India: Pierre-Andre de Chalendar, chairman and chief executive officer of Saint-Gobain, has inaugurated the company’s Jhagadia 30Mm² gypsum wallboard plant in Gujarat. The plant is the largest wallboard plant in the country. Saint-Gobain’s local subsidiary, Gyproc, operates three other plants in Haryana, Maharashtra and Karnataka.

Uzbekistan: Knauf Gips Bukhara has suspended production of gypsum wallboard at its plant in Bukhara until 1 March 2018 while it builds a new production line. The upgrade is planned to increase the unit’s production capacity by 30%. It was originally scheduled for completion in 2017. Knauf has spent Euro40m on the project.

Canada: The British Columbia government has granted an environmental assessment certificate for a 0.4Mt/yr opencast gypsum mine in West Kootenay proposed by CertainTeed Gypsum Canada. Construction of the project is expected to cost US$19m, according to the Canadian Press. Gypsum from the mine will be used to manufacture gypsum wallboard, cement and plaster products.

Spain: Etex has become the sole shareholder of Pladur following the completion of a deal to buy all the remaining shares from Coemac. The deal was first announced in July 2017 and following customary closing conditions it closed on 22 December 2017. Pladur operates one gypsum wallboard plant near Madrid and it has been building a second plant at Gelsa that was due to open in mid-2017.