Rising oil prices -- for dry bulk hauler Sisu Energy, there's far less fear than opportunity

Overdrive Radio

The fears among many in the diesel-powered owner-operator community of late are real when it comes to rising oil prices with constraints on production and promotion of alternative sources of energy, as we've reported. All of it seems to mean little more than added costs for those fearful, but for the man whose voice is featured in this edition of Overdrive Radio, it all feels less like a problem than an opportunity. That’s Jim Grundy, headquartered in Texas and owner of Sisu Energy LLC, an all-owner-operator/leased-small-fleet carrier hauling mostly dry bulk in the oil and gas business. Grundy's got a multifaceted trucking background, which includes past work with the 1845 company, likewise heavy in oil and gas-related hauling. Farther back, as you’ll hear, he came up in the trucking world in more over the road operations, and when COVID hit last year he put that experience to work to take advantage of OTR opportunities in a new division of the company that’s power-only for owner-ops coming in. Otherwise, Sisu Energy owns no trucks or trailers itself, nor do dispatch personnel at the company. That’s a feature owner-operators there take to heart as evidence the company’s sticking to its mission to be a platform where owner-operators can thrive, with support people invested in their success. And thrive they have been. Over just two years since Sisu Energy’s founding the company's managed to attract in the neighborhood of 150 owner-operators/small fleets, most running in and around Texas oil fields and some to points farther afield. Read more about the dry bulk niche more broadly via this recent-past feature report: https://www.overdriveonline.com/business/article/14897244/dry-bulk-hauling-offers-easy-freight-handling-steady-work Our recent coverage of fuel-price worries among owner-operators: https://www.overdriveonline.com/business/article/15064976/independents-worry-fuel-prices-will-keep-rising