The oilfield industry has many similarities to sports. Both are cyclical. Both have lots of turnover in winning strategies and players. Both have their fair share of larger than life characters and dynastic franchises. And a continual evolution of best practices in both sports and the oilfield is fueled by …
Read More »Hot Takes On The Frac Sand Industry’s Sustainability Struggle From A 30+ Year Veteran [Friday Guest Post]
If you’ve been around the pressure pumping business for a while, there’s a good chance you know today’s guest contributor. His post addresses the future of frac sand and the industry’s current struggle for sustainability in a thought-provoking way. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the …
Read More »Deer Season Parallels In The Frac Sand Industry [Guest Post]
Cody Wickersheim writes: When Joseph Triepke asked me to write an article for Infill Thinking, I think it was intended to be a commentary on the impact each of us has felt over the past year and a half. We are losing some good folks. Many companies have become, or …
Read More »Blue Is The New Green. Why Water Midstream Is A Great ESG Investment [Guest Post]
For water midstream, which is still in the early phases of market evolution, the opportunity to make a positive difference in the water supply/demand balance is enormous. Once permanent infrastructure is in place and multiple systems become interconnected, the stage will be set to move excess produced water to… There’s …
Read More »Musings On Frac Sand Hauling From The Cab Of A Small Carrier [Guest Post]
It isn’t always easy being small in a big space, but in the frac sand trucking business, small isn’t always bad, either. Our guest author today formed a sand hauling outfit with just a couple trucks in early-2015, just as oil prices began to plunge. Today, he is running 40 …
Read More »Four Levers In-Basin Mines Can Pull To Lower Opex/Ton [Guest Post]
In-basin mine operators faced with price pressure quickly turn their attention to driving down operating costs per ton. This can be a real challenge when operating in a tough environment, and compromising safety, quality, and capacity, is not an option. With supply outpacing demand, the pressure to become a low-cost …
Read More »Revisiting Silicosis Prevention Resources After The 2017 Permian Frac Sand Rush [Guest Post]
The explosion of new industrial (silica) sand mining and processing operations in west Texas suggests the need for a review of one of the oldest known occupational diseases, silicosis, and the strategies that sand mining and processing operations can adopt to prevent the development of silicosis among their respective employees. …
Read More »Our Problem Isn’t Oil Prices. It’s the Self-Inflicted Costs [Guest Post]
For more than two years, the North American Energy industry has struggled with low prices. Companies have idled workers and equipment, squeezed vendors, and taken additional cost cutting measures. But our problem isn’t oil prices. Rather, it’s the self-inflicted costs. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to …
Read More »The Long And Short Of Petitioning To List A Species Under The ESA [Guest Post]
Each Friday in the last month of each quarter, we pass our keyboard to an Infill Thinking subscriber to weigh in from their field. In October, two ENGOs provided a notice to the Comptrollers office of their intent to petition the US Fish and Wildlife Service to list the dunes …
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