Gypsum industry news

Oman: The Salalah Free Zone (SFZ) has signed three agreements worth US$80m to build three plants in the area, including two gypsum wallboard plants. The other factory will produce solar panels, according to the Times of Oman newspaper. The plants will be run by foreign companies including one from the US. They will create over 250 jobs.

US: Eagle Materials’ revenue from its gypsum wallboard business fell by 11% year-on-year to US$127m in the first quarter of its financial year to 30 June 2019 from US$142m in the same period in 2018. Its earnings dropped by 25% to US$37.9m from US$50.5m. Wallboard sales volumes decreased by 7% to 61Mm² from 66Mm². It attributed the loss of revenue on lower volumes and poor pricing although it said that buying activity around a price increase in July 2019 suggested that the market was ‘healthy.’

US: China National Building Material Company (CNBM) has proposed paying US$248m in one of its on-going legal cases related to alleged defective gypsum wallboard sold by Taishan Gypsum. This latest settlement agreement covers plaintiffs not previously covered by the Amorin Case, those in the Brooke Case and all other property owners with Chinese gypsum board alleged to be attributed to Taishan and connected partners. The settlement is dependent on all parties signing the agreement.

Spain: Saint-Gobain Placo’s gypsum wallboard board plant at San Martin de la Vega near Madrid has been awarded bronze status in the World Class Manufacturing program. The plant is the first Saint-Gobain unit in the world to achieve the certification. The scheme is intended to train individuals to assess operational excellence, as well as improve employee morale, individual and company performance, and company profits.

France: Saint-Gobain’s sales rose by 4.3% year-on-year to Euro21.7bn in the first half of 2019 from Euro20.8bn in the same period in 2018. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) grew by 8.4% to Euro2.42bn from Euro2.23bn. Growth was reported for its gypsum business in all territories apart from North America. Particular growth was noted in its Asia-Pacific region.