New wallboard manufacturing plant under construction in southern Alberta

Construction begins on wallboard factory Construction on a massive wallboard factory southeast of Calgary began Thursday amid the housing boom.

A groundbreaking ceremony marked the official start of construction for a new wallboard manufacturing plant in Wheatland County, Alta.

The $210 million facility will manufacture CGC's Sheetrock brand drywall, serving residential and commercial customers across western Canada.

According to USG Corporation CEO Christopher Griffin, the 220,000-square-foot plant, located on 214 acres three kilometres northwest of Carseland, Alta., was designed to be CGC's most environmentally friendly plant to date, featuring innovations that minimize water usage, energy consumption and waste.

The plant will also have an on-site solar field to generate clean electricity.

"This investment is driven by the long-term growth prospects in Canada, particularly the need for affordable housing," said Griffin.

"The Wheatland County plant is strategically located to serve the growing markets in western Canada."

The new plant will help streamline CGC's supply chain and meet the increasing demand for drywall in western Canada. Currently, Sheetrock drywall is shipped to the region from facilities in Ontario and Quebec.

Wheatland County Reeve Amber Link said the factory will do more than just supply jobs to the area, but broaden the county’s revenue stream as well.

"CGC's decision to locate here is a significant step in diversifying our local economy," Link said.

"This project will create hundreds of jobs and boost our tax base."

The provincial government's economic development agency, Invest Alberta, injected just over three million dollars into the planning and development of the project.

Invest Alberta CEO Rick Christiaanse said the investment aligns with both Alberta's affordable housing and economic goals.

"This project will shorten the supply chain for drywall, create jobs and support Alberta's housing market," Christiaanse said.

“We believe that we got to keep attracting more manufacturing into this province, and we see housing as one of the critical pieces to that for sure.”

Construction is expected to be completed in 2026, with recruitment for the over 100 permanent manufacturing jobs to begin in mid-2025.

The project is expected to create more than 200 jobs during the construction phase.