Saint-Gobain Canada announces completion of construction of its CertainTeed Kootenay West Gypsum Mine in British Columbia

Mine is final phase of construction and enters full production capacity.

Today marks an important milestone for Saint-Gobain Canada’s CertainTeed Kootenay West Gypsum Mine, as the site completed the final phase of construction and enters full production capacity with the installation and commissioning of permanent equipment on site. The Kootenay West Gypsum Mine located near Canal Flats, BC near the border of Alberta, is a strategic expansion investment by Saint-Gobain to ensure a quality supply chain of raw material for its Western Canadian operations.

This new mine, which began its first construction phase in November 2019, is supplying CertainTeed’s Vancouver and Calgary gypsum wallboard plants with 400,000 tons of high-quality gypsum rock annually. Employing 30 people across the mine and related operations, the Kootenay West Gypsum Mine has an anticipated operational life expectancy of over 40 years. This overall project represents a nearly $50 million CAD investment in the Group’s western operations.

“It is with great pride that we officially launch full operations of our Kootenay West Gypsum Mine in British Columbia, a strategic expansion of our presence in Canada, strengthening our operations to continue meeting the construction market demand,” says Jean-Claude Lasserre, CEO, Canada, Saint-Gobain. “With this new mine, we reinforce our commitment to supply Western Canada with our high-quality CertainTeed products and solutions for decades to come.”

Extension of Windermere Mine operations

The Kootenay West Gypsum Mine project was initiated to replace the Windermere Mine operations near Invermere, BC to meet gypsum rock quality requirements for wallboard production. The Windermere Mine will continue its operations to supply external clients in the agriculture industry and cement industry, extending the anticipated operational lifetime of the Windermere Mine for an additional 15 years.

Next phase for Kootenay West Gypsum Mine

CertainTeed Canada initiated a permitting phase for a future rail loadout project which will significantly reduce trucking distances from 4.5 million kilometres to 250,000 kilometres annually. This project would support Saint-Gobain’s sustainability goals by significantly reducing Scope 3 carbon emissions due to transportation of raw material.

CertainTeed’s Antrim Gypsum Project

Following the environmental assessment approval from the Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Climate Change in October 2024, CertainTeed completed a new phase over the summer that will allow the company to provide information for the permitting and detailed design of the Antrim Gypsum Project.

With construction aimed to begin in 2026, the Antrim Gypsum Project will source natural gypsum material locally to supply the Eastern Canadian and Northeast American markets.

By strategically positioning the Antrim Mine in Nova Scotia, Saint-Gobain can significantly reduce transportation miles and Scope 3 carbon emissions, in alignment with the Group’s mission to achieve net-zero carbon by 2050.