Gypsum industry news

Vietnam: Knauf Vietnam has signed a strategic cooperation agreement for the distribution of gypsum wallboard with Zinca Vietnam. A ceremony marking the signing was held on 12 March 2016 and attended by about 300 guests, including gypsum wallboard distributors, dealers, contractors, developers, and architects, according to local press.

"I believe this remarkable milestone will help us strengthen our nationwide coverage and promote brand awareness," said David Thomas, General Director of Knauf Vietnam. He added that the company's 20Mm² wallboard plant in Hai Phong has started commissioning and is due to started selling commercial products by May 2016.

Knauf Vietnam was licensed in 2013 to build a gypsum wallboard plant. It has since established offices in Hai Phong, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City and has been developing a distribution network throughout the country. In the meantime it has been selling products locally including StandardShield, MoistShield, FireShield, Knauf Danoline and Cleaneo.

Zinca Vietnam is a Vietnamese building materials manufacturer and distributor that was founded in 1995. It previously signed a cooperation deal with Saint-Gobain in 2007 to distribute Gyproc branded products in the country.

Australia: Minotaur Exploration is looking to sell its gypsum deposit at Lake Purdilla, Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. The mineral exploration company reports that the 87Mt deposit has an estimated purity of 91% gypsum consisting of gypsarenite and selenite. The site has been classified as an Inferred Resource based on previous drilling programmes.

Lake Purdilla is believed to be the largest known undeveloped gypsum resource in South Australia. Minotaur Exploration estimates that the site could be mined at a rate of 1Mt/yr for over 50 years. Gypsum from the site would be suitable for domestic use for wallboard production, cement manufacture and agricultural use. It could also be eligible for export to Southeast Asia.

Previously Minotaur Exploration agreed a sale worth US$4.8m for the Lake Purdilla gypsum deposit in late October 2014. The buyer was unnamed.

UK: British Gypsum has partnered with contractor Willmott Dixon to enhance its existing site quality course with a bespoke training programme. As part of a new approach to industry training, British Gypsum built a custom made, full-scale construction site known as the 'Recapping Zone', in which Willmott Dixon employees were tasked with locating over 40 staged faults that could occur in real life scenarios on projects.

British Gypsum took a similar approach to that of a real-life build when constructing the zone, consulting with architects, designers and course facilitators. At present, 436 Willmott Dixon employees have completed the course, and a refresher programme will be run to recap and update the training.

"We worked in close collaboration with Willmott Dixon to deliver the course and also train staff to deliver the course themselves. We combined traditional training methods with hands-on activities to help Willmott Dixon employees take a more practical approach to training in a realistic scenario," said David Hall, National Technical Academy Manager for British Gypsum. "It is our aim to provide the next generation of installers in the interiors sector with information about the latest systems and techniques."

Iran: Ammar Bashare, the director of the Middle East trade development section of Saint-Gobain, has expressed his company's desire to invest in the gypsum plaster industry in Semnan province. He made the comments in a meeting with Ali Asghar Joma'ei, the head of the province's Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mine and Agriculture, as reported by the Islamic Republic News Agency.

Bashare said that Saint-Gobain is ready to invest in the local plaster industry and he hoped that his company could have more cooperation with local Iranian companies when the economic sanctions are lifted.

Joma'ei said that around 40 plaster producer companies are active in Semnan province and that foreign investors should bring modern technology into Iran. He also noted the readiness of a number of investors from Turkey and Germany in the industry. He added that the province is ready for 100% foreign investment or joint venture partnerships.

Semnan produces 40,000t/day of plaster. It exports plaster to Iraq, Turkmenistan and India.

Canada: Continental Building Products has announced that Chantal D Veevaete and Michael J Keough will join its Board of Directors as independent directors, effective from 14 March 2016. Veevaete will join the Compensation Committee and Keough will join the Nominating and Governance Committee. They will replace Chad Suss and Kevin Barner, who were affiliated with the Company's private equity sponsor, Lone Star Funds. Suss and Barner will resign effective from 11 March 2016.

Veevaete has experience in senior leadership positions in several industries, with a particular expertise in human resources. Most recently, from May 2012 through December 2014 Veevaete served as Senior Vice President, Human Resources of Phillips 66, a diversified energy and logistics company. Prior to that she helped implement the separation of Phillips 66 from ConocoPhillips. From April 2009 through January 2012 Veevaete served as Vice President, Human Resources of Chevron Phillips Chemical, and before that served in human resources roles for companies in the health care industry.

Keough has experience in senior leadership and operating roles, including serving as Chief Executive Officer of several manufacturing companies. Most recently, Keough served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Stronghaven, which has been a subsidiary of Hood Container Corporation since December 2013. From January 2005 through May 2010 Keough was President and Chief Executive Officer of Caraustar Industries, a manufacturer of paperboard and paperboard products.