In Denver, Colo. this week, KCS senior sales and market account executive Josh Monroe joined a panel of officials addressing the transportation of frac sand in North America at the Proppants Summit. The conference theme was “Overcoming the Shortage from Mine to Well” specifically answering the question, “Will the supply of frac sand and proppants keep up with the unprecedented shale boom?”
Shale is rock with a variety of properties occurring naturally, such as crude oil or natural gas. Frac sand or other materials are drilled into the shale to extract the crude oil or natural gas. The demand for this type of energy is higher than ever before. Producers and suppliers for this industry are interested in what railroads, truck lines and barge companies are offering to keep the logistics chain moving efficiently.
Monroe explained that 50 percent of the frac sand destinations on KCS are served by a direct connection to a short line. He also illustrated KCS’ direct access to Shreveport, La., which is home to the Haynesville Shale, as well as Corpus Christi and Laredo, Texas, which is home to the Eagle Ford Shale. In addition, KCS has direct access to the Port of Lazaro Cardenas on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, an ideal port of entry for ceramic proppants, a man-made, ceramic version of frac sand coming from Asia.
Several manufacturers, previously unfamiliar with Lazaro Cardenas, approached Monroe following the panel wanting to learn more about how KCS is serving this market. For more information, see the What KCS Ships and Where KCS Ships pages in the Services section of
www.kcsouthern.com or contact
jmonroe@kcsouthern.com.