Romania has become an exporter of glass wool with the inauguration of the production line at the Saint-Gobain Isover plant at Ploiesti (60 km north of Bucharest), following a EUR 35 million investment…
Romania has become an exporter of glass wool with the inauguration of the production line at the Saint-Gobain Isover plant at Ploiesti (60 km north of Bucharest), following a EUR 35 million investment, director general Razvan Stefanescu said on 15 May 2007. “Saint-Gobain Isover Romania will export half of the newly established production line with 20,000 tonne glass wool output per year. The main destinations are Bulgaria, Ukraine, Hungary and Moldova. The total volume of production in 2007 will be 17,000 tonnes”, said Mr. Stefanescu. The Ploiesti plant covers 15 hectares and the production line occupies 10,000 sq m. Two new production lines are scheduled to be opened by 2010 for glass wool and basalt wool. By expanding its production, Saint-Gobain Isover Romania has consolidated its position as market leader in the field of insulation materials, reporting a 48% market share for glass wool and a 55% share for basalt wool in the 1Q 2007. The furnace for the new production line at the Ploiesti plant was inaugurated in January 2007. The main competitor on the domestic market for Saint-Gobain is Woodcote Romania, a producer of Rockwool insulation materials. Isover raw materials and production technology conform to all international norms on environmental protection. Saint-Gobain Isover Romania reported turnover in 1Q 2007 of EUR 6 million and estimates EUR 30 million for the whole year.