U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SLCA) announced today that it has acquired a division of National Coatings Corp. that manufactures and distributes cool roof granules, a treated kaolin product used in industrial roofing systems that delivers superior solar reflectance and higher thermal emittance than standard designed roofing products. Cool roof systems reduce energy usage and enhance the durability of the roof as well.

U.S. Silica is acquiring patent and intellectual rights and supplier and customer relationships for approximately $18.7 million. The transaction closed earlier this month.

"We're very excited to enter this new and growing market and the potential it provides our industrial business to expand our offerings under our new product development initiative," said J.P. Blanchard, U.S. Silica senior vice president and president of the Company's Industrial and Specialty Products division. "Cool roof granules are an excellent example of the kind of adjacencies to our core business that we are pursuing in ISP to support our customers' growth initiatives, penetrate new markets, diversify our product offerings and enhance our bottom line results."

About U.S. Silica

U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc., a member of the Russell 2000, is a leading producer of commercial silica used in the oil and gas industry, and in a wide range of industrial applications. Over its 117-year history, U.S. Silica has developed core competencies in mining, processing, logistics and materials science that enable it to produce and cost-effectively deliver over 260 products to customers across our end markets. The Company currently operates nine industrial sand production plants and eight oil and gas sand production plants. The Company is headquartered in Frederick, Maryland and also has offices located in Chicago, Illinois and Houston, Texas.