EarthMaterials™ NEWS

United States Of America - Lumber prices could escalate easily to $2400 per MBF this spring and late summer similarly mirroring last year. Builders, Developers, Program Managers and Project Managers should weigh risks now and prepare for the possibility. Currently risks seem to be leaning more towards increased demand, labor shortages, natural and…

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA — The US Department of Energy (DOE) stated today that it will invest up to $20 million to reduce the cost of creating geothermal energy by showing faster drilling technology that will reduce the overall time, labor and costs required to create geothermal projects. DOE is aiming to significantly reduce the cost of…

Bellevue, Washington - A lengthy strike by concrete truckers and drivers has slowed or halted major projects in the Seattle area, including the light rail expansion, resulting in the layoff of hundreds of workers. The strike affects every concrete-related project in the region. The Teamsters Local 174 union, which represents concrete mixer drivers…

The metals market has responded to economic decisions recently taken by the US and China. Precious metals had volatile prices during the last few weeks, in great part due to the expected interest rate hike. The prices of gold, silver and platinum are currently under opposing market forces, according to Trading Economics: precious metals are a hedge…

Middle East - Boosted by concerns about potential supply disruptions following Yemen's Houthi group's attack on the United Arab Emirates, which escalated hostilities between the Iran-aligned group and a Saudi Arabian-led coalition, Brent crude futures rose more than 1.5 percent to more than $88 per barrel on Tuesday, the highest level since…

Perris, California - BMC West, a construction and supply company based in North Carolina, will close its Perris facility in February, resulting in the layoff of 304 employees. The company, which was acquired by Builders FirstSource in January 2021, notified the state of the closure last month via a notice to the California Employment…

New York, New York - The New York City Council is expected to vote on Wednesday to prohibit the use of natural gas in new construction, following the lead of dozens of other smaller US cities seeking to transition away from fossil fuels and toward cleaner energy sources. If the law is passed all new buildings will be required to use electricity…

United States Of America - Copper futures fell to $4.2 per pound, the lowest level in nearly ten weeks, as inventories increased and investors reduced risk exposure in anticipation of the US Fed announcing a faster end to its bond-buying program. On-warrant LME inventories in certified warehouses increased to 82,850 tons, the highest level in…

Washington, D.C. - Developers of Keystone XL Pipeline are pursuing to obtain $15 billion in recovery for the revocation of the pipeline’s building permit. President Biden has cancelled the permit for the border-crossing project after construction had already begun. TC Energy…

Göttingen, Germany - Popcorn Insulation? With construction insulation as a major topic, the goal of lowering heating costs and CO2 emissions has led forest scientists to turn to environmentally friendly and sustainable insulation methods: popcorn. Researchers have developed a method for transforming granulated popcorn into insulation boards.…

Washington, D.C. - The Federal Trade Commission’s Chair, Lina Khan, has been personally asked by President Joe Biden to analyze the influence of oil and gas companies on the relentless rising price tag of gasoline. Extensive investigation of Exxon Mobil and Chevron, the two greatest oil and gas companies in the U.S., has been requested. …

Torsboda, Sweden - Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) is the first company in the world to conduct a remote-controlled high-lift wheel loader trial over a 5G network in a complex forestry application – with the goal of developing safer, more productive timber processes and examining the technology's potential as an enabler for automation. …

United States Of America - Sand & Salt is next on the agenda to stretch the budgets of Department of Transportation Agencies, Towns, Contractors, Housing Co-Ops, And Developers. As the US's first wave of ''winter conditions" contracts start to roll in we are seeing what we expected. End users of sand and salt should expect to see increases of…

Washington, D.C. - One thing is certain that we learned from the pandemic. Do not rely on outside sources. Whether by accident or not we have seen an explosion in lumber mill and timberland investments this year from both Canadian and U.S. Companies. This investment continues to explode. We can not keep up with all the M&A and new Mills being…

Bras, Sweeden - Volvo Group unveiled the world's first vehicle constructed entirely of fossil-free steel from SSAB – manufactured at Volvo Construction Equipment's Bras, Sweden, facility. During today's green steel collaboration event, it was announced that additional vehicles will be introduced in 2022 as part of a series of concept vehicles and…