Late Friday afternoon, Vista Proppants and Logistics formally announced their intent to go public. The Vista S-1 is packed with interesting revelations. If you don’t have several hours to pore over its 278 pages, here are our CliffsNotes: There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full …
Read More »Monday Was EL’D-Day’ – A New Last Mile Logistics Era Has Begun
Well, after all the outcry leading up to mandate day, did anyone really expect a smooth start? On Monday December 18, soft enforcement of the new electronic logging device (ELD) rules began. We discuss what happened when shifts began in this new era and what it may mean for the …
Read More »Cattle Guards Cause Permian Sand Truck Traffic To Reroute
In July, we wrote about the risk of hidden delays for trucks carrying locally sourced frac sand from new plants direct to wells, noting that some challenges are impossible to understand by simply looking at a map. These are things like stop lights, rail crossings, road quality, school zones, left …
Read More »Will “Rolling Protests” Go Viral Like NFL Kneeling And Delay ELD Regulation?
A new protest has begun in the trucking community. It is starting small, but it is highly visible and could spread fast to the national stage. It has big implications for the oilfield. If the movement continues to grow, it could be a near-term negative for US onshore activity levels, …
Read More »Nameplate Kermit Sand Trucks Would Circle The Earth – Drive Time Rankings & Capacity Distribution [Part II]
A year from now on the Kermit blacktop, it will be 110° Fahrenheit with a 90% chance of gridlock. We believe competitive advantage will increasingly be tied to location and logistics as in-basin mines battle for market share. In this update, we rank each of the hopeful new mines based …
Read More »Trucking All That Kermit Sand: Hidden Delays & Major Routes [Part 1]
Today we are kicking off a two part series addressing the trucking needs for yet-to-be-produced Permian Basin frac sand. In this installment, we have maps of the mines vs. major trucking routes to well sites. We have also recorded some thoughts on the hidden logistics challenges that no one is …
Read More »Frac Sand Bandits Are Selling Stolen Permian Truckloads On The Black Market [Exclusive]
There is a dark side to the booming Permian Basin frac market. This week, we followed a lead into the underbelly of the Permian Basin oilfield, investigating chatter we are now hearing about frac sand heists at transload terminals. We have now confirmed with multiple industry sources that recent thefts of …
Read More »Last Mile Talking Points For Houston Sand Summit Next Week
Next Monday at the Petroleum Club in Houston, the who’s who of the frac sand business will come together for the 2nd Annual Frac Sand Industry Update Conference. In a sign of the times, the event was oversubscribed so the venue has been expanded. By way of disclosure, we do not …
Read More »A Massive Paradigm Shift In Frac Sand’s Last Mile Is Happening Now
Retail giant Amazon and the hydraulic fracturing business have something in common: costly and complex last mile logistics. Distributing proppant requires just as much sophistication as distributing Echo Dots, Yeti Tumblers, and Kleenex. In 2017, more truckloads of sand per well will be pumped than ever before. The frac industry is trying …
Read More »