RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Related Party Transactions [Abstract]

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Related party transactions included in our Consolidated Balance Sheets and Consolidated Statements of Operations are summarized in the following table:

	2015		2014		2013
	($ in thousands)
Balances for the year ended December 31:
Wages and employee-related costs (1)	$	27,454	$	26,875	$	17,366
Interest expense (2)	—		—		1,915
IPO transaction-related cost reimbursements (3)	—		—		1,643
General and administrative expense reimbursements (3)	280		75		180
Consulting services (4)	—		—		112
Lease expense	25		25		24
Balances as of December 31:
Accounts receivable	$	295	$	181	$	124
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	553		704		515

(1) We do not have any employees.  Prior to May 14, 2013, our Predecessor and Direct Fuels had employees assigned directly to their respective operations.  On May 14, 2013, our general partner hired all employees of the Predecessor and Direct Fuels. After this date, our general partner manages our human resource assets, including fringe benefits and other employee-related charges.  We routinely and regularly reimburse our general partner for any employee-related costs paid on our behalf, and report such costs as operating expenses.

(2)  Debt payable to related parties was repaid using proceeds of our IPO in May 2013. 

(3) We paid Insight Equity certain IPO transaction-related costs and other general and administrative costs.  We also paid $40,000 to one of our independent directors for production of a video clip for investors and press.

(4) Prior to May 14, 2013, our Fuel segment paid an affiliated company for leadership services at an annual amount of $250,000 plus bonus for financial performance, if any. Beginning May 14, 2013, these services are being performed by Insight Equity employees and are charged to us through the reimbursement process described in (1) above.

Agreements with Affiliates

Registration Rights Agreement.    In connection with closing of the IPO, we entered into a Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of May 14, 2013 (the “Registration Rights Agreement”), by and between AEC Resources LLC, Ted W. Beneski, Superior Silica Resources LLC, Kayne Anderson Development Company and LBC Sub V, LLC. Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, we agreed to register for resale the restricted common units of the Partnership (the “Restricted Units”) issued to the other parties to the Registration Rights Agreement. We also agreed, subject to certain limitations, to allow the holders to sell Restricted Units in connection with certain registered offerings that we may conduct in the future and to provide holders of a specified number of Restricted Units the right to demand that we conduct an underwritten public offering of Restricted Units under certain circumstances. The Registration Rights Agreement contains representations, warranties, covenants and indemnities that are customary for private placements by public companies.

Services Agreement.    On May 14, 2013, in connection with the closing of the IPO, we entered into an administrative services agreement with Insight Equity, pursuant to which Insight Equity provides specific general and administrative services to us. Under this agreement, we reimburse Insight Equity based on agreed upon formulas for actual travel and other expenses on our behalf. In addition, an executive employee of Insight Equity is the head of the Fuel segment. We pay this executive for services rendered to the Fuel segment and record these costs as a charge to earnings. The administrative services agreement will remain in force until (i) the date we and Insight Equity mutually agree to terminate it; (ii) the final distribution in liquidation of the Partnership or our subsidiaries; or (iii) the date on which either Insight Equity or its affiliates collectively controls less than 51% of equity of our general partner.