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Itera to supply compressed natural gas to Knauf
Written by Global Gypsum staff
07 July 2015
Russia: According to Interfax, Bratskekogaz, which is controlled by Rosneft subsidiary Itera, has concluded a contract to supply Knauf Gips Baikal with compressed natural gas from the Bratskoye field in Irkutsk.
Bratskekogaz has signed agreements to supply compressed natural gas to Knauf Gips Baikal, which has a current demand of 25Mm3/yr. The implementation period is 2016 – 2017. It was reported previously that Knauf CIS was in talks with Itera to supply compressed natural gas to Knauf Gips Baikal to reduce production costs. Knauf Gips Baikal currently operates on liquefied gas delivered from Krasnoyarsk, Tyumen and Omsk, which is 260% more expensive than natural gas delivered by pipeline. This has made it difficult to compete with imported gypsum wallboard and dry construction mixes from China and South Korea.
Knauf will invest US$1.5m in the project to switch to compressed natural gas. The money will be used to build a gas acceptance facility and rebuild the burners and pipelines. The supplier is responsible for building the compressor station and supplying the compressed natural gas tankers for transportation.
Siniat Romania completes Euro50m gypsum wallboard plant
Written by Global Gypsum staff
02 July 2015
Romania: According to News website ZF English, Siniat Romania, part of Belgium's Etex Group, has completed the construction of its Euro50m, greenfield wallboard plant in the southern city of Turceni.
USG makes USG Sheetrock Brand UltraLight Panels Firecode X available nationwide in USA
Written by Global Gypsum staff
01 July 2015
US: USG has announced nationwide availability of what the company calls, 'The lightest Type X wallboard,' USG Sheetrock Brand UltraLight Panels Firecode X. Depending on geography, the panel is available in one of two Underwriters Laboratories Inc (UL) type designations (type ULIX and type ULX).
The panels are a lightweight type X gypsum panel designed for commercial and residential construction. Both UL type designations of USG Sheetrock Brand UltraLight Panels Firecode X are formulated to achieve the strength and performance characteristics as standard 15.9mm (5/8") USG Sheetrock Brand Firecode Gypsum Panels. "The lighter weight means transportation efficiencies, productivity gains, reduced fatigue during handling and possible safety benefits," said USG's press release.
"USG is the only manufacturer to offer a full portfolio of lightweight products," said Dan Schmidt, director of product management wallboard at USG. "The new UL type ULIX panel was developed using a proprietary formulation. The primary difference between the ULIX and ULX panels is that the ULIX board requires the use of insulation in the cavity on one-hour fire-rated steel-framed assemblies, which is an industry best practice designed to meet thermal and acoustical performance requirements."
UL Type ULIX panels are available in the West North Central, Mountain and Pacific regions.
UL Type ULX panels are available in New England, the Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic and East Central regions.
Duke Energy calls for excavation and reburial at 12 more coal-ash ponds
Written by Global Gypsum staff
24 June 2015
US: According to Charlotte Business Journal, Duke Energy has proposed excavating 12 more of its 36 coal ash ponds in North and South Carolina and burying the waste in a fully-lined landfills or structural fill projects.
To date, Duke has proposed closure plans for 24 of the 36 ash ponds. In every case, it has proposed excavation and reburial. However, Garry Miller, head of closure engineering for Duke, said that might not be the case for the remaining 12 ponds. He said that the engineering work that remains to be done at those plants could yet show that a 'cap in place' process, which critics have said would be insufficient to protect against further contamination of groundwater, can effectively close them.
Miller said that none of the waste ash from Duke's 36 ash ponds would undergo beneficial reuse, the process of using the ash for commercial products such as a replacement for Portland cement in concrete and gypsum board. However, he added that Duke does send a portion of the dry ash it is currently producing at its largest plants for reuse. However, the time constraints imposed by North Carolina's Coal Ash Management Act of 2014 make it impossible for the existing ash ponds. "As we close these basins, the quantity in them is such that the market cannot handle it in a timely manner," said Miller.
Duke's current cost estimate for closing the ponds is US$3.4bn, although this is subject to revision.
Etex appoints Caroline Thijssen, Guillaume Voortman and Paul Van Oyen to board of directors
Written by Global Gypsum staff
23 June 2015
Belgium: Etex has announced the addition of Caroline Thijssen, Guillaume Voortman and its CEO Paul Van Oyen to its Board of Directors. In addition, Marc Nolet de Brauwere, Amaury Pelgrims de Bigard and Philium bvba, represented by Philippe Coens, have left the board.
Caroline Thijssen is Head of Talent Banking and Management Dynamics at BNP Paribas Fortis. She gained a Master's degree in Economics and Management at the UCL, Université catholique de Louvain. She started her career in the financial world at BNP Paribas Fortis, with a two-year international management traineeship. Then, she fulfilled the roles of Deputy Branch Manager, Branch Manager and Group Branch Manager, before joining the HR department. She became a member of Etex's Board of Directors on 27 May 2015.
Guillaume Voortman is Head of Finance and Administration at Tropicore — a trading company for tropical commodities, such as rubber. He holds a Master's degree in Applied Economics and Management, which he obtained at the Facultés Universitaires Saint-Louis in Brussels and the UCL. He also gained an Advanced Master's degree in Financial Economics at the KU Leuven University. He began his career as equity trader at ING Bank Belgium. Afterwards, he moved to ING Bank Netherlands as Associate Relationship Manager, before joining Tropicore. He entered Etex's Board of Directors on 27 May 2015.
Paul Van Oyen has been attending the Board meetings since he was appointed CEO of Etex on 1 January 2015. On 27 May, he became a member of the Board in the role of Managing Director.