Gulf Coast Sand Acquires Shale Support Assets

Gulf Coast Sand acquired on Aug. 25 the assets originating from Shale Support LLC, which GCS said establishes itself as the largest independent, privately-owned aggregate company along the Gulf Coast.

“Gulf Coast Sand’s newly acquired assets were previously used to service the energy industry almost exclusively. Now, we are committed to a more balanced approach,” GCS CEO Jeff Bartlam commented in a company release.

The acquisition provides GCS two fluid bed driers, 10 mineral separators and 24,000 thousand tons of silo storage, all paired with truck and unit rail train load out capabilities. These assets will also allow the company to have the ability to provide local markets of Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida with traditional construction aggregates as well as sand for specialized uses nationally within the oil and gas industry.

“We will be leveraging all of our reserves and state-of-the-art processing equipment to better serve both the energy industry as well as the industrial sand market. As a result, Gulf Coast Sand will be stronger and more diversified.”—Jeff Bartlam, Gulf Coast Sand LLC

The terms of the transaction weren’t disclosed.

“We will be leveraging all of our reserves and state-of-the-art processing equipment to better serve both the energy industry as well as the industrial sand market,” Bartlam continued. “As a result, Gulf Coast Sand will be stronger and more diversified.”

Following the acquisition, GCS boasts more than 900 mineable acres of aggregate reserves along the Gulf Coast. The company will also custom blend and size industrial sands for distribution across the U.S. through its privately-owned fleet of trucks and rail cars.

GCS plans to complete follow-on investments by the end of 2022, including plans to update wet plant operations by streamlining equipment and transitioning to a more technical approach that will allow the company to better meets its customers’ needs.

“By properly sizing our dredge and our screening equipment to process all of the reserves, we will become much more efficient, while at the same time increasing our output and yield,” GCS President Ryan Morales added in the release.

GCS mining and drying operations are in southern Mississippi with its corporate headquarters in Picayune, Mississippi. The company produces and supplies sand and gravel products commonly used in the energy, construction, and manufacturing industries as well as custom blended and sized abrasives and silica.