Gypsum industry news

India: The state government of Karnataka has approved the allotment of 6 hectares of land to Everest Industries. Reuters News has reported that the company is considering building a Rapicon reinforced aerated concrete and gypsum wallboard sandwich panel plant at the site.

Earlier this month the German Gypsum Association (GIPS) gave its approval for an inventory of natural gypsum deposits in Germany that was presented at the Conference of Economics Ministers that took place in early July 2022. The Federal Commission on Geosciences (BLA-GEO) had previously been given the job of taking an inventory of deposits and this was then put in front of the policy makers. The association’s stance was all about securing future supplies. In its view there will be no large-scale alternatives to natural gypsum supplies in the foreseeable future due to low recycling rates and falling production of flue gas desulfurisation (FGD) gypsum as coal power plants are shut down. So a list of where natural gypsum might be found is the start of conversations about which ones might be mined. Readers who are interested can download the inventory of German gypsum deposits here.

Security of supply of raw materials has been in the air since the end of the coronavirus lockdowns started to cause supply chain disruption around the world and the Russian invasion of Ukraine further exacerbated this and rocked energy markets. Part of the reaction to this new reality could be seen in a conference that the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) and the German Resource Research Institute (GERRI) ran, also in early July 2022. The state of German gypsum supplies was presented at this event too. The BGR-GERRI conference came up with a ten-point plan to strengthen the supply of raw material. Some of these recommendations were to grow domestic raw material extraction, expand recycling and the circular economy and keep supply chains closer internationally, ideally within Germany and Europe.

A focus on gypsum supplies isn’t restricted to Germany though. The issue arose in late July 2022 during an earnings call for US-based Eagle Materials’ first quarter results. These kinds of questions from analysts about supply of raw materials are common for a public company but it reinforces the general declining trend around the world of synthetic gypsum supplies. Craig Kessler, the chief financial officer of Eagle Materials, mentioned that a scarcity of synthetic gypsum might be creating cost pressures for other gypsum wallboard producers. Although he was quick to describe his company as a “natural gas or natural gypsum oriented business.” The wider picture in the US is that the ratio of natural to synthetic gypsum production has grown over the last decade. United States Geological Survey (USGS) data shows that it was 37% / 49% in 2011 compared to 53% / 32% in 2021, with the remainder imported in each year.

One more point to make here is that many of the new gypsum wallboard plant projects announced in the over the last few months have involved recycling in one form or another. For example, Siniat’s forthcoming wallboard plant in Bristol in the UK aims to achieve 30% post-consumer gypsum recycling. CertainTeed’s current upgrade plans for its Palatka plant in Florida are also recycling-based. Similarly, the subsidiary of Saint-Gobain also completed an upgrade in June 2022 to allow more recycling at its Nashville plant in Arkansas.

Finally, some of the thinking in Germany and elsewhere has been influenced by the current geopolitical situation in Ukraine. However, one potential consequence of prolonged disruption to European energy markets could be a delay to the decline of coal power plants as plant lifespans are elongated or even new ones built. This in turn could mean more synthetic gypsum supplies in Europe in the short to medium term. How all of this plays out in the placement of new gypsum wallboard plants in Europe over the next few years will be interesting to observe.

US: CertainTeed plans to spend US$1.1m towards installing recycling equipment at its Palatka gypsum wallboard plant in Florida. The upgrade will increasing the recycled content of its wallboard products manufactured at the unit by 18,000t/yr while also reducing the site’s CO₂ emissions by 2260t/yr.

The new recycling equipment at the Palatka plant will work by grinding the waste gypsum and waste paper down into fine particles, allowing the plant to capture and internally recycle the materials, which are sorted and then reintroduced to the production process at the plant. The kit will be powered by electricity and will replace older machines currently powered by diesel, lowering the plant’s Scope 1 Emissions from its operations. Additionally, by consuming more recycled gypsum, the plant will become less reliant on feedstock that is shipped to the site from external sources, allowing the unit to also reduce Scope 3 Emissions associated with transporting the feedstock.

Jay Bachmann, the Vice President and General Manager of CertainTeed Interior Products Group, said, “The new technology in Palatka will allow us to increase the recycled content in our products, reduce our carbon CO₂ at the plant, and strengthen our operations at a time of unprecedented consumer demand for gypsum wallboard in the south-eastern US.”

The investment at the Palatka plant follows similar investments that will increase the recycled content of wallboard made at CertainTeed’s wallboard plants in Silver Grove in Kentucky and Nashville in Arkansas. Parent company Saint-Gobain continues to roll out its global ‘Grow and Impact’ strategy, which includes reducing waste and increasing recycling efforts at its manufacturing sites.

New Zealand: Winstone Wallboards says that the allocation model it introduced in July 2022 and other measures it has taken are starting to ease a shortage in gypsum wallboard. The company’s general manger David Thomas said that by operating both of its wallboard plants continuously and an upgrade to its Auckland plant in July 2022 had increased its production capacity. It has also been able to resume importing wallboard from Australia. The company is currently despatching around 3.25Mm²/month of gypsum wallboard.

The company said that is going to reduce merchant lead time between order placement and delivery from October 2022 in order to improve the effectiveness of its allocation system. It hopes that doing this will provide more flexibility along the supply chain for end-users to secure product when it is needed for installation. It also asked tradespeople to continue communicating with merchants about requirements and timings in order for the wallboard producer to understand real demand levels.

Thomas said, “The team and I recognise the responsibility Winstone Wallboards has in supplying plasterboard to the New Zealand market and want to assure you we are committed to living up to that responsibility. That we have retained such a role is not just an outcome of what we do but, a result of the high level of support the market has provided us over decades.”

New Zealand: Fletcher Building Materials recorded consolidated sales of US$5.37bn during its 2022 financial year, up by 4.7% year-on-year from US$5.13bn in the previous year. Its net earnings also rose by 42%, to US$273m from US$193m.

The group's building materials division, which includes Winstone Wallboards, contributed US$1.02bn-worth (17%) of group sales. The business delivered 'strong' volumes, with pricing initiatives effectively offsetting cost inflation. The latter particularly impacted imports of raw materials. The business made capital expenditure investments of US$129m, of which US$98.4m went towards the construction of Winstone Wallboards' upcoming Tauriko gypsum wallboard plant in the Bay of Plenty region. The plant's commissioning in 2023 will increase the company's production capacity by 30% and reduce its CO₂ emissions and waste generation.

Fletcher Building Materials chief executive officer Ross Taylor said "The 2022 financial year has not been without its challenges. Global and national supply chain disruptions have continued into the third year of the Covid-19 pandemic. In New Zealand, surging plasterboard orders following the first quarter lockdown outstripped our ability to supply, despite our manufacturing facilities running at record levels. In recognition of our key role as a local manufacturer in keeping the market supplied, we carried out a range of measures to address the shortage including operating production lines 24/7, running down inventory, importing additional product, and establishing an emergency supply pool." Taylor added "The New Zealand Commerce Commission recently published its interim market study report into residential building supplies. The final report and recommendations will be published in December 2022 and in the meantime we will continue to work collaboratively with both the commission and the government."

UK: Etex subsidiary Siniat says that its upcoming second gypsum wallboard plant at its Bristol site will help it to achieve 30% post-consumer gypsum recycling in its UK wallboard production by 2025. The new plant is scheduled for commissioning in 2023. The producer secured its supply of recycled gypsum from local waste management subsidiary Crucible Gypsum Recycling in 2020. The plant will also supply some of its water consumption from rainwater harvesting on-site. Electric charging stations will eventually support a 100% electric forklift fleet at the site.

Siniat will also invest Euro11,900 towards cycle and pedestrian paths to improve access to the Bristol site.

Canada: USG subsidiary CGC plans to build a US$160m gypsum wallboard plant in Wheatland County, near Calgary in Alberta. The Government of Alberta and Invest Alberta Corporation will support the project with around US$3m from the Investment and Growth Fund. It is also set to benefit from local tax benefits. The new unit is expected to create over 100 new jobs once it is operational. Plant construction is scheduled to begin in 2023.

“Our customers in Western Canada have said they want a more efficient way to access our CGC wallboard products they’ve been buying for over 100 years. Shipping our products from Eastern Canadian or American manufacturing plants no longer meets their growing demand,” said Chris Griffin, President and chief executive officer of USG Corporation.

The proposed plant’s kiln will be powered using gas. Renewable electricity will be provided by an onsite solar power farm. The unit will also be the company’s first plant in Canada built with the technology to manufacture USG Sheetrock Brand EcoSmart Panels.

US-based USG became a subsidiary of Germany-based Knauf in 2019.

Uzbekistan: Germany-based Knauf has launched a new 17Mm²/yr gypsum wallboard plant at Fergana. The unit can also produce 40,000t/yr of dry building mixes. The project had an investment of just under Euro19m. It is the company’s third production plant in the country.

US: CertainTeed has completed an upgrade to the grinding control technology at its gypsum wallboard plant at Buchanan in New York state. The new variable frequency drive at the site can vary the speed at which raw gypsum is ground and save energy accordingly. It is expected to reduce the plant’s energy consumption by nearly 700,000kWh/yr. Other recent sustainable upgrades at the plant include the installation of 2.4MW solar array on its roof in 2018.

Parent company Saint-Gobain North America has announced a number of sustainability-focused upgrade projects at its wallboard plants so far in 2022. These include switching to renewable energy at its Montreal plant in Quebec, using recycled materials at its Nashville plant in Arkansas and installing a waste heat recovery system at its Vancouver plant in British Colombia.

UK: Portugal-based Gypfor has agreed to sell its upcoming Newport gypsum wallboard plant to Germany-based Knauf. Gypfor began building the plant at Associated British Ports’ Port of Newport in March 2021. Knauf estimates that it will commission it later in 2022, and commence full operations in 2023. The plant will be equipped with solar and wind power plants, as well as on-site gypsum wallboard recycling facilities. 54 people will be employed in gypsum wallboard production at the site. Knauf says that the addition of the new plant to its existing facilities at Immingham, Lincolnshire, and Sittingbourne, Kent, will enlarge its UK capacity by 20%.

Knauf’s UK managing director Ian Stokes said “This new plant will significantly increase our ability to service customers throughout the UK, and particularly those in South Wales, the Midlands and the South-West of England. It is a very exciting move for Knauf and, following recent investment in increasing the capacity of Knauf Insulation, reflects the confidence of the Knauf Group in the UK construction sector.”