Update On Fracking Sand -- July 14, 2018

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. I do not know if the linked article is a "sponsored" article over at Yahoo!Financial.

It comes from FreighTech / FreightWaves / Benzinga: an industry shift -- an update regarding fracking sand and ceramics. Some interesting data points:

• railroads shipping crushed stone, sand, and gravel, in 2018, so far in 2018, year-over-year comparison:
• UNP: up over 14%
• BNSF: up almost 12%
• Canadian Pacific: an incredible 20% (actually almost 21%)
• but, UNP giving guidance that this may not continue; many operators now switching to "brown sand" found nearer the oil fields
• US Silica: suggests that 2018 frack sand demand will hit 100 million tons, up from 66 million tons in 2017; and, 33 million tons in 2016
• US Silica: operators will move to regional ("brown sand") to reduce costs
• Hi-Crush: "Permian Pearl" sand --produced at the Hi-Crush Kermit facility will begin displacing lower quality regional brown sand by next year; Hi-Crush Kermit production: 3 million tons/year
• others suggest that oversupply of frack sand will send frack sand prices plunging
• "supplies are tight now" and "pricing is high but that could change quickly" -- some suggest as soon as later this year
• it appears the only major unconventional play not with no "regional mines" is the Bakken (see the linked article)