Gypsum industry news

US: CertainTeed has completed a US$1.3m upgrade to its Nashville wallboard plant in Arkansas to use recycled waste gypsum and paper. The plant will reuse 65,000t/yr of waste materials generated from the production process. The company plans to increase the amount of recycled materials in its gypsum wallboard in the future.

“In Nashville and at our manufacturing sites around the world, we remain laser-focused on reducing waste, reducing our consumption of natural resources, and increasing recycling and circularity throughout our value chain,” said Jay Bachmann, Vice President and General Manager of CertainTeed Gypsum.

US: Georgia-Pacific has opened a new gypsum quarry near Sweetwater in Texas. The 240 hectare site is located next to a new unit being built at the company’s Sweetwater gypsum wallboard plant, according to the Sweetwater Reporter newspaper. Once operational, the quarry will supply the plant with around 2000t/day of raw gypsum.

The gypsum wallboard producer is currently building a new 65Mm²/yr gypsum wallboard plant adjacent to its existing 30Mm²/yr Sweetwater gypsum wallboard plant. Production at the new site is expected to start in late 2022.

Canada/US: Saint-Gobain has acquired exterior building materials company Kaycan for US$928m. After the closing of the transaction in 2022, Kaycan’s US distribution arm will undergo divestiture to a third party. Kaycan currently employs 1300 people at 12 sites in Canada and the US. Saint-Gobain noted that the acquisition will complement its leadership in Canada, expanding its light and sustainable construction solutions offering in that market.

US: Eagle Materials has recorded consolidated sales in its 2022 financial year of US$1.9bn, up by 15% year-on-year. The group’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was US$657m, up by 15%. Full-year light materials sales totalled US$804m, up by 27%, with gypsum wallboard and paperboard operating earnings of US$274m, up by 42%. The group sold 269Mm2 of gypsum wallboard, up by 3% year-on-year.

President and CEO Michael Haack said "As we look back on another extraordinary year, I am extremely proud of our team's ability to deliver record operating and financial results despite multiple external challenges, including transportation disruptions, supply chain constraints and, of course, continuing to navigate the Covid-19 pandemic.” He added "As we begin our new fiscal year, Eagle is well-positioned, both financially and geographically, to capitalise on the underlying demand fundamentals that are expected to support steady and sustainable construction activity growth over the near and long term. We expect that infrastructure investment should increase in the latter part of our fiscal year, as federal funding from the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act begins in earnest. And, despite recent interest rate increases, housing demand remains strong across our geographies, outpacing the supply of homes. Nonresidential construction activity is also picking up."

US: The US Department of Energy has awarded CertainTeed its 2022 Better Project Award for the company’s installation of a 15,000t/yr production scrap paper recycling system at its Silver Grove, Kentucky, gypsum wallboard plant. The plant recycles ground paper and gypsum from the system in its gypsum wallboard production.

CertainTeed vice president environmental, social and governance North America and Saint-Gobain circular economy solutions managing director Dennis Wilson said "Our recycling technology in Silver Grove allows us to reduce our waste, reduce our consumption of natural resources and also reduce our production costs - all while continuing to produce the best gypsum wallboard product on the market.” Wilson continued “We will continue to look for ways to minimise our environmental footprint while striving to maximise our company's positive impact for our customers and the communities where we operate."

US: ML Environmental Group has secured a strategic partnership and exclusive US distribution agreement with gypsum wallboard recycling technology producer Scott Equipment Company. Scott Equipment Company produces the GypStream paper backing removal system. Together, the companies say that they will expand the gypsum wallboard recycling solutions offering available to US customers.

Scott Equipment Company business development and product marketing manager Kevin Pedretti said "Our recycling systems, including both the food waste organics recovery system and the gypsum wallboard separation and recovery machines, position nicely with ML Environmental Group's vision to offer their customers an end-to-end solution.” He continued "We have been very impressed with the leadership and growth of ML Environmental and look forward to making the world a better place with this partnership."

US: The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reports that total gypsum board product sales grew by 4% year-on-year to 2.54Bnm² in 2021 from 2.43Bnm² in 2020. 22.4Mt of gypsum was mined in 2021, a 1% rise from 21. Synthetic gypsum supply decreased by 10% to 13Mt from 14.4Mt. Imports declined by 11% to 25,700t from 29,000t but exports grew by 11% to 98,800t from 89,300t.

Canada/US: Saint-Gobain North America and its subsidiary CertainTeed say they have reduced their CO₂ emissions from electricity usage by about a third in 2021 through the use of renewable energy contracts. In February 2020, Saint-Gobain entered into a 12-year virtual power purchase agreement with the Blooming Grove Wind Farm in McLean County, Illinois. At the time, the agreement was the largest renewable energy deal in Saint-Gobain’s 356-year history. Saint-Gobain worked with Edison Energy, an industrial energy advisor, on the arrangement.

“We’re thrilled with the results of our partnership with the Blooming Grove Wind Farm, and will continue to look for ways to maximise our positive impact, for our customers and the communities where we do business, while minimising our environmental footprint,” said Mark Rayfield, the chief executive officer of Saint-Gobain North America and CertainTeed. “In this next chapter of our company’s history, our team will strive to lead our industry towards a more sustainable future.”

France: Saint-Gobain’s sales grew by 15.8% year-on-year to Euro44.2bn in 2021 from Euro38.1bn in 2020. Its earnings before taxation, interest, depreciation and amortisation (EBTIDA) rose by 41% to Euro6.20bn from Euro4.42bn. Sales and earnings increased by 4% and 27% compared to 2019 levels before the coronavirus pandemic started. Sales revenue and operation income was reported up in all geographical regions. In North America the group noted that the integration of Continental Building Products had boosted its position in the US gypsum wallboard market and helped it to tap new sales channels.

“The records achieved in 2021 confirm that the group has entered a new post-transformation trajectory in terms of performance: market-beating sales growth, record earnings and margins, a high level of free cash flow generation that has more than doubled compared to previous years, and strong value creation for our shareholders thanks to strict capital allocation and the determined execution of our portfolio optimisation,” said Benoit Bazin, the chief executive officer of Saint-Gobain.

The group completed or signed 37 acquisitions in 2021, including Chryso and GCP Applied Technologies (GCP), marking its rapid expansion into the construction chemicals market. In November 2021 On November 15, 2021, Saint-Gobain said that it had acquired a gypsum plant in Nairobi, Kenya. It will be the company’s first production site in Kenya, where it will also invest in a construction chemicals production line.

US: GMS’ net sales rose by 36% year-on-year to US$2.19bn in the six months to 31 October 2021 from US$1.62bn in the same period in 2020. Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) grew by 68% to US$278m from US$166m. Wallboard sales represented 37% of the net sales total at US$805m, a decrease in share from 41% at US$659m in the same period in 2020.

“Supply chain dynamics have led to all-time high levels of product inflation, which have been the principal driver of both sales growth and incremental profitability. That said, our relentless focus on customer service and the solid execution of our strategic priorities have enabled us to capture the benefits of both this heightened product inflation across our portfolio as well as continued strength in the residential market,” said John C Turner Jr, president and chief executive officer of GMS.

GMS distributes gypsum wallboard, ceiling, steel framing and complementary construction products in the US