Heckmann Corporation, Coraopolis, Penn., (NYSE: HEK) has acquired Consolidated Petroleum Inc. (CPI), a private full service water pumping and delivery service company providing water transfer solutions to oil and gas customers engaged in hydraulic fracturing. CPI’s primary operations are located in the Haynesville Shale and Eagle Ford Shale areas of South Texas and Louisiana. The strategic acquisition of CPI adds another key business growth driver for Heckmann Water Resources (HWR) by broadening its service offering for the procurement and delivery of fresh water to well sites for use in the hydraulic fracturing process.

Assets acquired through the transaction include approximately 180 miles of portable poly and aluminum pipe that is used above ground for pumping and transporting water from streams, ponds and special holding areas, including the company's frac tanks, to hydraulic fracturing wells. The acquired CPI assets will add further service capabilities to the Company’s PVC fresh water pipeline currently under construction in the Haynesville Shale area. Other assets acquired include pumps, trucks, flatbed trailers, frac tank connections and real property. HWR will retain approximately 80 CPI employees. Other terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Richard J. Heckmann, chairman and chief executive officer of Heckmann Corporation, commented: "Our acquisition of CPI is another strategic move forward for HWR in broadening the water related services we offer for the many stages of frac drilling and exploration. Through our substantial pipeline, ground transportation, disposal and treatment assets in major U.S. shale plays, we offer one-stop-shop services for all stages of water management, from the well site to the disposal site. Specifically, this transaction expands our capabilities for fresh water sourcing and delivery, strengthening our value proposition as the single best resource for E&P water solutions. Our services include well testing, water sourcing and delivery for initial fracture, and water transportation and disposal through the life of a well. We believe CPI's offering will be attractive for producers in the Marcellus Shale area, as well as the Haynesville Shale and Eagle Ford Shale, because the portable pipe can be used above ground to supplement our already well established fleet transport operations in all regions and our pipelines in the Haynesville region. CPI serves a strong oil and gas E&P customer base, many of which are current HWR customers. Through this acquisition, we are escalating our water solutions profile and putting our capital and infrastructure to work in an entirely new area of potential growth for our company."

Most recently, CPI established a partnering arrangement with a major producer on a water pipeline infrastructure project for the Eagle Ford Shale area.