Gypsum industry news

Spain: Alier has announced an agreement with creditors to restructure its debts. The agreement, to be officially settled in court, will make it possible for the plasterboard liner producer to continue the investment plan on industrial modernisation and quality improvements. The deal, supported by the major creditor banks, was made with the majority of the creditors on 28 June 2016.

Alier has forecast that its production of plasterboard liner for the gypsum wallboard industry will be 155,000t in 2016. Following its expansion plan this could reach 200,000t.

Thailand: Gypman Tech plans to raise its sales revenue by listing on the Market for Alternative Investment (MAI) in 2018, in order to further increase its production capacity. The gypsum wallboard producer increased its production capacity to 12Mm² in 2015 from 6Mm² in a move that is intended to double its sales revenue by the end of 2018, according to the Nation newspaper.

Managing director Supachai Hirunyanitiwatna established Gypman Tech in 2014 to produce gypsum wallboard to serve local demand. The company operates a plant in Nakhon Sawan province close to a gypsum mine.

US: Arizona Instrument has released the Computrac Vapor Pro XL (VPXL), the latest in its line of moisture analysers. The Computrac Vapor Pro instrument line provides a moisture specific alternative to Karl Fischer titration without the use of chemical reagents. New features for the VPXL include an upgraded heater, compatibility with multiple sizes of sample vials, stepped temperature testing capabilities and a touch screen interface. Applications for the Computrac moisture analyser line include gypsum purity testing as well as uses in plastics, petroleum products, pharmaceuticals and chemical production.

US: Continental Building Products' (CBP) net sales have risen by 12.5% year-on-year to US$229m in the first half of 2016 from US$204m in the same period in 2015. Its net income rose to US$25.2m from US$1.89m. Sales volumes of gypsum wallboard rose by 4.2% to 59.7Mm² from 57.3Mm².

"For the second consecutive quarter, we experienced stronger demand in our markets east of the Mississippi, which generated a 13% increase in wallboard volume versus the prior year," said Jay Bachmann, the chief executive officer of CBP.

France: Saint-Gobain's sales revenue has fallen by 1.6% year-on-year to Euro19.6bn in the first half of 2016 from Euro19.9bn in the same period of 2015. Its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 3.8% to Euro1.89bn from Euro1.96bn. The group blamed the loss in sales revenue on negative currency changes, especially in Latin American, and to a lesser extent, in the UK following its decision to leave the European Union. Saint-Gobain's Interior Solutions division, which includes gypsum wallboard and insulation production, reported a 3.1% rise in sales revenue to Euro3.3bn from Euro3.2bn.

"Saint-Gobain's sales for first-half 2016 confirm our February forecasts, with France stabilising and all regions making strong contribution to growth. Our strategy of investing in emerging markets provides us with a diversified platform for profitable growth. Our first-half results also benefited from efforts to optimise our operations, particularly in Western Europe, and from upbeat trading in the US. The results are in line with our objectives and we expect alike-for-like improvement in operating income for second-half 2016 versus second-half 2015. While the 23 June 2016 Brexit vote in the UK has created a climate of uncertainty, it does not affect our objectives," said Pierre-André de Chalendar, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Saint-Gobain.