NEW DELHI, May 21: Bullish on India, building products technology provider USG Boral will build a new plasterboard plant at an estimated cost of Rs 300 crore in South India.
This will be in addition to existing two facilities in India.
“We are bullish about India. We have had a very good experience here. We are in talks with some state governments in the South for setting up a 30 million square metre plasterboard capacity which is likely to be finalised in a fortnight,” USG Boral Building Products India Pte Ltd CEO and Managing Director Koushik Sarkar told PTI.
He said work will begin on the plant in a few months.
“Plans are underway to break ground in the September quarter of 2017. The plant is expected to be fully operational in 24 months. More than 100 people are expected to be employed at full capacity,” he said.
Sarkar said that the plant will entail an investment of about Rs 300 crore which will be in addition to existing two plants built at a cost of about Rs 100 crore.
He said the proposed plant will support USG Boral’s commitment in the region as the company looks for ways to better serve its customers in India.
This location will allow for 30 million square metre of plasterboard capacity in a standalone facility located in South India, he said adding the new facility will add to USG Boral’s India presence, where it currently operates two other facilities, a 9 million square metre plasterboard and metal plant in Khushkhera, near New Delhi, and a joint compound and putty plant, in the Chennai area.
USG Boral CEO Frederic de Rougemont said that its customers in India will benefit from the world-leading technology available to USG Boral, which will be used in the products built at the facility in South India.
“This facility offers us the ability to significantly increase our operations in India and provide our customers in the region with the best plasterboard products,” he said.
The company is committed to delivering the highest quality and most technologically advanced building solutions for walls and ceilings across Asia, Australasia and the Middle East, he said.
“Our India business has experienced strong growth and this investment strongly positions the company to continue to supplying our customers in the South as demand for high quality, high strength plasterboard products grows in the medium and longer-term,” Rougemont said.
The South India plant will be an investment by USG Boral, the joint venture of USG Corporation and Boral Limited.
The company is a leading manufacturer and supplier of gypsum board-based wall and ceiling lining systems, mineral fibre acoustical ceiling systems, metal framing, joint compounds, high-performance panels and accessories throughout Asia, Australasia and the Middle East.
USG Boral India is a leading plasterboard, metal, joint compound, putty and mineral fibre ceiling products company, which has supplied the Indian market since 2008. (PTI)