has received notification that it has successfully secured a 5-year extension of its exploration licence for its Pyramid Lake gypsum mine in south-western Western Australia. The new lease will expire on 4 July 2026.

The company says that it has recommenced its application for a mining lease for the high-grade area of the Pyramid Lake mine, which is not covered by its present lease. It says that it had previously delayed the process due to a change in its application conditions.

Cohiba Minerals previously announced the planned expansion in December 2020 as part of a countrywide expansion of its extraction activities, towards which it was raising US$1.5m through a share purchase plan.

US: The government of DeSoto County in Mississippi has approved new rules banning the establishment of new phosphogypsum stacks in the county. The Port North Sun newspaper has reported that county commissioners unanimously approved the ordinance at a meeting on 26 October 2021.

Phosphate and potash producer Mosaic owns 9310ha of the county’s land area, of which it is seeking mining licences to cover 5670ha.

Commissioner Elton Langford described the ban as ‘preventative.’ According to the county’s Public Information Office, there were no pending gypsum stack licence applications in DeSoto County on 26 October 2021.

US: American Gypsum has received a licence from the Eagle County Board of Commissioners for the expansion of its 336ha Eagle County opencast gypsum mine near Gypsum, Colorado by 12% to 376ha. The Vail Daily newspaper has reported that the expansion will secure the company’s nearby gypsum wallboard plant’s raw material supply until 2046.

Plant manager Chuck Zaruba said “As the state continues to grow, we are an essential product for that to occur.” He added that the producer’s local operations provide more than 100 year-round jobs.

New Zealand: The New Zealand government has announced the lifting of Level 4 lockdown outside of Auckland. Radio New Zealand News has reported that this will enable construction to resume. Inside Auckland, gypsum wallboard is among four ‘critical products’ that the government has allowed to resume production.

The Building Industry Federation (BIF) said that the government had listened to suppliers' concerns.

US: The Economic Development Department of the state of New Mexico has granted American Gypsum US$0.5m-worth of funding for an upgrade to its Albuquerque gypsum wallboard plant in Bernalillo County. The grant will facilitate equipment and infrastructure modernisation. The department says that the producer will invest US$22m in the state between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2022. It employs 140 locals including Pueblo Indian people, in whose lands its gypsum mine is situated.

State Governor Lujan Grisham said "This investment means New Mexico jobs will stay in New Mexico. I'm glad the state could partner with American Gypsum and ensure long-term viability of their operations, and stabilise a New Mexico employer."