A 20,000 ton frack sand terminal has opened in West Virginia with the first deliveries made to the facility on Monday for distribution to Marcellus Shale wells in the state and southwest Pennsylvania.

The Jerry Run Terminal in central West Virginia increases the number of Unimin Energy Solutions’ truck-to-rail transloading facilities in the Appalachian Basin to 10. The company has partnered with CSX Corp. and Process Transload to operate the terminal, which is capable of loading 25 trucks per hour.

Connecticut-based Unimin, one of the country’s largest producers of frack sand, with an annual capacity of 10 billion pounds, operates similar facilities in Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York.

The terminal is the latest in a series of sand, hydrocarbon handling and equipment facilities to open across the Appalachian Basin. Many, including a rail terminal that opened last year in West Virginia and a cold rolling steel mill being converted into an industrial services terminal for the oil and gas industry, have revitalized long-dormant sites (see Shale Daily, Sept. 11, 2014; July 15, 2014).

Unimin’s northern region sales manager Joe Migyanko said the Jerry Run Terminal is the company’s “next generation” design, capable of feeding well sites in both states a steadier supply of proppant. CSX will shuttle unit trains to the facility to replenish its inventory. The new site, the company said, was established to increase response times and help improve logistics in the region.