This Week’s Market Buzz

•    Smart Sand reported, “We support the United Nations’ Paris Accord objective of carbon-neutral operations by 2050 and plan to voluntarily align our strategies, goals and reporting efforts to do our part in supporting this global initiative. Simultaneously, Smart Sand will launch a formal Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) program. Our website provides details that articulate our ESG goals. We look forward to telling our story, one in which we have already made progress on most of the United Nations Sustainable Development goals.”

•    U.S. Silica Holdings Inc. has settled multiple intellectual property and contractual lawsuits involving its SandBox Logistics unit and Arrows Up LLC.  As part of the settlement, SandBox will take over Arrows Up’s existing business, including all equipment and sand logistics contracts while also receiving a confidential cash payment. “We are very pleased that we were able to resolve our legal differences, and we look forward to continuing SandBox’s growth in the future,” said Bryan Shinn, U.S. Silica chief executive officer. “Our enhanced last-mile logistics offering will now provide customers with more technology and different equipment and more locations while enabling SandBox to lower its cost structure, widen its customer base and share best practices across the enterprise.”

•    Superior Silica Sands filed for bankruptcy last summer leaving an uncertain future for five operations in Chippewa and Barron counties in Wisconsin. Recently the company was purchased by HPS Investment Partners based in New York. Chippewa County, Wis., Administrator Randy Scholz said Superior Silica has since taken steps to get back into compliance with the county by installing two monitoring wells and setting aside $4.65 million for mine reclamation. Because of that, the company is once again permitted to mine in the county, according to WQOW.

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