Drilling & Completions | Quarterly / Earnings Reports | Second Quarter (2Q) Update | Financial Results | Capital Markets | Capital Expenditure | Drilling Activity | Capex Increase | Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG)

Chesapeake Energy Corp. Second Quarter 2022 Results

Email    |    Print    |    Bookmark

You Need to login first

   |    Wednesday,August 03,2022

Chesapeake Energy Corp. reported 2022 second quarter financial and operating results and announced the company is taking actions to solidify its strategic focus on its core Marcellus and Haynesville positions.

Highlights:

• Net cash provided by operating activities of $909 million
• Delivered adjusted EBITDAX⁽¹⁾ of $1,269 million and $494 million in adjusted free cash flow⁽¹⁾
• Net income totaled $1,237 million, or $8.27 per diluted share; adjusted net income⁽¹⁾ of $729 million, or $4.87 per diluted share
• Increased annual base dividend by 10% to $2.20 per share; total quarterly dividend of $2.32 per common share
• Retired approximately $670 million, or approximately 7.6 million common shares through July 31; $2 billion common stock and warrant repurchase program remains active
• Positioning Haynesville assets for future growth while reducing activity in Eagle Ford position which the company now views as non-core to its future capital allocation strategy
• Entered into gas supply agreement with Golden Pass LNG facilities
• Achieved Grade "A" MiQ and EO100™ certification for responsible energy production in legacy Marcellus operation

Nick Dell'Osso, Chesapeake's President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We continue to execute our business and deliver on our leading capital return program. Over the last two months we have doubled our share and warrant repurchase authorization to $2 billion, retired over $580 million in common shares, and increased our base dividend by 10%.

"We are pleased to also announce that we are solidifying our strategic focus on the two premier North American shale gas plays," added Dell'Osso. "Our acreage positions in the Marcellus and Haynesville are truly differentiated with industry leading capital efficiency, deep runways of low breakeven inventory, strong operating margins, and advantaged emissions profiles. Given we now view our Eagle Ford assets as non-core to our future capital allocation strategy, we are increasing our capital allocation to the Haynesville in the second half of the year and into 2023 to position the asset for returns-driven growth. Simply put, we are tightening our strategic focus around our best rock, best operations and lowest emissions footprint to generate the most attractive and sustainable capital returns in the industry and be the leader in answering the call for delivering the affordable, reliable, lower carbon energy the world needs."

Shareholder Return Update

During the second quarter of 2022, Chesapeake generated $909 million of operating cash flow and had $17 million of cash on hand at quarter-end. As a result of its significant free cash flow, Chesapeake is raising its base dividend by 10% to $2.20 per share. Consistent with the company's cash return framework, Chesapeake plans to pay its base and variable dividend on September 1, 2022 to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 17, 2022.

In June 2022, the company doubled its previously announced repurchase program authorization from $1 billion to up to $2 billion in aggregate value of its common stock and/or warrants through year-end 2023. Through July 31, 2022, Chesapeake has repurchased approximately 7.6 million shares of its common stock for approximately $670 million.

Operations and Marketing Update

Chesapeake's net production in the second quarter of 2022 was approximately 4,125 MMcfe per day (approximately 91% natural gas and 9% total liquids), utilizing an average of 16 rigs to drill 63 wells and placed 57 wells on production. Chesapeake is currently operating 16 rigs including five in the Marcellus, five in the Eagle Ford and six in the Haynesville, with the sixth rig just added in the last week. The company expects to drill 60 to 70 wells and place 40 to 50 wells on production in the third quarter of 2022.

To position the company for additional returns-driven growth from the Haynesville, the company is reallocating capital to the Haynesville and increasing its capital investment program by 15% to $1.75–$1.95 billion (previous guidance was $1.5–$1.8 billion). The move reflects industry-wide inflation as well as the addition of two operated Haynesville rigs with the sixth rig added in early August and a seventh rig before year-end. Chesapeake intends to reduce planned activities and investments in the Eagle Ford which includes dropping to three rigs by the end of August and exiting the year with two rigs.

Chesapeake is also working with midstream partners to increase our gas gathering and treating capacity in the Haynesville. The company expects to have incremental capacity available beginning in first quarter of 2023, growing through the end of 2023 to correspond with the volume growth generated by the projected increased rig activity.

Additionally, Chesapeake has entered into a term gas supply agreement (GSA) with Golden Pass LNG Terminal LLC ("Golden Pass") to deliver 300 mmcf per day of Responsibly Sourced, independently certified gas, from the Haynesville to Golden Pass's liquefied natural gas terminal on the Gulf Coast near Sabine Pass, Texas. The GSA is expected to begin in 2024 with a 36 month term at a NYMEX based price less a fixed differential. For more information on each of its operating areas, including projections for activity, well statistics and pricing, Chesapeake has posted slides on its website at www.chk.com.

ESG Update

Chesapeake achieved certification of its legacy Marcellus operations under the MiQ methane standard and the EO100™ Standard for Responsible Energy Development, which cover a broad range of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. The company previously announced the certification of its Haynesville operations in December 2021, and is the first company to achieve Grade "A" ratings (the highest rating a company can earn) from MiQ across two major shale basins. The company anticipates its recently acquired position in the Marcellus from Chief E&D Holdings, LP and affiliates of Tug Hill, Inc. will achieve certification by year end, resulting in 100% independent certification for produced and marketed volumes across Chesapeake's two industry leading gas plays.

In 2021 and through June 30, 2022, Chesapeake has installed more than 2,000 continuous methane emission monitoring devices and retrofitted 15,000 pneumatic devices across its operations. As part of that effort, all operated new facility construction is engineered today to be 100% vent free using electric device technology, instrument air and vent capture systems. In addition, the company has executed an agreement beginning in the third quarter of 2022 to implement aerial Gas Mapping LiDAR scans to detect and quantify emissions multiple times per year across the entirety of its assets. Finally, the company joined Veritas, a GTI Differentiated Gas Measurement and Verification Initiative designed to accelerate actions that reduce methane leakage from natural gas systems.

2024 Development Plan

Category	2023	2024 Est. Initial	Updated 2024 Guidance	%Difference (2023 vs 2024)
Total Capital Expenditure($mm)

 Click here for More Planned 2024 Activity