A NEW £50 million plant for British Gypsum at Sherburn-in-Elmet is a step closer to reality.

A ground breaking ceremony marked the start of the project which will generate 140 jobs for the area.

Mike Jones, British Gypsum's managing director, dug the first spadeful of earth to mark construction of the plant, which should be in use by late 2006 and increase his company's capacity by about 20 per cent.

He was watched by representatives from construction management contractor Bovis Led Lease, project consultants WSP and architects Darnton Elgee.

The first phase of demolition, plant removal and preparation works on the site has been completed on schedule, ready for piling work to begin this week.

Erecting steelwork for the new mill, gypsum store and warehouse buildings will start next month.

The new plasterboard plant - the first to be built in the UK for more than 15 years - is expected to return output of the site to the high levels reached in the 1980s, after which two board lines closed in the recession when the operation concentrated on glass reinforced products.

The return to plasterboard manufacture will be by way of the world's most advanced machinery, designed to meet new environmental standards.

It will also be the first in the UK to operate using the by-product desulphogypsum from the nearby Drax power station.

The extra capacity will be needed to meet growing demand resulting from recent changes to domestic building regulations and planning rules.

Updated: 09:30 Friday, May 06, 2005