Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

Ukraine: Knauf Insulation Ukraine has announced that it intends to increase its share of the Ukrainian fibreglass market to 35% in 2012. The company's 2011 market share was 30%.

"In 2012 the company expects that the thermal insulation materials' market will keep developing and Knauf Insulation Ukraine plans to shore up its position and occupy at least one-third of the fibreglass insulation segment," said company director Andrii Pavlik.

In the long-run the company intends to further develop the Ukranian market and advertise the benefits of the material to Ukrainian consumers. In the future the company intends to open its own heat insulation production plants in Ukraine, but this plan is currently on hold due to the economic downturn. The company has long-established plans for a production site in Fastiv, Kyiv Region, obtaining all necessary permits for the project.

"The economic downturn adjusted the development of Ukraine's construction sector and, consequently, our plans for realisation of the project. As soon as the construction industry demonstrates stable growth I think we will be able to begin building our factory," Pavlik said.

Ukraine: Ukrainian producers of thermal insulation made from mineral fibres are looking increasingly at potential sales markets outside the country, because demand there is just 20-30% of that in central and western European countries and the country has significant overcapacity.

Since 2008, additional plants with total mineral wool capacity of 170,000-175,000t/yr have gone online in the country but the domestic market has been unable to absorb the material. According to a provisional assessment, 78,500t of mineral wool based on basalt fibres and 24,000t of glass wool were sold in the Ukraine in 2010.

Insulation imports fell from 115,000t in 2008 to 50,400t in 2009, but are thought to have risen slightly to around 55,000t in 2010.