Gypsum industry news

UAE: Mustafa Furnishing Industries, FZC, a manufacturer of carpet and wood furniture, has announced plans to open a gypsum wallboard plant in Sharjah Airport Free Zone (SAIF Zone). The US$6m project will be constructed over an area of 1000m².

Waseem Ahsan Chaudhary, Managing Director and owner of the group, said, "The construction of the new factory will begin within two months and production will commence by the end of 2015."

Uzbekistan: Knauf has launched a consulting centre at the Samarkand State Architecture and Construction Institute, named after Mirzo Ulugbek, on 4 September 2014 in Samarkand, Samarqand Province. This is Knauf's second consulting centre in Uzbekistan. The first was opened in June 2008 under Tashkent State Architecture and Construction Institute, which has proven its efficiency in training skilled builders.

The centre will provide training to all interested parties on the use of modern construction materials. The training programmes are designed for various groups, including individuals who repair their houses on their own as well as professionals. Each trainee will receive technical documentation, manuals and other literature. Dmitry Deripalko, director general of Knauf Gips Bukhara, underlined that the centre will assist young people and builders to receive theoretical and practical skills.
Knauf purchased 30.8% of state assets in Bukharagips for US$1.55m and invested US$6.3m over a three-year period. Knauf currently holds 98.98% stake in the enterprise, while employees and other shareholders hold 1.02%. The enterprise specialises in the production of dry gypsum mixtures and was founded in 1934. Bukharagips owns a gypsum mine with 45Mt of reserves with 90-100% calcium content, a lime mine with 7.8Mt of reserves and several other mines. Knauf launched production of dry gypsum mixtures in 2009 at the 60,000t capacity Bukharagips plant.

Indonesia: Vanguard Mining Corporation (VNMC) has declared that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to purchase an 80% equity interest in Yupolo Resources in exchange for a combination of cash and stock.

VNMC and Yupolo Resources will co-develop a 35km2 gypsum and limestone concession in Nusa Tenggara Timur, Indonesia. The mine is 4km from the newly-expanded Menanga Sea Port. The gypsum deposits at the concession are of high quality (purity of 85 - 95%) and estimated to be in excess of 30Mt, while the limestone deposits are about 400Mt.

The two companies plan to establish the concession in four stages: Stage 1 includes the gypsum and limestone mining to produce up to 2Mt/yr of gypsum and limestone by the second year of production. Products will be sold to local markets and exports, for which Yupolo Resources already has committed buyers. Stage 2 will consist of the construction of a 2.5Mt/yr capacity clinker plant. The clinker would be supplied to cement plants in the local region. Stage 3 involves the construction of a mini cement plant with 0.1Mt/yr of production capacity. Cement consumption in the surrounding areas is more than 3Mt/yr and has a double-digit growth rate. Stage 4 includes the construction of an integrated 1.2Mt/yr capacity cement plant.

Choky Simanjuntak, chairman and CEO of Yupolo Resources, said "We are pleased to cooperate with Vanguard Mining Corporation to develop this concession and are confident that our products will be able to meet part of the growing demand of gypsum, limestone, clinker and cement for the domestic, as well as the export markets."

Belgium: Etex has announced that from 1 January 2015, a new leader will take the helm. Fons Peeters, the current CEO of Etex, will retire at the end of 2014 after 41 years with Etex, the last four of which he was CEO. Paul Van Oyen, currently the head of the Promat Division, will take over his role.

"On behalf of the board of directors, I would like to thank Fons Peeters for his immense dedication during his long career at Etex," said chairman of the board, Jean-Louis de Cartier de Marchienne. "His exceptional guidance proved to be an important added value for our company and ought to be an inspiration to all of us, since he helped to shape Etex as we know it today."

On 1 January 2015 Paul Van Oyen will take up the position. Before joining Etex, he worked for several years as a researcher and technologist. His career at Etex spans 24 years, during which period he gained both expertise and experience in different regions and different divisions of the company. Business development manager and head of the Eastern European business are some of his past roles. He has been developing Promat, Etex's high-performance insulation and passive fire protection division, since 2011. Paul Van Oyen has been appointed until the end of 2021 with the mission of pursuing further Etex's ambitious long-term strategy, which focuses on both internal and external growth.

"In order to trigger organic growth, Etex will maintain its capital expenditure programme with yearly investments of about Euro200m," said Jean-Louis de Cartier de Marchienne. "At the same time, the group will further reduce its debt, aiming at a debt ratio below two, which should open up future growth possibilities. In light of these ambitious plans, the board of directors and Etex's 17,500 employees wish Paul Van Oyen every success in guiding Etex on a path of continuous growth."

Peru: Wallboard producer Eternit, which is owned by Etex, will inaugurate its 12,000Mm²/yr capacity wallboard plant under the Gyplac brand in Huarochiri, Peru, in March 2015. Investments in the new infrastructure have reached the US$33m. Eternit sees opportunities in the residential segment, while any excess production will be exported to Ecuador, Bolivia and Central America.

All Eternit operations will be concentrated in Huarochiri by 2019. Gyplac wallboard sales are expected to grow by 20%. Eternit company sales of more than US$210m are projected in Peru during 2014, 8% more than in 2013. Revenues are expected to double in the next five years. Other product lines could be incorporated from 2018 if operations prove to be successful. Eternit, which controls 45% of the Peruvian wallboard market, is introducing Equitone and Promat products as well.