In July 2012, ECP funded the recapitalization of Chieftain Sand through its Mezzanine Opportunities Fund. Chieftain Sand is a producer of frac sand that meets strict technical specifications for use in the oil and gas industry.

Chieftain operated a frac sand facility in Western Wisconsin that extracted sand from the earth, processed it, and sold it to oilfield service companies for use in oil and gas hydraulic fracturing. The output from the Wisconsin facility was sold to oilfield service businesses and E&P companies.

Frac sand is required to permanently prop open factures created by the hydraulic fracturing process to unlock oil and gas from unconventional and conventional formations in North America. The majority of all domestic oil and gas drilling and development utilizes frac sand, and it is also used to improve recoveries in existing producing wells.