Saint-Gobain Proppants completes expansion project to increase production capacity

Fort Smith, Ark. (Jan. 4, 2007) – Saint-Gobain Proppants recently completed a production expansion project at the company’s site in Fort Smith, Ark. The project has added 60,000,000 pounds of annual capacity to the facility.

“This project supports the increasing demand for Versaprop® and Ultraprop® products, as our customers recognize the economic advantages these product lines bring to their operations,” said Jack Larry, general manager.

Versaprop® and Ultraprop® proppants provide enhanced permeability and improved long-term conductivity endurance through a unique combination of engineered sizing and higher strength, due to the bauxite ores used in manufacturing.

This expansion is part of an overall strategy to increase Saint-Gobain Proppants capacity globally. In addition to the Fort Smith projects, Saint-Gobain Proppants has completed an expansion to its Guanghan, China facility in 2006, is currently constructing a new facility in Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela, and will further increase capacity in China by 2008.

Proppants are spherical ceramic beads, about the size of a grain of sand, that are fired at high temperatures and maintain integrity under extreme pressure. Proppants are inserted into hydraulically created underground fractures surrounding oil and gas wells to “prop” open the fractures and increase the productivity of the wells. Saint-Gobain Proppants operates manufacturing plants in Fort Smith and Bryant, Ark., as well as Guanghan, China. The business has sales offices in the United States, Russia and China.

Saint-Gobain Proppants is part of Compagnie de Saint-Gobain, a leading producer of construction products, high-performance materials, flat glass, and glass containers. The company is also a leading distributor of building products in Europe. One of the top 100 industrial companies in the world, Saint-Gobain’s 2005 sales were approximately $43.7 billion.