Beach Energy Limited (BPT.AX) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I'm Ryan Stokes, Interim Chairman of Beach Energy. I declare the 2023 Beach Energy Annual General Meeting open and can confirm a quorum is present. I'll begin with some quick housekeeping matters. If you haven't already done so, could you please turn your mobile phone to silent. In the unlikely event of emergency, please follow the instructions of convention center staff, who will guide us to a safe assembly point. Unauthorized recording or photography during the course of the meeting is prohibited. Lastly, today's AGM is being webcast, and a recording will be available on the Beach website after the meeting. Welcome to our shareholders who are viewing today via webcast. I'd like to acknowledge that we're meeting today on the land of the Kaurna people of the Adelaide Plains, and I pay my respect to their Elders. Our compliance statements are set out in Slide 3 of today's presentation for those of you who wish to review them later. Today, I am joined by our Interim Chief Executive Officer, Bruce Clement, who will address you shortly; along with fellow directors, Sally-Anne Layman, Peter Moore and Richard Richards. Linzi Carr from our auditor, EY, is also in attendance and is available for questions in relation to the 2023 financial accounts and remuneration report. We received several questions from shareholders in advance of the meeting, which I will address later during the formal items of business. It is important to first address the Board and leadership renewal process underway at Beach. My appointment as Interim Chairman followed the news of the retirement of our long-standing chairman, Glenn Davis. Glenn's contribution to Beach had been significant. When he joined Beach as a director in 2007, the company had just acquired Delhi Petroleum, now known as the Cooper Basin joint venture. Glenn was appointed Chairman in 2012 and oversaw substantial growth through the acquisition of Drillsearch Energy in 2016 and Lattice Energy in 2018. These transactions transformed Beach from a single basin operator into a diversified modern energy company that you are shareholders of today. Glenn has led the company with the utmost integrity and professionalism throughout his tenure as Chairman. I've had the pleasure to work with Glenn over a number of years, and I commend his commitment, work ethic and leadership. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I'd like to thank Glenn for his outstanding service to Beach Energy, and we wish him all the best for the future. Regarding the new -- appointment of a new Chair, discussions are well progressed. We'll update shareholders when appointment is finalized, which we hope will be in the near future. There have been several other Board changes this year. Philip Bainbridge retired, and Margaret Hall became my alternate director when I returned to the Board. Thank you to both Philip and Margaret for their dedicated service. We were also pleased to announce the appointment of Bruce Clement as a nonexecutive director. Bruce has over 40 years of oil and gas experience, which includes leading AWE at the time they discovered the Waitsia gas field. We expect to announce further Board appointments over the coming year. Regarding the recent leadership changes at Beach, the Board is pleased to have appointed Brett Woods as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer effective February next year. Brett has over 25 years of experience in upstream oil and gas. Most recently, he spent 10 years at Santos, spanning a number of executive roles including Chief Operating Officer, Vice President of Development and Vice President of the Eastern Australia business unit. Brett will join at an exciting time for Beach as we focus on executing our major projects, which are expected to deliver a step change in production and cash flow. Brett's experience in project execution, operation and strategy development is well suited to support Beach through this next phase of growth. I know that Brett has joined us today, so shareholders may have a chance to meet him later. I'd also like to thank Morné Engelbrecht for his time at Beach, as CFO from 2016 and CEO from May 2022. Morné was an integral part of the transformational Lattice acquisition and led its success -- which he led successfully integration into Beach. More recently, he played a key role advancing the delivery of our major projects in the Perth and Otway basins. On behalf of the Board, I'd like to thank Morné for his commitment and hard work. While our company is well positioned, it would be fair to say that we are yet to reach that full potential. Our focus is on how we can improve the execution across our operational activities and project delivery. I am confident in Beach Energy's future given we offer a unique value proposition. We deliver essential gas and liquids to both the Australian and New Zealand energy markets and soon, the global LNG market. Importantly, decarbonization of the energy grid will be enabled by this transitional energy that Beach is delivering. The projects that will deliver our targeted step change in production and incremental cash flow from FY '25 are progressing through development today. We are drilling the Kupe 9 gas development well in New Zealand. We are working through the final regulatory approval for connection of the Enterprise discovery in Victoria, and we're progressing the Waitsia Stage 2 project for LNG sales to BP. And we are progressing the connection of the final 2 development wells from the offshore Otway Basin drilling campaign of Thylacine West 1 and 2. Beyond the current major projects, our existing asset portfolio provides many exciting opportunities for organic growth. Exploration in the Perth Basin has already delivered 3 gas discoveries, while ongoing exploration, appraisal, development in the Cooper Basin will see it producing for many years to come. In offshore Victoria, we've recently secured the Transocean Equinox rig as part of the consortium for the next round of exploration, appraisal and development in the Otway and Bass basins. Early planning and community consultation is underway, and we look forward to sharing more details as planning progresses. Beach is uniquely placed to create substantial value for shareholders. We are exposed to 5 energy markets with very strong fundamentals. We supply gas to markets on the Australian East and West Coasts and New Zealand and oil and liquids to global markets. We will soon be supplying into the global LNG market from Waitsia. Each market has attractive fundamentals with tightening supply and strong demand outlooks. We have strategically built our asset portfolio to deliver diversity of energy products and market exposures with a strong underlying demand thematic. As we deliver our major projects and pursue both organic and inorganic growth, your Board appreciates the importance of maintaining a strong balance sheet and rewarding shareholders as free cash flow increases. To that end, in FY '23, we updated our capital management framework and dividend policy. To reiterate, we intend to pay out 40% to 50% of pre-growth free cash flow while maintaining balance sheet net gearing of less than 15%. The policy sets out the parameters that guide the Board's decision on capital allocation as well as provide transparency for shareholders on potential dividends as cash flow grows. In FY '23, our declared dividend doubled, albeit off a small base, and we expect further increases as we deliver growth. We strongly believe that natural gas will remain an integral component of Australia's energy landscape for decades to come. The gas that Beach provides is already playing a pivotal role in facilitating the transition towards variable renewable energy sources. As the proportion of the VRE in the grid increases, so does the requirement for firming energy. In this context, the utilization of gas as a form of stored energy release. Gas is best placed to serve as that firming resource and will continue to do so until there is a technical and economically superior alternative form of stored energy. We remain committed to our emissions intensity reduction target of 35% by 2030, which aligns with the Paris Agreement target set by the Commonwealth government. Major contributor to our future emissions intensity reduction is our partnership with Santos on the delivery of the Moomba carbon capture and storage project. This represents one of the most significant carbon reduction investments anywhere in Australia. We look forward to its first injection of CO2 in 2024. While the opportunity for gas is there, without investment and a supportive regulatory environment, Australia is at risk of rapidly increasing power bills, energy shortfalls and an uncertain transition to renewables. In every scenario to net zero issued by the Australian Energy Market Operator, gas plays an essential role to support energy transition. However, the Australian East Coast gas outlook shows a growing chasm between forecast supply and demand to 2030 and beyond as existing fields deplete and new supply is limited and hampered by the regulatory environment. Likewise, in the West Coast, the retirement of coal-fired generation coupled with new industrial demand is expected to create a supply deficit into the 2030s. The role of gas will be critical not only for the energy transition, but to ensure Australia can continue to function with affordable, reliable and sustainable energy. Significant investments into transitional energy sources is required to achieve these outcomes. For that investment to occur, the industry must have confidence in a supportive regulatory environment. Otherwise, our domestic energy transition is at risk of failure. Gas projects are now experiencing extensive and costly delays in the environmental plan approval process. According to the regulator, only 5 applications have received approval in the last 12 months, and there are over 40 applications under review. A process that may have previously taken months is now taking close to 2 years. The current ambiguity and complexity of the environmental plan approval process is a major risk to new projects. This will only add to the growing supply constraints. It is increasingly the primary key inhibitor to what should be a well-functioning energy sector. We call on the federal government to urgently act to address the current regulations so that compliance is unambiguous and when approvals are granted, the project operators can proceed with certainty. Instead of the current regulatory uncertainty and market interventions, there needs to be a focused pathway to get more gas to our domestic customers, including incentivizing exploration and development of local gas near existing infrastructure. Beach's diverse asset portfolio delivers affordable, reliable and sustainable energy supply to markets which desperately need it. We're committed to investing in and producing the energy required to support Australia today and into the future. We have demonstrated this commitment through our significant investment in the Otway Basin, successfully bringing new gas supply to East Coast, which Bruce will expand upon. In closing, it is important to remember that Australia's economic prosperity has been underpinned by our access to affordable and reliable energy. As we look to the future, energy supply and security will play an increasingly important role, particularly as we navigate the transition to renewable energy sources. Beach Energy is very proud to have played a key role in Australia's energy supply for over 60 years, and we will continue to do so for many years to come. On that note, I'll now hand over to Bruce for his address. Thank you.

Thanks, Ryan, and good morning, everybody. My name is Bruce Clement, and I am Beach's Interim Chief Executive Officer and an Executive Director of the company. And it's my pleasure to be speaking with you today. Before I begin, I'd also like to thank Glenn for his contribution to the company over the last 16 years. In my short time with the company, I've enjoyed working with Glenn, and I've certainly appreciated his insights and advice. And I wish him well in his future endeavors. I joined Beach in May of this year as a nonexecutive director because I was excited by the company and I continue to be excited by the company's future. I've also welcomed the opportunity to fill in the role as Interim CEO before Brett Woods arrives in the seat in February. I'd like to begin my presentation with some observations from my first few months as CEO. To begin with, we have a great team at Beach. We've demonstrated capability in developing and operating major projects, both offshore and onshore. Our talented group of employees who are highly engaged, they live our values and are passionate about Beach's purpose, which is to sustainably deliver energy to communities. We have an enviable asset portfolio spanning Australia and New Zealand. Our assets supply a range of oil and gas to markets which desperately need them. From an industry-competitive perspective, I believe we are peerless. I can't think of another company in Australia in the energy space which has the near-term growth portfolio that we have. The cash flow that we plan to deliver puts us in a great shape to deliver returns to shareholders and to further grow the company. We are a mid-cap company, unique in size and capability. There are energy companies bigger than us and many others smaller than us. However, we have an operating capability both onshore and offshore. We participate in key markets domestic and international. And we have the scale, agility and financial capacity to pursue opportunities within and outside our portfolio. And finally, we are building a sustainable business, and we are playing our part in the energy transition. We are definitely an oil and gas company. However, we understand the importance of the energy transition and the role Beach has in supporting this. Our sustainability targets are clear. And we are delivering a range of projects, such as the Moomba CCS project, flare reduction initiatives across our business and electrification of our operations, to reduce our carbon emissions. We are now in a very strong position. However, it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge that we've had a few setbacks during this year which we've had to overcome. You may recall, just weeks after our AGM last year, we were faced with the financial collapse of our major contractor for the Waitsia Stage 2 gas project, Clough. The Beach team worked closely with our joint venture partner, Mitsui, to negotiate an outcome with the administrators. Ultimately, the Italian firm Webuild acquired Clough, and our project is continuing albeit with some delays and cost increases. When you consider the potential alternative outcomes, the acquisition of Clough by Webuild was the best result for Beach and the joint venture. Now over the past year, we've also had to navigate government intervention across several fronts, including price caps in the gas market and implementation of the Code of Conduct. As Ryan has identified, regulatory stability, clarity and delivery are essential for supporting ongoing investment in new gas supply for Australia. In the field, we saw severe rains and flooding in the Cooper Basin, which disrupted drilling, well connections and production. We also experienced unforeseen delays in the Otway Basin, which has delayed the installation of the flow line for the Thylacine West wells. The Beach team has worked hard to overcome these challenges, and we are now in a much stronger position to deliver on our key objectives. On the health, safety and the environment, for Beach, there is nothing more important than health, safety and environment in our business and particularly the safety of our people. Financial year '23 was a year of exceptional performance for our -- with our management and workforce continuing to drive improvements in this area. Our total recordable injury frequency rate, being the frequency of recordable injuries for each 1 million man-hours worked, was 2.4, which was a 45% improvement on the prior year's performance and highlights the team's commitment to doing the job safely. 4 out of our 5 operational sites completed the year recordable injury free, again, another outstanding achievement. And I thank the entire Beach team and our contractors for their ongoing commitment to HSE performance. And as the slide said, we do stand together for safety in our business. From a financial perspective, we delivered robust results in what was a major year for project delivery. We produced 19.5 million barrels of oil equivalent, which was down 11% on the prior year but was impacted by flooding in the Cooper Basin. We recorded revenue of $1.6 billion, operating cash flow of $929 million and underlying net profit after tax of $385 million. Our financial position remains strong. In a year of elevated capital spend, we've ended the year with net debt of $166 million, which represents net gearing of only 4%. And lastly, our capital management framework and new dividend policy that Ryan alluded to were announced during the year. And the Board believes this provides a sound basis for balancing ongoing investments in growth while rewarding shareholders with franked dividends. In financial year '23, we declared total dividends of $0.04, which was double that of prior year's. I'd like to just come to some of our milestones that we achieved in 2023. We made good progress on the Moomba carbon capture and storage project with the operator, Santos, reporting the project at 75% complete at the end of September. This is a globally significant CCS project, and we look forward to first injection of CO2 during 2024. In Victoria, the Enterprise pipeline was constructed and installed, bringing us closer to gas from this important discovery. It was also very pleasing to recently conclude our native title negotiations, which means that the outstanding work program, largely comprising wellsite hookup and commissioning, is now subject only to final regulatory approvals. And we are targeting first gas in the fourth quarter of financial year '24. The Thylacine North 1 and 2 wells were connected to the Otway Gas Plant and delivered an immediate uplift in well deliverability of approximately 70%, and I'll talk more about that in a minute. In the Western Flank, we delivered 22 new producing oil wells, including 16 horizontal wells. This was a huge and successful drilling campaign, which included an impressive 20 kilometers of lateral sections. In the West, after resolving the Clough administration, we made good progress on Waitsia Stage 2, and we are now targeting first gas in the middle of 2024. We also completed the Waitsia development drilling campaign and now have commenced the exciting Perth Basin gas exploration program, which has yielded 3 discoveries to date. In New Zealand, we are currently drilling the Kupe South 9 gas development well, which aims to bring the Kupe Gas Plant back to capacity, and I wish the team well over the next few months. I'd like to come back to the Otway Basin now, and I want to emphasize some of our accomplishments here during the year. Beach's operating capability to deliver large-scale offshore projects was reinforced through the progress we made in the Otway Basin. The 7-well drilling campaign was completed in July 2022. And since then, we've been busy with installation of flow lines and well connections. The drilling program delivered success with the Artisan discovery as well as 6 successful development wells, 4 of which are now producing gas into the Otway Gas Plant. The campaign was recognized with 2 major safety awards, including for our management of COVID and mental health on the rig through a very difficult period of operation during the COVID pandemic, and that's well done to all those involved. While the connection of new production wells delivered increased capacity and production at the end of financial year '23, I'd like to comment on the recent production levels from the Otway Gas Plant. You may be aware of what's been going on there, but it was disappointing to report that Beach's total company production was down 10% in the first quarter of this financial year, and this was due to lower gas nominations being made from -- by our Otway Basin customer, which saw over 10 petajoules of gas supply available but not taken. Given Beach's significant investment to develop the gas and increase production from the Otway Basin in support of both the Victorian and the Greater East Coast markets, it was disappointing that Beach was unable to deliver this gas at a time when the government and the market have been actively seeking new gas supply. What is important to note is that we are now in a much stronger contract position going into calendar year 2024. Under our contract, minimum offtake quantities are set annually on a calendar year basis. With higher deliverability from Thylacine North 1 and 2, the take-or-pay quantity in calendar year '24 will be set at a volume significantly above the 2023 volumes. So beyond next year, we'll also benefit from the connection of Enterprise and the 2 remaining Thylacine West wells. Importantly, gas from Enterprise will be marketed outside of the existing contract arrangements. So my message on Otway is that production -- is that although the production over the last few months has been lower, we would expect to see much significantly higher production in the coming years. On the sustainability front, our 2023 Sustainability Report provides considerable detail about our sustainability activities. Some highlights from the past year include: our major partnership with Deakin University on exploring new technologies to reestablish coastal wetlands; our workplace employee volunteering program has been excellent; and our 21st anniversary of supporting the Flying Doctor Service was celebrated this year. The report also referenced the forthcoming release of Beach's first Reconciliation Action Plan. As a company, we are continuing to strive to build positive, long term, trusting relationships with the Indigenous communities where we operate in Australia and in New Zealand. And this will remain an important part of our business well into the future. Beach is also investigating a number of early-stage new energy initiatives where it makes sense for the business and it makes sense for our shareholders. And you can read more about these in the sustainability report. I'll talk now about progressing our pipeline of opportunities, and the slide sets out a busy few years ahead for Beach. The chart shows organic growth opportunities within our existing portfolio, and production catalysts are shown in green, and exploration, appraisal and development activities are shown in blue. In the near term, the 2024 calendar year will be one where Beach is targeting delivery of several major catalysts. On the production front, we're working towards first gas from the Kupe South 9 well, from the Enterprise development, from Waitsia Stage 2 and from the Thylacine West wells with ongoing Cooper Basin drilling and well connections sustaining production in that basin. In blue, you can see the extent of our growth initiatives across the portfolio. These include the ongoing exploration and our next phase of development in offshore Victoria, which is in the early stages of planning and community consultation. We continue to focus on maximizing the value of these assets and our existing business. Just want to talk a little bit about the Beach Energy value proposition. I am enthusiastic about the future for Beach Energy. We have great assets and a motivated team to drive value from those assets. So let me finish with a quick summary of our value proposition and the unique position we have established in the Australian energy market. First, we have been investing in our major projects, which are starting to deliver production growth. In 2024 calendar year, we're targeting production rates much higher than we're seeing today. Second, we have diverse products and revenue streams with exposure to key energy markets. Importantly, our markets all face supply challenges, which are continuing to drive the value of our reserves and our resources over time. Third, our balance sheet remains strong, and our capital management program is backed up by a history of prudent financial management. Fourth, the investments we've made in major growth are planned to soon translate to strengthening cash flows. This should put the company in a strong position to balance ongoing investments in growth with increasing returns to shareholders. And fifth, we have a broad set of opportunities within our existing portfolio. Finally, we are pursuing our endeavors with clear targets for sustainable emissions reductions, and the exciting CCS project is a key pillar -- the Moomba CCS project, I should say, is a key pillar to those goals. All in all, we have an enviable value proposition, which we think sets us apart from our peers. And in closing, I'd like to reiterate my key observations and messages. Beach Energy has a team of talented and professional employees and contractors capable of developing and operating projects, both onshore and offshore. We are uniquely placed with major interests in valuable energy resources and infrastructure, including 5 operated gas plants and production facilities into the Australian East Coast and West Coast markets and the New Zealand market. Our financial position is strong, as I've said a few times, and we anticipate a material step-up in production and cash flows from Waitsia and the Otway projects during 2024. We are building a sustainable business and focusing on achieving our goal of reducing carbon emissions intensity by 35% by 2030. And lastly, we are pursuing organic growth opportunities across our portfolio, and we anticipate further opportunities from within the industry for a company of our operating capability and size and financial strength. And on that note, I'll hand back to Ryan and say thank you.

Well, thank you, Bruce. Ladies and gentlemen, we now turn to the formal items of business on the agenda. The Notice of Meeting dated 12 October 2023 has been made available to all shareholders and is also available on the Beach website. There being no objections, the Notice of Meeting will be taken as read. All resolutions will be voted on by poll rather than a show of hands. As Chairman, I have called that poll. I propose to put all resolutions to the meeting and then conduct the poll on all resolutions together at the end of the meeting. Shareholders and proxyholders would have received on registration a blue voting paper that provides for the holding of a poll on today's resolutions. I'll provide more detail shortly when the poll is to be conducted. All resolutions will be determined by our share registry after the close of the meeting and then announced on the ASX. The company has received 1.642 billion proxy votes, representing 71.98% of all valid securities voted. As we move through each resolution today, the proxies received will be displayed on the screen. Proxies have been reviewed by our share registry, Computershare Investor Services Pty Ltd. I note that I have cast all undirected proxies given to me as Chairman in favor of all resolutions. The first item of business is the receipt and consideration of the financial report, the directors' report and the auditor's report of the company and the group for the financial year end 30 June 2023. There is no requirement to approve the financial statements, so I will not be putting a resolution to the meeting. We'll now take some time to address any questions regarding the accounts or operations generally or if you have any questions for the company's auditor. Shareholders, this is your opportunity to ask any questions you may have regarding the company other than the subject of resolutions that will be put to the meeting shortly. There will be time for shareholders to ask any further questions they may have about those matters when the resolutions are put to the meeting. To begin with, please allow me to answer questions which were received prior to today's meeting.

Thank you, Chairman. The first question has been submitted by [ Anniebrook Pty Ltd ]. Why has there been such a turnover in managing directors? Who or what entity is behind these changes? And why were the individuals hired in the first place if they were not up to the task? Is it possibly a result of an erratic Board or individual Board members with unreal expectations?

Thank you. The role of the CEO is the most important role within any company. And ensuring your company has the right leadership, particularly the CEO, is the responsibility of the Board. The Board has to assess CEO performance and ensure the position is held to account to deliver the performance requirements of the company. That is not just important for shareholders but for all stakeholders, including employees. Any change of leadership is not made lightly, and all options are considered. We are fortunate to have strong leadership capabilities within the Board to appoint an interim CEO, and we are very pleased to have appointed Brett Woods as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. Brett will commence in February next year. The experience he will bring in project execution, operations and strategy development is ideally suited for Beach as we complete our major projects and look for the next phase of growth.

The next question is also from [ Anniebrook Pty Ltd ]. In your risk assessment for your audit, did you make -- take into account the impact of risk arising from the numerous changes to the position of managing director in recent times?

Thank you. Beach has a long established risk governance framework. It does include a specific committee focused on risk. In assessing risk, the impact of the management team in effectively executing and delivering on key objectives is considered. The decision made by the Board to change leadership was not taken lightly. The fact that at the Board table, we had a nonexecutive director with deep technical knowledge, experience in working in many of the basins Beach operates and was a proven CEO gave us confidence that in assessing the decision, including risks, it was the best outcome for the company.

The next question is from Mr. [ Robert Peterson ]. I wish to welcome Mr. Ryan Stokes as incoming Chair. Would it be possible for Mr. Stokes to give his views on the following 2 items. Item 1, future dividends. Would it be reasonable to expect that there will be higher dividends in the near future? And item 2, financial guidance. The company has not given financial guidance for quite some time. Will this be a permanent policy for Beach Energy?

Thank you. In relation to item 1, the Board assess the dividend payments at the end of each half period. So I can't provide definitive confirmation of high dividends in the future. However, as I mentioned earlier, our dividend policy states that we aim to pay out 40% to 50% of pre-growth free cash flow as dividends. Without [ WALE ], Waitsia cash flow is expected to increase in FY '24. It would, therefore, not be unreasonable to assume that future dividends will be higher. In relation to item 2, Beach will continue to provide year-ahead production and capital expenditure guidance as we have done so in many years. However, we will not be providing financial guidance such as EBITDA or NPAT. The inherent volatility in commodity prices makes it challenging to forecast earnings for public release. We trust the forward-looking statements we do make allow investors to forecast our earnings using their own commodity price assumptions.

The next question has been received by Mr. [ Robert Peterson ]. In the September quarterly report on Page 7, Beach Energy stated the following: [ initial ] Enterprise development, activity during the quarter mainly focused on tie-in activity at the Otway Gas Plant and installation of wellsite facilities. To what extent can Beach Energy install infrastructure and equipment at their enterprise wellsite while awaiting final regulatory approval?

Thank you. The final regulatory approval will allow us to install the production metering skid, hydraulic power unit and wellhead control panel and some outstanding piping, electrical cabling and instrumentation. While this approval process is underway, we will be continuing to progress other remaining activities, such as finalizing tie-in at the Otway Gas Plant. The regulatory approval process and the remaining activity has been factored into our guidance for the first gas from Enterprise in Q4 FY '24.

The next question has been received by [ Aslan Pty Limited ]. Will the company explain the significance of the Tarantula Deep gas discovery in terms of how development of our gas assets in the Perth Basin will be undertaken? Does the company have a plan at this stage to develop gas at Beharra Springs Deep? Or is Beach Energy awaiting further drilling results from Redback Deep before any development plan is initiated?

Thank you. We are very pleased with the Tarantula Deep discovery, and we consider it to be significant discovery that will be developed. It's given us greater confidence in the Beharra Springs area, including prospects of near-field exploration and future development. Our current focus is on completing the Perth Basin drilling campaign, which will include Beharra Springs Deep 2 and Redback Deep 1. We're also beginning the interpretation on a newly processed 3D seismic volume over these wells and the adjacent discoveries and fields. Once we have completed this interpretation, drilled the wells and performed the well tests on these and other discoveries, such as the Trigg Northwest [indiscernible], we will have the information we need to define the most appropriate development plan for these discoveries, including which gas plants to utilize and the timing of the development of the resources.

The next question is from DWS Investments. Would you consider appointing an additional independent director to the Board? Do you have any internal targets to increase gender diversity at Board level?

Thank you. We do not have a stated target. However, the Remuneration and Nomination Committee of the Board places much importance on and actively considers independence and gender diversity when identifying potential new directors.

The following question is from DWS Investments and is the last of the presubmitted questions. Will absolute emissions reduction targets be set? How would the company meet the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees? Will scope 3 emissions reduction target be set?

Thank you. Beach has an emissions intensity reduction target which recognizes the increasing demand for our products and our objective to grow shareholder value. As such, we will not be setting an absolute emissions reduction target. Our emissions intensity target is consistent with the aim of the Paris Agreement to hold the increase in global average temperatures to well below 2 degrees above pre-industrial levels. Beach's focus will continue to be on measuring and reporting scope 3 emissions from across our total value chain. We plan to provide more clarity on this in our climate transition action plan, which we expect to release in 2024. Ladies and gentlemen, I'll now ask you to make your way to the microphones, which are located on my right and on my left and at the front of the room if you'd like to ask a question. One of our staff will be there to introduce you. You need to show your blue or pink card to ask a question. Thank you.

Mr. Chairman, [ Stephen Fuller ] has a question for you.

In Beach's sustainability report, the company states that it has completed a climate risk assessment to assess the financial and physical resilience of its portfolio based on the IEA World Energy Outlook and IPCC climate scenarios. What were the results of the risk assessment in terms of the financial impact on our company for the scenarios that limit global warming to 1.5 degree centigrade?

Thank you, Mr. [ Fuller ]. Appreciate the question. In relation to the specifics of the risk assessment, I mean, clearly, we assess our sustainability plan and its impact on the financial outlook for Beach. And we feel that the -- on basis of that, that in delivering on our sustainability plan, that the risks are manageable and the financial impacts are limited without kind of a significant detriment to the long-term outlook. In relation to specific aspects in relation to that, I don't know if -- there's not much more we can really say other than as set out kind of in the annual report -- in the sustainability report.

Mrs. [ Knight ] has a question for you.

Beach's sustainability report states that the use of sold products accounts for 98% of our scope 3 emissions, which, in turn, accounts for 90% of Beach's total emissions. It also states that 70% of our customers have committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions. This is obviously a major [ transition risk ] for Beach. Why is our strategy then still focused on growing oil and gas production?

Thank you for the question. Look, we see the role that we can play in supporting energy transition is an important role. The gas assets that we have are going to be critical to supporting increased renewable energy into the grid. In relation to our focus on our emissions targets, it is on scope 1 and 2 because that is within our control, and we have a plan to reduce on an emissions intensity basis, recognizing that there is a growing requirement for the energy that the Beach has access to. So we believe that is appropriate. As for scope 3, we will be measuring and reporting on that as required under future kind of reporting standards. But it isn't our intent to go and dictate how our customers plan to use the resource. We do know that it is going to be critical to support increasing renewables into the grid, and that's where we think it will end up supporting that transition across the energy network. Thank you for the questions. Are there any other questions? If not, we'll move to the resolutions.

The first resolution to be put is a nonbinding ordinary resolution in respect of the remuneration report for the financial year ended 30 June 2023. The rem report is found in the 2023 Annual Report from Pages 54 to 70 and contains information about the remuneration arrangements of the nonexecutive directors and senior executives who are key management personnel. The proxy results for this resolution is shown on the screen. I note, there is a voting exclusion in respect of this resolution as set out in the Notice of Meeting. I now move resolution 1 as set out in the Notice of Meeting and as previously seen on the screen behind me. Are there any questions or comments in respect to this motion? If there are no questions, I now move to the next resolution. The second resolution is an ordinary resolution regarding the election of Mr. Bruce Clement as a director. Bruce has over 40 years of domestic and international energy experience. He has managed oil and gas exploration, development and production operations in Australia and Asia and delivered key projects across these regions and the U.K. and U.S. He also has extensive experience and knowledge in the Perth Basin, including overseeing the discovery of the Waitsia gas field as Managing Director of AWE. Bruce was appointed a nonexecutive director of Beach on the 8th of May 2023 and interim Chief Executive Officer on the 9th of August. He remains an executive director of Beach. Further details of Mr. Clement's biography are set out in the Notice of Meeting. In accordance with the constitution, he retires from the Board at this meeting and being eligible, offers himself for reelection. The proxy results for this resolution are shown on the screen. I now put the resolution as set out in the Notice of Meeting and as previously seen on the screen behind me. Are there any questions or comments in respect to this motion? If there are no questions, I will now move to the next resolution. I'll hand over the Chair to lead Independent Director, Peter Moore, who will conduct proceedings for the next resolution, which relates to my election as a director of Beach.

Thank you, Ryan. The third resolution is an ordinary resolution regarding the election of Mr. Ryan Stokes as a director. Ryan is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Seven Group Holdings, a leading Australian diversified operating and investment group with market-leading businesses and investments in industrial services, media and energy. He's also the Chairman of Coates Hire, Boral Limited and the National Gallery of Australia, and he is an Officer of the Order of Australia. Ryan first served on the Board from July 2016 to November 2021. He was then appointed alternate director for Margaret Hall and was reappointed to the Board in July of this year. Further details of Mr. Stokes' biography are set out in the meeting notice. In accordance with the constitution, he retires from the Board at this meeting and being capable and eligible, he offers himself for election. The proxy results for this resolution shown on the screen. I'll now put the resolution as set out in the Notice of Meeting and as previously seen on the screen behind me. Are there any questions or comments in respect of this motion? If there are no questions, I'll now move to the next resolution.

Well, thank you, Peter. The fourth resolution is an ordinary resolution regarding the reelection of Mr. Richard Richards as a director. Richard has been Chief Financial Officer of Seven Group Holdings Limited since October 2013. He is a director of SGH Energy and a director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of WesTrac Pty Limited and Coates Hire. He is a director of Boral Limited and a member of their Audit and Risk and Safety Committees and also a director of Flagship Property Holdings. Richard is both a Chartered Accountant and admitted solicitor with over 30 years of experience in business and complex financial structures, corporate governance, risk management and audit. Richard was appointed to the Board on the 4th of February 2017 and was last reelected to the Board on the 25th of November 2020. Further details of Mr. Richards' biography are set out in the Notice of Meeting. In accordance with the constitution, he retires from the Board at this meeting and being eligible, offers himself for reelection. The proxy results for this resolution is shown on the screen. I now put the resolution as set out in the Notice of Meeting and as previously seen on the screen behind me. Are there any questions or comments in respect of this motion? If there are no questions, I now move to the next resolution. The fifth resolution is an ordinary resolution relating to the issue of performance rights to the incoming Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Brett Woods, under the Beach 2023 long-term incentive offer. I've already spoken about how pleased the Board is to have appointed Mr. Brett Woods as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer effective February next year. The details of his appointment, including his remuneration package, were announced to the market on the 9th of August this year. Approval is now sought from shareholders for one of the elements of Mr. Woods' remuneration package, that is, his participation in the Beach 2023 long-term incentive offer. A detailed explanation of the terms of the proposed long-term incentive grant to Mr. Woods is set out in the Notice of Meeting. The Board considers that the grant of performance rights aligns Mr. Woods' remuneration with the interest of shareholders. The proxy results for this resolution are shown on the screen. I now put the resolution as set out in the Notice of Meeting and as previously seen on the screen behind me. Are there any questions or comments in relation to this motion? If there are no questions, I now move to the next resolution. The sixth resolution is an ordinary resolution in relation to the issue of retention rights to Mr. Woods as a one-off retention incentive offer. Mr. Woods is a highly experienced oil and gas executive with an outstanding record spanning over 25 years. The retention grant is an effective way of attracting a high-caliber executive like Mr. Woods to Beach while ensuring that his remuneration remains aligned with shareholder interests. The retention grant to Mr. Woods was announced to the market when his appointment was announced on the 9th of August this year, and further details are set out in the Notice of Meeting. The Board considers that the grant of retention rights aligns Mr. Woods' remuneration to the interest of shareholders. The proxy results for this resolution are shown on the screen. I now put the resolution as set out in the Notice of the Meeting and as previously seen on the screen behind me. Are there any questions or comments in respect to this motion? Would you mind approaching the microphone, please, sir?

Mr. [ Turelli ].

I guess I'm interested in how you arrived at the figure of 1.65 million. Now you may not be able to comment on that. But as a long-term shareholder of Beach, [ perhaps suffering ] from the dividend aspect and hopefully will improve in the future, [ I know ] Mr. Woods [ has been -- could be a fit ] [indiscernible]. Is that perhaps in some way related to the opportunity [ cost ] that [indiscernible] on Santos? So you may not be able to comment, but I am curious that the retention rate is much higher than his total remuneration package. And I thought maybe the 2 might have been aligned, but they're not. So are you able to comment on that or not?

Yes, we can provide some context. Look, I think what we'd say, attracting a high-caliber executive is important. When encouraging someone out of an organization where they have a history and associated incentives that are struck over time, there needs to be a subsequent kind of incentive to lure an executive across. I think one aspect -- the other aspect is ensuring from the commencement that there is a strong financial alignment with the interest of shareholders, and the nature of the performance rights provides an opportunity. The share-based structure does provide that. It isn't matching the total or might be slightly above that base. But if you look at the total remuneration, including the incentives, it is less than 100% of what we would expect. But when we look at what's required to attract a talented executive who we're confident will bring the right leadership, that was part of the process. But if you think of someone leaving an organization where they have existing incentives that they forgo, there is an aspect of negotiation [indiscernible]. That's the background.

Can I ask a follow-up question? In relation to retention period of 2 years, did the Board consider maybe a longer period as an incentive perhaps given the history that we have had some recent turnover of CEOs over the last couple of years, which has been a bit of [ a concern, I presume, for ] shareholders.

Yes. The -- I think in relation to the recent turnover of CEOs, it's -- I think where we had a CEO change with Matt Kay previously and then Morné stepping into an acting role than permanent role, we accept the fact it's been quite a degree of change. However, we are confident the leadership commitment for Mr. Woods stepping into the role is certainly well beyond the 2-year mark. Frankly, we hope that over that period, the long-term incentive starts to become quite an attractive retention mechanism that we'll see his tenure extend much further with a financial motivation around that incentive into the long term. So we thought 2 years was an important [ tenure ] period to bridge what should be then a long-term incentive that's certainly kind of otherwise got a meaningful value. So we did think through that equation. We thought 2 years struck the right balance as to being a meaningful amount of time to see a real change in outcome. And also, we're at a point of time, we figured that a longer-term incentive would start to act as a desire for an executive to -- or a reason for executive to remain committed.

[ You struck ] the right balance? You struck the right balance, yes?

We think 2 years is the right balance, yes.

Thank you for the answers. [ I wish Mr. Woods ] welcome to the company.

Thank you. Any other questions? If there are no further questions, then we'll put -- we'll now move to the poll on all resolutions. Ladies and gentlemen, we'll now conduct the poll on motions number 1 to 6. Firstly, if there is any person present who believes they are entitled to vote but has not registered to vote, we would -- would you please now raise your hand for assistance. You should have received a material at the time you registered with Computershare staff. The people entitled to vote on this poll are all shareholders, representatives and attorneys of shareholders and proxyholders who hold blue admission cards. On the reverse of your blue admission card is your voting paper and instructions. I'll now go through the procedures of filling out voting papers. Proxyholders have attached to their admission cards a summary of proxy votes, which details the voting instructions for each item of business. By completing the voting paper, when instructed to vote in a particular manner, you are deemed to have voted in accordance with those instructions. In respect of any open votes a proxyholder may be entitled to cast, you need to mark a box beside the motion to indicate how you wish to cast your open votes. Proxyholders should refer to the summary of proxy votes form attached to your voting paper for further information. Shareholders also need to mark a box beside the motion to indicate how you wish to cast your votes. Please ensure you print your name where indicated and sign the voting paper. When you're finished filling out -- filling in your voting paper, please leave the auditorium and lodge your voting paper with the ballot box being held by our share registry staff from Computershare at the exits to ensure your votes are counted. There are refreshments waiting outside. If you require assistance, please raise your hand. Would you please indicate by raising your hand if you require more time to complete and lodge your voting paper? Otherwise we'll allow some time. [Voting]

If everybody has now completed their voting, I'll now formally close the poll. The final poll results will be collated and released to the ASX and posted on Beach's website when they are made available later this afternoon. On behalf of the Board, thank you for participating in today's AGM. With that, ladies and gentlemen, I now declare the meeting closed. Thank you very much.