Vantage Drilling International Ltd. (VTDRF) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Hello, and thank you for standing back. Welcome to Vantage Drilling International Q2 2024 Earnings Call. [Operator Instructions] After the speaker's presentation, there will be a question-and-answer session. [Operator Instructions] I would like to turn the call over to Rafael. Please begin.

Thank you. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Vantage Drilling International Limited Second Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. On the call with me today is also Ihab Toma, our CEO. This morning, we released our earnings announcement for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The earnings release is available on our website at vantagedrilling.com. Please also note that any comments we make today about our expectations of future events and projections are forward-looking statements. pursuant to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. We have based forward-looking statements on management's current expectations and assumptions and not on historical facts. Examples of these statements include, but are not limited to, our expectations regarding future results, including expectations regarding our liquidity position, future costs and expenses related to upgrades and out of service work as well as contract preparation costs and expenses. Forward-looking statements in today's call are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control. and could cause actual results to differ materially from the projections made in today's conference call. Vantage does not undertake the updating of any such statement or risk factor that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations. We refer you to our earnings release and financials available on our website. We have prerecorded our prepared remarks and are participating on the call remotely to manage the question-and-answer session segment of the call. In the event there are issues with sound quality or of a similar nature, please accept our apologies in advance, and thank you for your understanding. Now let me turn over the call to our CEO, Mr. Ihab Toma.

Thank you, Rafael, and good morning, and good afternoon, everyone. I am pleased to report that we had a successful second quarter of 2024, marked by safe and efficient operations. I will now take you through our performance for the quarter ended June 2024 in relation to our three corporate goals of: one, maintaining stellar safety and operational performance; two, contracting of our fleet; and three, achieving excellent stakeholders' returns. I will begin with our corporate goal number one of maintaining stellar safety and operational performance. We recognize that safe operation is our license to operate as a company and that our employees are our greatest asset. To maintain and foster a strong safety culture, we are committed to empowering every team member by providing them with the necessary tools to perform their work safely every time. We remain focused on our vision of a perfect day every day by continuously educating our crews as well as looking at new and innovative ways to ensure our expectations are delivered consistently to the employees across all levels of the organization. Our mantra of repeat, repeat, repeat was evident in Q2 as we continued reintroducing our Perfect Day Leadership behavioral-based safety training program. Also, as mentioned in our previous call, we are implementing a new AI-based spaced learning process to enhance knowledge retention among our employees. We are nearing the completion of our first trial of the behavioral assessment tool, and the early results are promising. This innovative approach is garnering industry interest and was recently presented by our VP of QHSE and Sustainability at the SPE/IADC Conference in Bangkok. Safety is just one facet of our comprehensive sustainability approach. We are committed to integrating sustainability seamlessly into our decision-making processes. In Q2, we completed our second internal sustainability report and are actively working with third-party industry experts to enhance our waste and water management processes through best practice initiatives. On the environmental front, our primary focus remains on reducing GHG emissions through energy-efficient strategies like engine management, lighting and fuel usage. Additionally, we are also investigating on how we can work with key vendors to reduce the amount of waste packaging being sent to our offshore locations without compromising the quality of the products being purchased and transported. Regarding our social initiatives, we remain firm in our commitment to diversity, while also exploring ways to give back to the communities where we operate. We achieved this by maximizing the use of local content in our staffing and ensuring that our supply chain emphasizes a strong by-local focus. In doing so, we not only support local economies, but also strengthen community ties while promoting sustainable development. Switching to operations, revenue efficiency for the owned fleet during the second quarter of 2024 was 97.2% with the deepwater fleet and the jack-up fleet achieving revenue efficiency of 96.4% and 98.6%, respectively, while the managed drillships revenue efficiency, which is not reflected in our company revenue efficiency, achieved 99.7%. Our efficient operations, strong safety record and cost-effective management platform make us a trusted manager, providing clear benefits to our managed services customers. I'll now walk you through our fleet status which directly ties to our second corporate goal of contracting our rigs and securing full fleet utilization. The Soehanah had an uninterrupted quarter working for Medco, Indonesia on its 776-day contract at $119,900 per day. As mentioned during the previous earnings call, the rig is fully contracted until the latter part of 2025. Noting that we are continuing to market the rig for jobs in direct continuation for visible opportunities. The Topaz Driller is now in Singapore, where the rig is undergoing upgrades and contract preparation prior to commencing a 2-year firm contract with CPOC at $125,000 per day in the joint development area of Malaysia and Thailand. The contract, which also includes 9 months of unpriced options is expected to commence by the end of Q3 2024. The upgrades include an increase in accommodation quarters capacity, the addition of significant off-line handling and pumping capabilities and under deck cantilever cranes. These upgrades will position the rig to achieve higher future day rates as they bring the Topaz Driller specifications to comparable levels to rigs that were built and delivered years later and add distinct benefits especially tailored for a broader market. Switching to deepwater, Following the conclusion of ONGC contract in February 2024, the Platinum Explorer mobilized to Labuan, Malaysia for the planned shipyard project that includes 5-year and 10-year maintenance and recertification of major equipment, change out of 2 thrusters and various upgrades, including the upgrade of the BOP from 5- to 6-ram cavities. The rig should be available for work later in Q4 2024, and we continue to pursue various opportunities across the globe. Moving on to the Tungsten Explorer. The rig concluded its drilling program in Namibia in April 2024. And after completing a short scheduled maintenance period in Walvis Bay, the drillship commenced its campaign with TotalEnergies in Congo in May. The current program in Congo includes drilling a total of 4 wells that are currently expected to be completed in Q1 2025. Elsewhere, we are progressing in formalizing the agreements for the previously announced joint venture between TotalEnergies and Vantage. The Tungsten Explorer is planned to be sold for $265 million to a JV where 75% will be owned by TotalEnergies and 25% by Vantage. The joint venture agreements are expected to be executed in Q4 2024. With the actual rig sale to the JV and the commencement of its 10-year contract with TotalEnergies taking place in 2025 after the conclusion of its existing drilling contract. Regarding the backlog for our owned fleet. At the end of the second quarter, our backlog totaled $261.5 million, with the Topaz Driller contract with CPOC contributing approximately $107.3 million to the backlog. Finally, in our Managed Services segment, the Capella is currently operating for Mubadala in Indonesia and is expected to finish this contract and be returned to Seadrill in late Q3 2024. We remain committed to the management segment and continue to seek opportunities to add rigs under our management. We continue to market and prequalify Hanwah's seventh-generation drillship tidal election for various opportunities commencing in 2025. Now turning our attention to market dynamics despite ongoing discussions about postponements leading to white space in 2024 and early 2025. Long-term sentiment continues to remain robust. Moving to our third corporate goal of achieving excellent stakeholders' returns. During the second quarter of 2024, we achieved $4.6 million of EBITDA Also, as mentioned in our previous earnings call, we proactively secured a $25 million revolving credit facility to prudently manage near-term liquidity requirements. To conclude, we remain focused on our objectives of outstanding safety performance and pursuing profitable long-term drilling contracts to deliver strong future returns to our stakeholders. With that, I would like to again turn the call over to Rafael to take us through the numbers.

Thank you, Ihab, and welcome, everyone. I'll now provide an overview of the company's financial performance for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The contract backlog at the end of the quarter totaled approximately $261.5 million, which includes the Topaz Driller contract for CPOC, which was executed during the second quarter and contributes approximately $107.3 million to our backlog. In regards to liquidity, the company ended the quarter with approximately $50.8 million of cash. This total includes $10.5 million of restricted cash and $12.8 million prefunded by our Managed Services customers for near-term obligations. In comparison, on December 31, 2023, Vantage had $84 million in cash, including $10.8 million of restricted cash and $11.6 million prefunded by our managed services customers. Working capital for the second quarter of 2024 ended at approximately $88.1 million compared to $120.9 million in the previous quarter. The decrease in working capital was primarily due to lower fleet-wide utilization with the Polaris rolling off contract in late Q1 2024. The Platinum Explorer undergoing upgrades and the Topaz Driller undergoing upgrades in contract preparation for the upcoming CPOC campaign. Consequently, cash and accounts receivable have decreased partially offset by an increase in accrued accounts payables and inventory associated with the upgrades. Following the quarter, we drew down $25 million from the available revolving credit facility to satisfy upcoming upgrades and contract preparation payments. These amounts will be repaid upon receipt of proceeds from the CPOC mobilization and reimbursable upgrades. For the second quarter of 2024, we achieved total revenue of approximately $49.8 million compared to $107.8 million for the second quarter of 2023. The decrease in revenue was primarily due to the conclusion of the Platinum Explorer, Polaris and Topaz Driller campaigns and a 9-day out-of-service period for the Tungsten Explorer between Namibia and the Congo. For the second quarter of 2024, the Tungsten Explorer achieved revenue efficiency of 96.4%, and the Soehanah continued its strong performance, achieving 98.6%. And Operating costs for the second quarter of 2024 totaled $39.6 million, which were lower compared to $74.4 million in the comparable quarter of 2023 due to lower fleet-wide utilization offset by the Platinum Explorer and the Topaz Driller undergoing maintenance. General and administrative expenses for the quarter totaled approximately $5.2 million which were in line with the comparable quarter in 2023. Interest expense for the quarter was approximately $5.7 million compared to $5.3 million in the comparable quarter in 2023. The increase was primarily due to the amortization of financing costs associated with the $25 million revolving credit facility. The net result for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024, was EBITDA of approximately $4.6 million and a net loss attributable to shareholders of approximately $14.2 million. Please note, we will post our quarterly report to our website later today. And with that, I will now turn the call back over to the operator to begin the Q&A.

Our first question comes from the line of Fredrik Stene with Clarksons Securities.

Yes, I hope you are well. I wanted to touch a bit more on the Tungsten and the Platinum starting with the Tungsten first, just to make sure that I got it all correctly. And this relates to the process now on the JV side. you said it seemed like the paperwork for the JV would be completed in Q4, but that the sale of the asset into that and I guess then you receiving the money from Total, that's something that's going to happen in Q1. Did I catch that correctly?

It will happen in 2025. Now whether it is Q1 or Q2, will really depend on the drilling program that is ongoing now. So we have a -- we have those 4 wells being drilled and most likely, there are more -- the most likely scenario for closing sale to the JV is after we conclude that drilling campaign.

Okay. Now it's fair to assume at least that you've now decided to do it after this campaign here. So it won't be -- it won't happen before that.

Yes. I mean we will have to finish the drilling campaign in Congo first, yes.

Yes. Okay. That's very, very helpful. And then on the Platinum Explorer with the work now being done on the rig being ready from the fourth quarter. I was wondering if you could give some more color on the types of opportunities that you're chasing and also maybe in the context of what some other drillers have said that rates for 60 assets and the competition from other 60 assets rolling off in the near term. How has that kind of impacted where you think you can place the platinum in terms of start-up and rates and so forth and length of contracts for that matter as well, I'm super interested in any color you could give.

I will not be able to shed that much color on the opportunities, first for competitive reasons and second, for client confidentiality reasons, but we continue to market there across the globe, as I said, and Look, I mean, we have to also be realistic with [indiscernible] now and everybody is talking about things shifting to the right. So I will not be able to give you a date on where I expect that we will have contracts starting or the length of such contract, but definitely, things are shifting to the right. That's for sure.

[Operator Instructions] I'm showing no further questions in the queue. Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's conference call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.