Azerbaijan: Azerbaijan produced 108,100t of gypsum plaster between January and July 2015, a 0.4% decrease compared to the same period of 2014.

Qatar: SIG plc, a distributor of specialist building products in Europe, has acquired a majority shareholding in Drywall Qatar, an independent distributor and specialist installer of interior finishing materials in Qatar.

"We are excited to partner with SIG, a leading European player in the construction material procurement sector. SIG's financial strength and wide product portfolio of 30,000 products coupled to the key relationships with over 6000 suppliers will allow Drywall Qatar to provide an even deeper product supply chain and enhanced product offering to both new and existing clients," said Drywall Qatar's director, George Xydas.

Romania: Siniat Romania, part of Belgian industrial group Etex, will open a Euro50m wallboard plant in Turceni, southern Romania in October 2015.

The company will create 80 new jobs in the production division of the plant. Some 80% of the staff has already been recruited. The plant will produce plasterboard using synthetic gypsum from power producer CET Turceni. It will be the only plant in Romania to use synthetic gypsum from the flue gas desulphurisation process at a thermal power plant, according to Siniat.

Pakistan: DFB Gypsum Industries has announced that it is building a new gypsum facility in Hattar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The new plant is expected to start production in the middle of 2016. It will have a 100,000t/yr plaster line and a 6Mm²/yr wallboard line.