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 »Twenty Questions Set The Tone For The 2018 US Oilfield Service Marketplace
We believe the following 20 questions encapsulate the transcendent themes facing the US oilfield service market during 2018. These are not in any particular order. We have included plenty of context and background for each question, but we stopped short of answering them. As the new year begins, so much can still …
Read More »Atlas Sand Unveils Permian Buildout Ambitions That Would Make Them The Largest US Frac Sand Producer By Today’s Standards
Big news in the Permian Basin local sands story from a player that has remained under the radar. This will have everyone talking today… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a …
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 »Unimin + Fairmount Santrol Becomes A Reality
Unimin and Fairmount Santrol have decided to combine in a merger expected to close mid-2018. The deal will create the largest frac sand supplier in the US. The merger of these two sand bellwethers has been rumored “seriously” since October and “casually” since well before that. In fact, back in …
Read More »How Does Permian Basin Dune Sand Look In The Lab? [Charts & Analysis]
For this update, Lonquist & Co. has shared some independently collected West Texas frac sand sample data with Infill Thinking. The results establish some third-party benchmarks for locally-sourced Permian proppant specs. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our …
Read More »The Results Of Infill Thinking’s 2018 Outlook Survey Are In…
Last week, we asked readers to answer 13 questions about the outlook for 2018. The focus of our survey was key trends and themes in the US onshore business. Participation was strong, with a diverse mix of respondents – all of whom are well informed on Lower 48 trends. In …
Read More »Hiccups And Startups – The Very Latest On The First Nine Permian Basin Frac Sand Mines
Three Permian Basin mines are producing frac sand today. Over the next four months, six more plants are planned to begin commercial production in the Basin. Will all go according to plan? And who will win the race to be the next plant online? We have field-level updates on all …
Read More »In-Basin Adversary: 40mph Gusts In Kermit/Monahans Just Tested Sand Stockpiles
High winds ripped through the West Texas dune strip during the past couple days, reminding us of fugitive dust and inventory erosion risks. West Texas poses a unique environmental challenge that the frac sand mining industry has never had to deal with at scale before. We believe wind will be …
Read More »Two Fatalities In Permian Frac Sand Handling In As Many Months Raise Concerns
This is the kind of update we hate to write. Every O&G company we know goes to great lengths avoid fatal accidents. Few industries emphasize safety as much as O&G. But in a physical business like this, occupational hazards are very real. Our coverage will serve two purposes and two …
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