PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--EQT Corporation (NYSE: EQT) today announced the Company’s 2013 capital expenditure (CAPEX) forecast of $1.5 billion. The CAPEX forecast includes $1.15 billion for EQT Production, $320 million for EQT Midstream, and $45 million for distribution infrastructure projects and other corporate items. The forecast does not include CAPEX for EQT Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE: EQM), which is a publicly traded entity controlled by EQT Corporation and consolidated in its financial statements. Funding will be provided by cash-on-hand at year-end, cash generated from operations, and proceeds from expected midstream asset sales (dropdowns) to EQT Midstream Partners, LP.
2013 GUIDANCE:
Operating cash flow is projected to be approximately $1.0 billion in 2013, based on current NYMEX natural gas prices. This estimate will increase or decrease by approximately $55 million per $0.25 change in the average NYMEX price.
Sales of produced natural gas in 2013 are projected between 335 and 340 Bcfe, 31% higher than the 2012 estimate of 257 Bcfe. Liquids volumes, included in this sales guidance, are expected to total between 3,300 and 3,400 Mbbls. The increase in volumes throughout the year is not expected to be uniform as a result of multi-well pad drilling.
Marcellus sales volumes in 2013 are projected between 242 and 247 Bcfe, representing a 63% increase over 2012. Non-Marcellus sales volumes are expected to be approximately 93 Bcfe, which is approximately 14 Bcfe lower than 2012.
The Company forecasts consolidated EQT Midstream 2013 EBITDA, which includes the results of EQT Midstream Partners, LP, of approximately $335 million compared to a 2012 EBITDA forecast of $300 million. Net operating revenues in 2013 will be approximately $325 million for gathering, $145 million for transmission, and $30 million for storage, marketing and other.
EQT Midstream Partners, LP announced its 2013 financial and CAPEX forecast today in a separate press release which can be found at www.eqtmidstreampartners.com.
EQT Production:
EQT Production 2013 CAPEX is projected to total $1.15 billion, excluding land acquisitions; $915 million for well development; $27 million for geological and geophysical activities, which will focus on central Pennsylvania and Guernsey County, Ohio; with the remainder for capitalized overhead, well maintenance and compliance.
Marcellus Development
The Company plans to spend approximately $820 million on Marcellus well development in 2013 to drill 153 Marcellus wells with an average lateral length of 4,500 feet. All of the wells will be on multi-well pads to maximize operational efficiency and well economics. EQT Production plans to drill 88% of its 2013 wells with 30-foot cluster spacing. Approximately one-third of EQT’s Marcellus acreage can be developed using 30-foot cluster spacing.
The Company broadly defines its Marcellus acreage in three categories: Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3. The Tiers are defined by the expected Estimated Ultimate Recovery (EUR) given a 5,300 foot lateral length well that utilizes the standard 60-foot cluster spacing. The expected EUR for wells drilled in Tier 1 acreage is 9.0 Bcf; Tier 2 is 7.4 Bcf; and Tier 3 is 6.4 Bcf. Utilization of 30-foot cluster spacing is estimated to have a 20% to 25% increase in EUR.
The 2013 drilling plan includes 11 wells in the Tier 3 dry acreage in central Pennsylvania to gather more data for infrastructure planning and to quantify the resource potential. Expected Marcellus well count by acreage type is as follows:
| 2013 Drilling Plan | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 | Total | ||||||||||||
| Dry Gas: | ||||||||||||||||
| 60’ Cluster Spacing | 11 | - | 8 | 19 | ||||||||||||
| 30’ Cluster Spacing | 41 | 8 | 3 | 52 | ||||||||||||
| Wet Gas: | ||||||||||||||||
| 30’ Cluster Spacing | - | 36 | 46 | 82 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 52 | 44 | 57 | 153 | ||||||||||||
The Company plans to operate six horizontal rigs and two top-hole rigs in 2013. In 2012, the Company commissioned two Marcellus drilling rigs powered by clean burning natural gas, and expects to retrofit four additional rigs to utilize natural gas in 2013. EQT estimates a fuel cost savings of approximately $400,000 annually per converted rig, as well as an expected 20% to 30% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, which helps minimize the Company’s overall environmental footprint.
Utica Development
The Company plans to spend approximately $40 million on Utica well development in 2013 to drill 8 wells on its liquids rich acreage located in Guernsey County, Ohio. EQT Production has approximately 16,000 gross Utica acres (13,600 net acres) in the liquids rich development area of Ohio. The 2013 Utica wells are expected to have an average lateral length of 6,000 feet, with two of the wells utilizing 30-foot cluster spacing.
Upper Devonian Development
The Company plans to spend approximately $55 million to drill 11 Upper Devonian wells in 2013 with an average lateral length of 4,200 feet, each of which will share a pad with Marcellus wells. Ten of the wells drilled in 2013 will utilize 30-foot cluster spacing. The Upper Devonian shale formation sits above the Marcellus shale zone across a substantial portion of EQT’s existing acreage position. EQT Production estimates that it has approximately 170,000 acres in the Upper Devonian that can be developed independently. The 2013 drilling program is intended to delineate the Upper Devonian position.
EQT Midstream:
EQT Midstream plans to invest $320 million in 2013; $190 million for Marcellus gathering lines; $110 million for a Marcellus header project; and the remainder for maintenance and compliance activities.
The Marcellus gathering investments are focused on EQT Production development areas in Pennsylvania and will increase gathering capacity by 400 MMcf per day. EQT Midstream also plans to construct a Marcellus header that will connect liquids rich Marcellus acreage, including the Company’s acreage, in north central West Virginia with the Mobley processing plant (owned and operated by MarkWest Energy Partners). The 32-mile header system will have 265 MMcf per day of capacity.
About EQT Corporation:
EQT Corporation is an integrated energy company with emphasis on Appalachian area natural gas production, gathering, transmission, and distribution. EQT is the general partner and majority equity owner of EQT Midstream Partners, LP. With more than 120 years of experience, EQT is a technology-driven leader in the integration of air and horizontal drilling. Through safe and responsible operations, the Company is committed to meeting the country’s growing demand for clean-burning energy, while continuing to provide a rewarding workplace and enrich the communities where its employees live and work. Company shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange as EQT.
Visit EQT Corporation on the Internet at www.EQT.com.
Cautionary Statements
Operating cash flow represents net cash provided by operating activities, less changes in operating assets and liabilities. Operating cash flow is an accepted indicator of an oil and gas exploration and production company’s ability to internally fund exploration and development activities and to service or incur additional debt. The company also includes this information because changes in operating assets and liabilities relate to the timing of cash receipts and disbursements that the company may not control and may not relate to the period in which the operating activities occurred. Operating cash flow is not a measure of financial performance under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Accordingly, it should not be considered as a substitute for net cash provided by operating activities prepared in accordance with GAAP. EQT is unable to provide a reconciliation of its projected operating cash flow to projected net cash provided by operating activities, the most comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP, because of uncertainties associated with projecting future net income and changes in assets and liabilities.
EBITDA is defined as operating income (loss) plus depreciation and amortization expense less gains on dispositions. EBITDA is not a financial measure calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). EBITDA is a non-GAAP supplemental financial measure that Company management and external users of the Company’s financial statements, such as industry analysts, investors, lenders and rating agencies, may use to assess: (i) the Company’s performance versus prior periods; (ii) the Company’s operating performance as compared to other companies in its industry; (iii) the ability of the Company’s assets to generate sufficient cash flow to make distributions to its investors; (iv) the Company’s ability to incur and service debt and fund capital expenditures; and (v) the viability of acquisitions and other capital expenditure projects and the returns on investment of various investment opportunities.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) permits oil and gas companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only proved, probable and possible reserves that a Company anticipates as of a given date to be economically and legally producible and deliverable by application of development projects to known accumulations. We use certain terms, such as "EUR" (estimated ultimate recovery), that the SEC's guidelines prohibit us from including in filings with the SEC. This measure is by its nature more speculative than estimates of reserves prepared in accordance with SEC definitions and guidelines and accordingly is less certain.
Disclosures in this press release contain certain forward-looking statements. Statements that do not relate strictly to historical or current facts are forward-looking. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, forward-looking statements contained in this press release specifically include the expectations of plans, strategies, and objectives, and anticipated financial and operational performance of the company and its subsidiaries, including guidance regarding the Company's projected operating cash flow, projected EBITDA, drilling programs (including the expected number of wells to be drilled, acreage type and drilling locations, estimated ultimate recovery, lateral lengths, spacing, number and type of drilling rigs, number of multi-pad wells, and conversion of drilling rigs, including fuel cost savings and emissions reductions) and transportation and gathering infrastructure programs (including the expected increase in transmission and gathering capacity from expansion projects), gathering rates, production and sales volumes, including liquids volumes, capital expenditures, capital budget and sources of funds for capital expenditures, including the expected proceeds from asset sales to EQT Midstream Partners, LP and expected cash on hand at the end of 2012. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from projected results. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. The company has based these forward-looking statements on current expectations and assumptions about future events. While the company considers these expectations and assumptions to be reasonable, they are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, regulatory and other risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the company's control. The risks and uncertainties that may affect the operations, performance and results of the company's business and forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those set forth under Item 1A, "Risk Factors" of the company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011, as updated by any subsequent Form 10-Qs.
Any forward-looking statement applies only as of the date on which such statement is made and the company does not intend to correct or update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.