Gypsum industry news

France: Saint-Gobain has appointed Jean-Dominique Senard as Lead Independent Director. The newly created role will oversee the running of the company's governance bodies. Senard has been an independent director since 2012. The board of directors has also decided to appoint Senard as chairman of the Strategy and Corporate Social Responsibility Committee following the retirement of Jean-Martin Folz in June 2017. Philippe Varin will become the chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee and Anne-Marie Idrac will become the chairman of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee. All the personnel changes will take effect from 8 June 2017 at the company's annual general meeting.

China: 19 people have been prosecuted for misconduct related to the collapse of a gypsum mine in Shandong Province in December 2015 that killed one worker and left 13 persons unaccounted for. Yurong Company, owner of the mine, bears the principal responsibility for the incident, for failing to monitor and safely maintain the mine, according to the Xinhua news agency. Poor risk awareness and safety control, as well as inadequate regard for possible dangers in room-and-pillar mining were also causes the of the collapse. Yurong has been fined US$0.43m.

Three mine controllers, believed to be liable for the fatal accident, have been arrested by local police and two officials from the local land and resources bureau were found guilty of dereliction of duty. 14 other local officials have also been punished for violating the Communist Party rules. Ma Congbo, president of Yurong, who committed suicide after the accident, will not be subject to criminal liabilities.

India: Larsen & Toubro has signed a long-term technical licence agreement with Japan's Chiyoda Corporation for its Chiyoda Thoroughbred 121TM (CT-121TM) flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) technology. The agreement grants L&T exclusive rights to undertake engineering, procurement and construction with this system.

The deal follows a notification by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) issued in December 2015 that placed new limits on SO2 emissions for coal-based thermal power plants. The legislation has called for mandatory installation of FGD systems in new power plants, including those currently under construction and many that are already operational.

In the CT-121TM FGD process developed by Chiyoda SO2 is absorbed from flue gas generated by coal-fired, oil-fired and other types of boilers and removed as gypsum. Unlike conventional processes in which the reagent slurry is sprayed on flue gas, the CT-121TM process uses Chiyodas unique absorber, the Jet Bubbling Reactor, in which the flue gas is blown into the reagent slurry, forming a fine bubble bed where SO2 is absorbed, oxidised by injected air, and then neutralised by ground limestone slurry.

Larsen & Toubro and Chiyoda's relationship dates back over two decades with L&T-Chiyoda Limited, a joint-venture catering to the hydrocarbon sector. Through the signing of this agreement, the two companies have extended their association into the power sector as well.

US: Continental Building Products' net sales have risen by 10% year-on-year to US$343m in the first nine months of 2016 from US$311m in the same period of 2015. Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 8.6% to US$100m from US$92m. Its gypsum wallboard sales volumes rose by 18% to 176Mm2 from 149Mm2. The company attributed this in the third quarter of 2016 to stronger demand in major construction markets, especially from new residential construction and overall in the southeast of the country.

"For the third consecutive quarter, we experienced stronger demand in our markets east of the Mississippi which drove the 6% net sales growth versus last year," said Jay Bachmann, Continental's chief executive officer.

US: Johns Manville (JM) has received UL certification for DuraCore 300 chopped strands used to reinforce wallboards in the building industry. The product is manufactured at JM's facility in Slovakia. The certification recognises the product for performance and safety standards.

"Our customers can continuously rely on UL certified DuraCore products with improved dosing consistency and dispersion in wallboards," said Jared Cox, Global Product Manager-Chopped Strands Fibers for JM Engineered Products.