Covia Energy LLC and Black Mountain Sand Holdings LLC have agreed to merge in an all-stock transaction and will now operate under the name Iron Oak Energy Solutions LLC, the companies said in a Nov. 4 press release.

The combined company is now a leading proppant supplier in North America, Iron Oak President and CEO Michael Segura said in the merger’s announcement.

The company has an active annual production capacity of approximately 30 million tons of sand with assets in basin sand mines located in the Permian Basin, Eagle Ford Shale and Northern White Sand facilities.

Iron Oak supplies frac sand in the Permian’s Delaware and Midland basins with three large-scale facilities in Winkler and Crane counties, Texas. The plants supply multiple products from reserves and have a combined total of over 100,000 tons of storage.

Iron Oak’s two Eagle Ford facilities in Atascosa and Dimmit counties, Texas, are leading in-basin plants located in close proximity to prime areas of drilling and completion activity.

Iron Oak operates a Northern White Sand mine in Illinois and a facility in Wisconsin, offering direct access to major producing basins such as the Marcellus, Utica, Bakken and D-J Basin and are connected to a network of in-basin terminals. The terminals are unit train capable and have storage and high-speed loadout facilities.

“With a debt-free balance sheet, Iron Oak Energy is well positioned to pursue further mergers and acquisitions," Segura said.

Segura was formerly the president and CEO of Covia Energy. Black Mountain Sand CEO Scott McNeill will join Iron Oak as a member of its board of directors and serve as a strategic adviser. 

Covia Energy recently separated from Covia Solutions on July 1. Minerals solutions provider Covia Solutions is not a party to the merger.

TPH& Co. acted as financial adviser and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP acted as legal adviser to Covia Energy LLC.  Vinson & Elkins LLP acted as legal adviser to Black Mountain Sand.