Antero Resources Corporation (AR) 2017 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and welcome to the Antero Resources Second Quarter 2017 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Please note, this event is being recorded. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Mr. Michael Kennedy. Please go ahead.

大家好，歡迎參加 Antero Resources 2017 年第二季財報電話會議。(接線員指示) 請注意，本活動將被錄音。此刻，我想將會議交給 Michael Kennedy 先生。請開始。

Thank you for joining us for Antero's Second Quarter 2017 Investor Conference Call. We'll spend a few minutes going through the financial and operational highlights, and then we'll open it up for Q&A.

感謝各位參加 Antero 2017 年第二季投資人電話會議。我們將花幾分鐘回顧財務與營運重點，接著開放問答。

I would also like to direct you to the homepage of our website at www.anteroresources.com, where we have provided a separate earnings call presentation that will be reviewed during today's call.

我也想請各位前往我們網站首頁 www.anteroresources.com，我們已提供一份獨立的財報電話會議簡報，將在今天的會議中一併檢視。

Before we start our comments, I'd like to first remind you that during this call, Antero management will make forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on our current judgments regarding factors that will impact the future performance of Antero and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Antero's control. Actual outcomes and results could materially differ from what is expressed, implied or forecast in such statements.

在開始發言之前，我想先提醒各位，本次電話會議中 Antero 管理團隊將作出前瞻性陳述。此類陳述係基於我們目前對將影響 Antero 未來表現之因素的判斷，並受多項風險與不確定性影響，其中許多超出 Antero 的控制範圍。實際結果與成果可能與此類陳述所表達、暗示或預測者存在重大差異。

Joining me on the call today are Paul Rady, Chairman and CEO; and Glen Warren, President and CFO.

今天與我一同參與電話會議的有董事長兼執行長 Paul Rady，以及總裁兼財務長 Glen Warren。

I will now turn the call over to Paul.

現在我把電話會議交給 Paul。

Thank you, Mike, and thank you to everyone for listening to the call today. In my comments, I'm going to focus on the productivity gains we continued to achieve through our advanced completions, and discuss how these productivity gains have led to an increase in our 2017 production guidance and in our midyear reserves.

謝謝你，Mike，也感謝各位今天收聽本次電話會議。在我的發言中，我將聚焦於我們透過先進完井持續達成的生產力提升，並說明這些生產力提升如何帶動我們上調 2017 年產量指引，以及提高我們年中儲量。

Glen will then highlight our second quarter financial results, discuss our capital efficiency gains and touch on AR's continued consolidation success in Appalachia.

接著 Glen 將重點說明我們第二季的財務結果，討論資本效率的提升，並談及 AR 在阿帕拉契亞地區持續整併的成功。

Let's begin with a discussion of AR's continued productivity gains from advanced completions. As you can see on Slide #2, titled Higher Intensity Completions Driving Outperformance, we have illustrated the impact to production performance from various proppant intensity levels. The black dotted line represents our Legacy 1.7 Bcf per 1,000 cumulative type curve, which is the type curve that we have historically used for both internal forecasting and reserve bookings.

我們先從 AR 透過先進完井所持續取得的生產力提升談起。如各位在第 2 張投影片「更高強度完井帶動超越表現」所見，我們展示了不同支撐劑強度水準對產量表現的影響。黑色點線代表我們傳統的每 1,000 英尺 1.7 Bcf 累積型曲線，這是我們過去用於內部預測與儲量認列的型曲線。

The Black dash line represents an improved 2.0 Bcf per 1,000 type curve based on results from our advanced completions, dating back to early 2016. And finally, the various colored lines represent the average cumulative wellhead production per well, normalized to a 9,000 foot lateral, corresponding to various levels of proppant intensity.

黑色虛線代表基於自 2016 年初以來先進完井成果所形成、改善後的每 1,000 英尺 2.0 Bcf 型曲線。最後，各種彩色線條代表每口井的平均累積井口產量，並以 9,000 英尺水平段長度標準化，對應不同的支撐劑強度水準。

While we are still in the early innings of analyzing the EUR impact from these advanced completions, we do have over a year of production history for wells that were completed with 1,500 pounds of proppant, which is shown in green. This data set easily supports the 2.0 Bcf per 1,000 type curve outlined on this slide.

雖然我們仍處於分析這些先進完井對最終可採儲量（EUR）影響的早期階段，但對於以 1,500 磅支撐劑完井的井，我們已累積超過一年的產量歷史（以綠線表示）。這組資料充分支持本投影片所示的每 1,000 英尺 2.0 Bcf 型曲線。

Towards the end of 2016 and through the first half of this year, we've continued testing higher proppant loads, which we put in 2 buckets: the 1,875 pound bucket and the 2,500 pound bucket per foot, shown as red and blue lines, respectively.

在 2016 年底至今年上半年期間，我們持續測試更高的支撐劑用量，並將其分為兩個區間：每英尺 1,875 磅與每英尺 2,500 磅，分別以紅線與藍線表示。

As illustrated on the slide, these completions using higher proppant loads have yield production that is significantly outperforming the 2.0 per 1,000 wellhead type curve, with 2,500 pounds per foot completions outperforming the type curve on an average of 20% through the first 150 days of production.

如投影片所示，採用更高支撐劑用量的完井，其產量顯著優於每 1,000 英尺 2.0 的井口型曲線；其中每英尺 2,500 磅的完井在投產前 150 天平均較型曲線高出 20%。

This outperformance, which we will dive into more on the next few slides, has enabled us to increase our 2017 net production guidance by 3% from a range of 2.16 to 2.25 Bcfe per day, to a range of 2.25 to 2.3 Bcfe per day as depicted in the insert on Slide #2. Importantly, we're able to arrive -- to raise the guidance -- the production guidance while maintaining the same drilling and completion capital budget of $1.3 billion.

這項超越表現（我們將在接下來幾張投影片更深入說明）使我們得以將 2017 年淨產量指引上調 3%，由每日 2.16 至 2.25 Bcfe 的區間，提高至每日 2.25 至 2.3 Bcfe，如第 2 張投影片插圖所示。重要的是，我們在維持相同的鑽井與完井資本預算 13 億美元的情況下，仍能上調（產量）指引。

Directing you to Slide #3, titled Outstanding Marcellus Well Results in 2017, I'd like to provide some more color around the encouraging results, I just mentioned, by highlighting some notable Marcellus pads.

請各位看第 3 張投影片「2017 年 Marcellus 井表現卓越」，我想透過強調幾個值得注意的 Marcellus 井場（pad），為我剛提到的令人鼓舞成果補充更多說明。

The chart on the top of the slide compares the actual daily production as compared to the originally forecast production for 9 Marcellus pads completed, thus far, in 2017, that have at least 60 days of production history. On average, the production from Antero's 2017 Marcellus well completions is trending 25% ahead of forecast, which is primarily attributable to the increase in proppant intensities that I just discussed.

投影片上方的圖表比較了 2017 年迄今已完井、且至少有 60 天產量歷史的 9 個 Marcellus 井場之實際日產量與原先預測日產量。平均而言，Antero 2017 年 Marcellus 完井的產量趨勢較預測高出 25%，主要歸因於我剛才討論的支撐劑強度提升。

In addition to the enhanced productivity from these pads, the other key takeaway from this slide is the continued downward trend in finding and development costs. As portrayed in the chart on the bottom of the slide, the average F&D for all pads in 2017 is $0.45 per Mcfe.

除了這些井場的生產力提升之外，本投影片的另一個重點是探勘與開發成本（F&D）持續下降的趨勢。如下方圖表所示，2017 年所有井場的平均 F&D 為每 Mcfe 0.45 美元。

Additionally, we continue to be a leader in drilling longer laterals. During the second quarter, the 29 Marcellus completions averaged almost 9,400 feet of lateral, and the 5 Utica completions averaged over 11,200 feet of lateral.

此外，我們持續在鑽更長水平段方面保持領先。第二季期間，29 口 Marcellus 完井井的平均水平段接近 9,400 英尺，而 5 口 Utica 完井井的平均水平段超過 11,200 英尺。

We completed 2 wells on the Cofor pad in the Marcellus that averaged 13,700 feet laterals. And we set a record for our longest lateral drilled at 17,400 feet to the Utica. These 2 Cofer pad wells averaged 30 -- 34 Bcf equivalent each, assuming ethane rejection. The ability to outperform our production forecasts and drive down F&D costs is a testament to the efficiencies we've been able to achieve through drilling these longer laterals and improving drilling and completion times, as well as the impact of advanced completions.

我們在 Marcellus 的 Cofor 井場完成了 2 口井，平均水平段長度為 13,700 英尺。同時，我們在 Utica 創下最長水平段鑽井紀錄，達 17,400 英尺。在假設乙烷拒收（ethane rejection）的情況下，這 2 口 Cofer 井場的井每口平均約 30—34 Bcf 當量。能夠超越產量預測並降低 F&D 成本，證明我們透過鑽更長水平段、縮短鑽井與完井時間，以及先進完井所帶來的效率提升。

Turning your attention to Slide #4, titled, Marcellus EUR Reserve Upgrades. Yesterday, we announced midyear reserves for AR. One of the key highlights from our midyear reserve evaluation was the upgrade of about 600 proved, undeveloped and probable drilling locations from a 1.7 Bcf per 1,000 EUR type curve to an approximate 2.0 Bcf per 1,000 EUR type curve.

請各位看第 4 張投影片「Marcellus EUR 儲量上調」。昨天，我們公布了 AR 的年中儲量。年中儲量評估的一項重點，是將約 600 個已證實未開發（PUD）與概算（probable）鑽井位置的 EUR 型曲線，從每 1,000 英尺 1.7 Bcf 上調至約每 1,000 英尺 2.0 Bcf。

The 199 upgraded PUD locations are highlighted in red, within the purple statistically-proven area that we use for reserve bookings. The 398 upgraded probable locations are highlighted in blue, and primarily located within that same, purple, statistically-proven area, as well as in the 3-mile buffer area outlined in the orange color to the east.

在我們用於儲量認列的紫色統計證實區域內，199 個上調的 PUD 位置以紅色標示。398 個上調的概算位置以藍色標示，主要位於同一紫色統計證實區域內，並且也位於東側以橘色標示的 3 英里緩衝區內。

The other key item that I'd like to point out on this slide is the red star symbol, which highlights third-party industry pads, where advanced completions were utilized and average EURs were at least 2.0 Bcf per 1,000.

我想在這張投影片上指出的另一個關鍵項目是紅色星形符號，該符號標示第三方產業井場（pads），在這些井場採用了先進完井技術，且平均EUR至少達到每1,000英尺2.0 Bcf。

Antero has over 2,400 proved and probable drilling locations that are outside of the purple and orange upgrade outlines that are shaded black and gray, and currently are still booked at 1.7 Bcf per 1,000 type curve for reserve purposes.

Antero擁有超過2,400個已證實與概略（proved and probable）的鑽井位置，位於紫色與橘色升級範圍輪廓之外（以黑色與灰色陰影標示），目前在儲量目的下仍以每1,000英尺1.7 Bcf的型態曲線（type curve）入帳。

As we expand the use of advanced completions, we would anticipate upgrades on a significant number of these 2,400 additional locations.

隨著我們擴大先進完井的使用，我們預期這額外2,400個位置中的相當大一部分將獲得升級。

To further touch on our midyear reserves and the impact we are seeing from the advanced completions, I'll turn you to Slide #5, titled, Reserves Summary. Since the severe downturn that began in late 2014, we've been able to consistently grow our reserves, both on a volumetric and strip PV-10 value basis. The top 2 charts show that we've been able to grow our 3P reserves by approximately 31% from 2014 to midyear 2017, and the after hedge pretax PV-10 value of those 3P reserves by over 73% over the same time period, assuming strip pricing. Another important takeaway from this slide is the fact that 96% of Antero's 3P reserves are actually comprised of 2P reserves that would be proved and probable. This further demonstrates AR's low-risk, highly repeatable drilling inventory an ability to deliver consistent value to shareholders for many years ahead.

為了進一步說明我們年中儲量以及先進完井所帶來的影響，請看第5張投影片，標題為「儲量摘要」。自2014年末開始的嚴重景氣下行以來，我們一直能夠在儲量上持續成長，無論以體量或以條帶價格（strip）PV-10價值衡量皆然。上方兩張圖表顯示，從2014年至2017年年中，我們的3P儲量約成長31%；在假設條帶價格的情況下，同期這些3P儲量的避險後稅前PV-10價值成長超過73%。本投影片另一個重要重點是，Antero的3P儲量中有96%實際上由2P儲量所構成，也就是已證實與概略（proved and probable）。這進一步證明AR具低風險、高度可重複的鑽井庫存，並有能力在未來多年持續為股東創造穩定價值。

With that, I'll turn it over to Glen for his comments.

接下來我把時間交給Glen發表他的評論。

Thank you, Paul. In my comments today, I'll highlight our second quarter financial results, discuss our capital efficiency gains and touch on AR's continued consolidation success in Appalachia. Let's first discuss some of the key highlights from the quarter.

謝謝你，Paul。在我今天的評論中，我將重點說明我們第二季的財務結果，討論資本效率提升，並談到AR在阿帕拉契亞地區持續整併的成功。我們先來討論本季的一些關鍵亮點。

Production averaged a record 2.2 Bcfe per day for the quarter, including a record 103,000 barrels a day of liquids. Liquids production during the quarter consisted of 6,700 barrels a day of oil and over 96,000 barrels a day of NGLs, representing a 37% increase in the prior year quarter and a 4% increase sequentially, as we remain the largest NGL producer in Appalachia.

本季平均產量達到每日2.2 Bcfe的歷史新高，其中液體產量也創新高，達每日103,000桶。本季液體產量包括每日6,700桶原油及超過每日96,000桶NGL，較去年同期成長37%，較前一季成長4%；我們仍是阿帕拉契亞地區最大的NGL生產商。

Moving on to financial highlights for the quarter, we generated $321 million in consolidated EBITDAX, a 3% increase from the prior year quarter, resulting in an EBITDAX margin of $1.60 per Mcfe. We realized $3.15 per Mcf before hedges on our gas production during the quarter, which was a 63% increase compared to the prior year quarter.

接著看本季財務亮點，我們產生合併EBITDAX 3.21億美元，較去年同期成長3%，EBITDAX利潤率為每Mcfe 1.60美元。本季天然氣產量在避險前的實現價格為每Mcf 3.15美元，較去年同期增加63%。

We realized a natural gas hedge gain of $55 million during the quarter or $0.38 per Mcf, bringing our after tax -- or after hedge realized price to $3.53 per Mcf, a $0.35 premium to the average NYMEX Henry Hub price for the quarter. Quarter-after-quarter, Antero continues to lead the industry in realized gas pricing before and after hedges.

本季我們實現天然氣避險收益5,500萬美元，或每Mcf 0.38美元，使得稅後——或避險後——的實現價格達到每Mcf 3.53美元，較本季NYMEX Henry Hub平均價格溢價0.35美元。一季接一季，Antero在避險前與避險後的天然氣實現價格方面持續領先業界。

As it relates to liquids, we realized an unhedged oil price of $43.24 per barrel, which was only a $5 differential to NYMEX-WTI for the quarter. The improvement in the realized oil price differential was driven by new contracts we entered that commenced on April 1 of this year. We realized an unhedged C3+ NGL price of $24.14 per barrel during the quarter, which represents a 41% increase from the prior year quarter and 50% of NYMEX-WTI.

就液體而言，我們未避險的原油實現價格為每桶43.24美元，與本季NYMEX-WTI的價差僅5美元。原油實現價差的改善，主要來自我們新簽訂並於今年4月1日開始生效的合約。本季我們未避險的C3+ NGL實現價格為每桶24.14美元，較去年同期增加41%，相當於NYMEX-WTI的50%。

To further -- to provide further color on the capital efficiency gains, I'll point you to Slide #6 titled Capital Efficiency Drives High Growth Within Cash Flow. Before I get into the takeaways from the slide, I'll remind everyone that the standalone AR cash flow projections outlined here are all based on Wall Street research estimates as of July 31, 2017, and should not be relied upon as management forecasts.

為了進一步——提供更多關於資本效率提升的說明，請看第6張投影片，標題為「資本效率推動在現金流內的高成長」。在我談投影片重點之前，我要提醒各位，這裡所列的AR獨立現金流預測皆基於截至2017年7月31日華爾街研究估計，且不應視為管理層預測而加以依賴。

With that being said, the key takeaway from the slide is that we expect to be able to grow at an attractive 20% to 22% annual production growth rate, while essentially spending within upstream cash flow through 2019. Circled in red, you can see that the total outspend for 2018 and 2019 is just over $100 million each year, only about 5% to 10% of upstream EBITDAX. Again, this speaks to the major strides we've made on the operational front over the last couple of years, with our advanced completions and continued operational efficiencies that include drilling longer laterals and reductions in drilling and completion cycle times.

話雖如此，這張投影片的關鍵重點是：我們預期能以具吸引力的20%至22%年產量成長率成長，同時在2019年前基本上將支出控制在上游現金流之內。紅圈處可見，2018年與2019年的總超支（outspend）每年僅略高於1億美元，約僅占上游EBITDAX的5%至10%。這再次反映我們過去幾年在營運面取得的重大進展，包括先進完井以及持續的營運效率提升，例如鑽更長的水平段（laterals）並縮短鑽井與完井週期時間。

Moving onto consolidation activity, which has received a lot more attention lately. We wanted to touch on Antero's continued success. Since the commodity downturn in late 2014, Antero has been a leading consolidator within Appalachia, given our industry-leading hedge growth and firm transportation portfolio.

接下來談整併活動，近期受到更多關注。我們想談談Antero持續的成功。自2014年末商品價格下行以來，憑藉業界領先的避險覆蓋與固定運輸（firm transportation）組合，Antero一直是阿帕拉契亞地區的主要整併者。

Looking at Slide #7, titled A Leading Consolidator in Appalachia. You can see that we've added over 111,000 net acres to our core Marcellus and Utica position since the beginning of 2016, including over 20,000 net acres, thus far, in 2017. In early 2017, we acquired about 10,300 net Marcellus acres, primarily in early June -- excuse me, 2017 we acquired about 10,300 net Marcellus acres, primarily in Doddridge & Wetzel counties in West Virginia for $130 million.

請看第7張投影片，標題為「阿帕拉契亞的領先整併者」。你可以看到，自2016年初以來，我們在核心Marcellus與Utica區塊新增超過111,000淨英畝，其中2017年迄今新增超過20,000淨英畝。在2017年初，我們收購約10,300淨英畝的Marcellus土地，主要位於西維吉尼亞州的Doddridge與Wetzel郡，收購價為1.30億美元。

The acquisition included 17 million cubic feet a day equivalent of net production, 15 drilled but uncompleted wells with an average lateral length of 8,200 feet, and one drilling pad. And that works out to be about $4,000 per undeveloped acres so an attractive price for us on an undeveloped acreage basis. This was represented by many of the consolidation transactions we completed over the last couple of years, core infill or bolt-on acreage is primarily undedicated from a midstream perspective.

該收購包含每日1,700萬立方英尺當量的淨產量、15口已鑽但未完井（drilled but uncompleted）的井（平均水平段長度8,200英尺），以及一個鑽井井場（pad）。換算下來，未開發英畝（undeveloped acres）每英畝約4,000美元，從未開發土地角度看對我們而言是具吸引力的價格。如同我們過去幾年完成的多筆整併交易，核心加密（infill）或補強（bolt-on）土地在中游（midstream）角度多半未被專屬綁定（undedicated）。

This particular transaction added 89 undeveloped 3P locations and enhanced 74 existing 3P locations by incremental working interest and/or increased lateral length. The lateral length of the new or identified 3P locations averages 8,700 feet, so another nice pickup force on the acreage front.

這筆交易新增89個未開發的3P位置，並透過增加工作權益（working interest）及／或提高水平段長度，強化既有74個3P位置。新增或識別出的3P位置其水平段長度平均為8,700英尺，因此在土地資源方面又是一筆不錯的增補。

What did this continued consolidation activity do for us from a core drilling inventory standpoint. For that, I'll refer you to Slide #8, titled Largest Core Drilling Inventory in Appalachia to make a couple of points. First, Antero continues to maintain the largest core drilling inventory in Appalachia with approximately 3,900 undrilled locations. That's up almost 400 locations from year-end 2016. Roughly 72% of these locations are liquids-rich, and as outlined in the pie chart on the slide, Antero holds about 41% of the undrilled, core liquids-rich locations in Appalachia.

那麼，這些持續的整併活動，從核心鑽井庫存的角度為我們帶來了什麼？關於這點，請看第8張投影片，標題為「阿帕拉契亞最大核心鑽井庫存」，我想提出幾點。第一，Antero持續維持阿帕拉契亞地區最大的核心鑽井庫存，約有3,900個尚未鑽探的位置。相較2016年年底增加了將近400個位置。其中約72%為富含液體（liquids-rich）的位置；如投影片上的圓餅圖所示，Antero持有阿帕拉契亞地區約41%的未鑽探、核心富含液體位置。

This significant liquids-rich inventory has and will continue to enable us to achieve tremendous growth in our liquids production with significant exposure to liquids pricing upside. It is important to point out that this chart is pro forma for all mergers and acquisitions, both closed and announced to date. So despite some large deals announced within the base in this year, Antero still has a sizable lead in core undrilled location inventory within Appalachia. And we'll look to opportunistically add to this position over time.

這項以液體為主的龐大庫存，已經並將持續使我們得以在液體產量方面實現可觀成長，並大幅受惠於液體價格上行的曝險。需要特別指出的是，這張圖表是就所有併購交易（包含已完成及截至目前已宣布者）所做的備考呈現。因此，儘管今年在該區域基礎內宣布了一些大型交易，Antero 在阿帕拉契亞核心未鑽探井位庫存方面仍然保持相當大的領先。而我們也將隨時間推移，伺機進一步強化這一優勢。

Before I wrap up, I want to touch on the sum of the parts topic that has been notable for certain of our peers, lately.

在我結束之前，我想談一下「分部加總估值」（sum of the parts）這個主題，近期在我們部分同業之間相當受到關注。

At a recent conference, we rolled out our Slide #9, titled Significant Value Proposition. The idea behind this slide was to provide investors with enough color around the true value of various pieces of the Antero story. One reason for the sum of the parts discounts that we've seen in Appalachia with tax burden of a sale of midstream securities, so we are showing an after-tax value for Antero's 58% ownership of AM after applying AR's $1.5 billion of NOLs.

在最近的一場會議上，我們發布了第 9 張投影片，標題為「顯著的價值主張」。這張投影片的用意，是為投資人提供足夠的資訊與脈絡，以理解 Antero 故事中各個組成部分的真實價值。我們在阿帕拉契亞看到的分部加總估值折價，其中一個原因是出售中游證券所帶來的稅負，因此我們在套用 AR 的 15 億美元淨營業虧損（NOLs）後，呈現 Antero 對 AM 58% 持股的稅後價值。

While we're illustrating the breakdown of the Antero, sum of the parts on this slide, we do see a lot of value in the integrated story, particularly as we continue to target attractive annual production growth from 20% to 22% through the end of the decade.

雖然我們在這張投影片上說明 Antero 的分部加總估值拆解，但我們確實也看到整合式故事具有很高價值，特別是當我們持續以十年期末為目標，鎖定每年 20% 至 22% 的具吸引力產量成長。

That being said, you can see in the waterfall that when you consider the after-tax AM value of $2.9 billion, along with a $2 billion hedge book mark-to-market value, you'll arrive at an implied AR standalone value of about $5.9 billion. With an estimated PDP, PDA value of $4.8 billion, and that's in the gray bar there, which includes conducting 100% of gathering, compression fees paid to Antero Midstream. You'll arrive at an implied undeveloped acreage value of only $1.1 billion, within our core undeveloped acres of 492,000 net acres. This implies that AR is currently trading at only $2,300 per core undeveloped acre, a very attractive value proposition. It's instructive to compare that $2,300 per acre trading value to the recently announced Appalachian corporate transaction, which most analysts pegged it about $10,000 to 15,000 per undeveloped acre.

話雖如此，你可以在瀑布圖中看到，當你考量 AM 稅後價值 29 億美元，以及 20 億美元避險部位的按市價評價（mark-to-market）價值時，將可推導出 AR 單獨（standalone）的隱含價值約 59 億美元。在估計的 PDP、PDA 價值為 48 億美元（即灰色長條）之下，其中包含向 Antero Midstream 支付的 100% 集輸（gathering）與壓縮（compression）費用。你將得到的未開發土地隱含價值僅為 11 億美元，對應我們核心未開發土地 492,000 淨英畝。這意味著 AR 目前的交易價格僅約每核心未開發英畝 2,300 美元，是非常具吸引力的價值主張。將每英畝 2,300 美元的交易價值與近期宣布的阿帕拉契亞企業交易相比很有參考性，多數分析師估計其未開發英畝價格約為 10,000 至 15,000 美元。

Slide #10 titled Midstream Drives Value for AR, demonstrates why we believe that there should be a premium for the integration that Antero has built, where the midstream simply serves sponsor's upstream development.

第 10 張投影片標題為「中游驅動 AR 的價值」，說明了為何我們認為 Antero 所建立的整合應該享有溢價；在此架構下，中游僅是為贊助方（sponsor）的上游開發提供服務。

The integration of the midstream business enables us to better control our development program and provide significant visibility into product flows and pricing in Appalachia. This is very important when you can control the largest core acreage position in Appalachia and are targeting 20% to 22% annual growth through the end of the decade. Midstream has also been a very attractive investment for AM. As you can see in the bullets, 3x capital invested pre-IPO. And we've seen 18% total annual return on AM since its IPO.

中游業務的整合使我們能更好地掌控開發計畫，並在阿帕拉契亞的產品流向與定價方面提供高度可視性。當你掌握阿帕拉契亞最大核心土地部位，並以十年期末為目標追求每年 20% 至 22% 的成長時，這點非常重要。中游對 AM 來說也一直是非常具吸引力的投資。如你在重點條列中所見，IPO 前投入資本已達 3 倍回收。而自 AM 上市以來，我們也看到其年化總報酬率達 18%。

In closing, I'll point you to Slide #11, entitled De-risked Development Plan Drives Long-term Visibility. Over the past 8 years, we have built the most integrated natural gas and NGL story in the U.S. We run the business with a long-term mentality of ensuring we can continuously develop our 53 Tcfe of 3P reserves for many decades ahead, which we believe will generate the most attractive value creation to our shareholders, including management's substantial ownership.

最後，我請各位參考第 11 張投影片，標題為「去風險化的開發計畫帶來長期可視性」。過去 8 年來，我們打造了美國最整合的天然氣與天然氣液（NGL）故事。我們以長期思維經營，確保未來數十年能持續開發我們 53 Tcfe 的 3P 儲量；我們相信這將為股東（包含管理層的大量持股）創造最具吸引力的價值。

With that, I'll turn the call over to the operator for questions.

接下來，我把電話交給接線員進行問答。

(Operator Instructions) The first question is from Neal Dingmann from SunTrust.

（接線員指示）第一個問題來自 SunTrust 的 Neal Dingmann。

Could you just talk a little bit about just M&A, in general. Obviously, there's been a few deals here and there you guys included. Are you seeing -- continue to see a bunch of deals offered then what do you see with potentially disposing some of your assets as well?

你能否稍微談一下整體的併購（M&A）情況？顯然，近期零星有一些交易，你們也包含在內。你們是否仍持續看到有不少交易被提出？另外，你們對於可能處分部分資產又是怎麼看？

Yes, there are smaller deals out there A&D, M&A type deals, of course, the big one that was announced, we all know, is EQT/Rice. But there are others that go by, and there's -- so there's continued consolidation. In terms of divestment, you may remember that earlier this year, we sold some nonstrategic acreage in Pennsylvania. So we continue to look at our portfolio and let go some of the things that aren't strategic to us. But everything we have now in our core area, we consider strategic. So we certainly participate where sellers pass by their properties, and we pick and choose which ones we're interested in. So pretty active market. And continued consolidation is the theme in Appalachia.

是的，市場上確實有一些較小的 A&D、M&A 類型交易；當然，大家都知道已宣布的最大一筆是 EQT/Rice。但也還有其他交易陸續發生，因此整體仍在持續整併。就資產剝離而言，你可能記得今年稍早我們出售了賓州一些非策略性土地。因此我們持續檢視投資組合，並處分一些對我們不具策略性的項目。但目前我們在核心區域所持有的一切，我們都視為具策略性。所以當賣方釋出資產時，我們當然會參與評估，並挑選我們感興趣的標的。因此市場相當活躍。而在阿帕拉契亞，持續整併就是主旋律。

Again, just talk about you're -- it looks like Slide 2 -- looks like you're seeing some diminishing returns. It looks like -- as you increased -- can you just talk about your thoughts around that?

再來，談一下你們——看起來是第 2 張投影片——看起來你們的報酬有些遞減。看起來——當你們提高——你能否談談你們對此的看法？

Sorry, Neal, could you repeat that question?

抱歉，Neal，你可以重複一下問題嗎？

Yes. Just on Slide -- this is Ray on for Neal. Just on Slide 2, it looks like you're seeing some diminishing returns as you go from 1,875 to 2,500, could you just talk about your thoughts around the same load?

可以。我是 Ray，代 Neal 提問。就第 2 張投影片而言，看起來當你們從 1,875 提高到 2,500 時，報酬似乎有些遞減，你能否談談你們對相同加砂量（sand load）的看法？

Yes, I'm not sure, I'll read it that way exactly. I mean, that's pretty phenomenal outperformance. But it's still too early to tell on the red and the blue, I think, as to whether or not it returns to the 2.0 Bcf type curve or you end up at above 2 Bcf. But at some points, you will see diminishing returns. I'm not sure we've found that point yet, we're still searching, depends on the area, too.

是的，我不確定是否能完全用那種方式來解讀。我的意思是，那其實是相當驚人的超預期表現。但就紅色與藍色曲線而言，我認為現在仍言之過早，尚無法判斷它是否會回到 2.0 Bcf 的型態曲線，或最終會高於 2 Bcf。不過在某個點上，你確實會看到邊際效益遞減。我不確定我們是否已經找到那個點；我們仍在摸索，而且也取決於區域。

The next question is from Holly Stewart from Scotia Howard Weil.

下一個問題來自 Scotia Howard Weil 的 Holly Stewart。

Maybe can we just talk broadly on NGL realizations? I know you guys take some of yours in kind, maybe just talk about kind of what you're seeing in the market right now. It seems that the last few quarters, maybe we were -- I don't know, parity with Belvieu. I mean, it looks like now, maybe we've moved back to a discount, so just kind of curious as to what you're seeing in the marketplace.

我們能否廣泛談一下 NGL 的實現價格（realizations）？我知道你們有一部分是以實物（in kind）方式取得，能否談談你們目前在市場上看到的情況？看起來過去幾季，也許我們——我不確定——與 Belvieu 大致持平。但現在看起來也許又回到折價，所以想了解你們在市場上觀察到什麼。

Yes, Holly, that's a seasonal phenomenon, generally. You track Belvieu pretty tightly in the winter months, and then it winds out in the summer, generally speaking. And hopefully, that gets bridged, that once we have inning 2 in place. But I think, we have some hedges in place that's detracted from the bottom line value of NGLs this quarter that were a bit negative. But we're still around 50% of WTI in the second quarter. So that sort of the soft period, and we'd expect that to improve as you go into the fall -- late fall and winter time.

是的，Holly，那通常是季節性現象。一般來說，冬季月份你會相當緊密地跟隨 Belvieu，而到了夏季通常就會拉開。希望在第二階段（inning 2）到位後，這個差距能被彌補。但我認為，我們有一些避險部位在本季對 NGL 的最終獲利貢獻造成拖累，且略為負面。不過在第二季，我們仍約為 WTI 的 50%。因此那算是相對疲弱的期間，我們預期進入秋季——尤其是深秋與冬季——情況會改善。

Okay, that's great. And then maybe just on the marketing efforts. I know we were a bit narrower in the last few quarters, and that's tougher to remarket your excess capacity. Has anything -- are you seeing anything that changed so far, here in the third quarter, given that the basis is wind out?

好的，那太好了。接著也許談一下行銷方面的努力。我知道過去幾個季度我們的範圍收得比較窄，而要重新行銷你們的多餘產能就更困難。到目前為止——在第三季這裡，你們有看到任何變化嗎？考量到基差的逆風已經消退？

Well, certainly, you've seen, Holly, and the market has seen that all eyes are looking towards Rover. And so when Rover looked like it was going to happen in the second quarter, then from shippers that had excess capacity started bidding up on the distressed gas that was in Dominion South and Tetco M2 pools, and so base is narrowed. Once the delays became evident in Rover then the basis widened again. So we're certainly seeing that dynamic going on. Production in Appalachia continues to grow so -- including with ourselves. So we do see that the near-term projects will fill up relatively soon and -- but the dynamic there is just with Dom South and Tetco M2 relative to Rover and REX, right now.

當然，你已經看到，Holly，市場也看到所有人的目光都在看 Rover。因此當第二季 Rover 看起來要成行時，那些有多餘運能的託運人開始對 Dominion South 與 Tetco M2 池中的困境天然氣出價，於是基差收斂。一旦 Rover 的延遲變得明顯，基差又再度擴大。所以我們確實看到這種動態正在發生。阿帕拉契亞的產量持續成長——包括我們自己也是。因此我們確實看到短期專案會相對很快被填滿——但目前那裡的動態就是 Dom South 與 Tetco M2 相對於 Rover 與 REX 的關係。

Okay. And then maybe final one from me. Just since you hit on Rover. The delays -- I know you guys have kind of shifted some activity back to the Utica in preparation for that project coming online. Has this delay impacted, any thoughts on kind of the development schedule?

好的。那我最後一個問題。既然你提到了 Rover。關於延遲——我知道你們為了該專案上線，已把部分活動轉回 Utica。這次延遲是否造成影響？對於開發時程有什麼想法嗎？

Not really. We -- those Utica wells and pads are being drilled now. And so we're timing the completion to dovetail with Rover phase I, as it arrives at Seneca. Our latest estimate and obviously, we're in contact with both energy transfer on the Rover project, as well as with regulatory people on the other side. And do see that the project is moving forward. We expect Rover Phase I to get to Seneca in September, October. And so we'll time the completion of our pads there in the Utica to that. And then, we would expect Rover Phase II -- it's probably a month or 2 behind that. So we're thinking October, November for Phase II to come to Sherwood. And certainly, we'll have plenty of production that will be moving through Phase II Rover when it arrives in the third and fourth quarters.

其實沒有。我們——那些 Utica 的井與井場現在正在鑽。因此我們會把完井時點安排得與 Rover 第一期在抵達 Seneca 時相銜接。我們最新的估計——當然，我們一方面與 Rover 專案的 Energy Transfer 保持聯繫，另一方面也與監管端的人員保持聯繫。我們確實看到專案正在推進。我們預期 Rover 第一期會在 9 月、10 月到達 Seneca。因此我們會把 Utica 那邊井場的完井時點配合這個時間。接著，我們預期 Rover 第二期——大概會比那個晚 1 到 2 個月。所以我們認為第二期會在 10 月、11 月到達 Sherwood。而且可以確定的是，當第二期 Rover 在第三、第四季到位時，我們會有充足的產量會透過 Rover 第二期輸送。

The next question is from David Tameron from Wells Fargo.

下一個問題來自富國銀行（Wells Fargo）的 David Tameron。

Just -- can I just talk about philosophically the higher sand proppant, the higher loadings? Why not just -- all the operators are doing this but as rather than going 1,500 to 1,800 to 2,000, 2,500? Have you guys put on any big -- why not just jump like a 3,500 number and try some of those wells? I know that's a little bit of a Wall Street dummy down version, but what -- why not take that approach and then dial it back, or do not think the rock can put away that much sand? Or how -- can you just talk about that?

我想——能否從理念上談談更高的砂支撐劑（proppant）用量、更高的加砂強度？為什麼不直接——所有營運商都在做這件事，但與其從 1,500 到 1,800 到 2,000、2,500 這樣逐步增加，你們有沒有做過任何大幅度的——為什麼不直接跳到像 3,500 這樣的數字，去試幾口井？我知道這有點像華爾街把問題簡化的版本，但——為什麼不採取那種做法，然後再往回調？還是你們認為岩層無法容納那麼多砂？或者——能否談談這點？

Yes. We -- I do think that the rock can take that much proppant. And we've just been a little more conservative, wanting to make sure that what we're doing -- I think we're inching up from the low side versus jumping out there. So -- and being a little bit conservative, we try not to change too many variables too quickly, especially when there's a lag time of at least 90 days before we have a bead on what the well is doing, relative to type curve. So we've just -- when we do these pilots, we do them, say, a pad at a time. Let's say it's a 12-well pad, we'll do 6 wells to the north one way, and 6 wells to the south the other way. So just a little bit of a deliberate approach in not changing too many variables at once. But there is nothing to say that the rock can't take more proppant. We're also working with our cluster spacing and just tightening that up, in order -- and the purpose there is to keep the fracs close to the wellbore and just have higher recovery factors close to the wellbore, so continue to adjust the parameters. We're still in the relatively early innings on what the optimum frac is. I don't think we've arrived at that yet. But making good progress and seeing really encouraging results up through 2,500.

可以。我們——我確實認為岩層可以承受那麼多支撐劑。只是我們比較保守一些，想先確保我們正在做的事情——我認為我們是從較低端逐步往上，而不是一下子跳得很遠。所以——我們採取較保守的方式，盡量不要在短時間內改變太多變數，尤其是至少要有 90 天的滯後期，我們才看得出井的表現相對於型態曲線（type curve）如何。因此我們只是——當我們做這些試驗（pilot）時，通常是以一個井場為單位來做。例如一個 12 口井的井場，我們會做 6 口往北一個方向、6 口往南另一個方向。所以就是比較審慎的做法，不會一次改太多變數。但沒有任何理由說岩層不能承受更多支撐劑。我們也在調整我們的簇間距（cluster spacing），並把它縮小，目的在於——讓壓裂更靠近井筒，並在井筒附近取得更高的採收率，因此會持續調整參數。我們仍處於尋找最佳壓裂方案的相對早期階段。我不認為我們已經到達最佳點。但我們進展良好，而且在加到 2,500 的範圍內看到非常令人鼓舞的結果。

Okay. Let me go back to valuation. I think about slide 9 that you talked about, Glen. And whoever, Paul or Glen whoever want to take this. But as we said on our table not only you laid it out a lot better on the Slide 9. But when you just think about 16.5 Ts and enterprise value of $11 billion or $12 billion. No matter how you look at this, it seems like there's value embedded within the shares, and we can talk about why the stock has worked or hasn't worked. But can you -- how should we think about your ability to or your desired to do something to unlock that value? I know -- well, I'll just leave at that. Let you response to that. And I know you're already taking the approach of, a, we'll create the company and create the value in that, it'll eventually be recognized. But how should we think about your desire to maybe accelerate that process?

好的。我回到估值。我想到你提到的第 9 頁投影片，Glen。Paul 或 Glen，誰想回答都可以。但就像我們在表格上說的，你在第 9 頁投影片把它講得更清楚。當你只看 16.5 Tcf 以及 110 億或 120 億美元的企業價值。不管怎麼看，都像是股票裡面內含了價值；我們也可以談為什麼股價表現好或不好。但你能否——我們應該如何看待你們有能力、或你們是否有意願做些事情來釋放那個價值？我知道——好吧，我就先停在這裡。讓你回應。而且我知道你們已經採取的做法是：a，我們會把公司做好、把價值做出來，最終市場會認可。但我們應該如何看待你們是否希望加速這個過程？

Well, I think, this is part of it, highlighting the various pieces. Some of these parts are difficult to decipher unless you really dig in. And one is just that after-tax value of the midstream business. I think some -- may be would not have recognized that we do have $1.5 billion of NOLs, one could apply against any selldown of that. I'm not implying that we would sell down any. I'm just taking it to the extreme, what's it worth if you sold the whole block. And then the hedge value and you do the math, and it worked due to the core acres and this is kind of one way to look at it. So I think we agree there is a lot of value there. And part of the process is perhaps just highlighting the various parts for investors. It's not particularly hidden. It's not something where there's hidden value that the people can't do the math on. So we're just trying to help with that. I think right now, there's something that we discussed at the board level on a quarterly basis. And we'll continue to analyze this -- no real initiatives at this point other than to point this out to the investment community.

嗯，我想這就是其中一部分：把各個組成部分凸顯出來。其中有些部分如果不深入研究，其實很難看懂。其中之一就是中游業務的稅後價值。我想有些人——可能沒有意識到我們有 15 億美元的 NOL（淨營運虧損結轉），可以用來抵減任何出售該部分股權的稅負。我並不是在暗示我們會出售任何部分。我只是把它推到極端情境：如果把整個區塊都賣掉，它值多少。再加上避險價值，你把數學算一算，剩下的就是核心 acreage（核心區塊土地/礦權），這是一種看待方式。所以我想我們同意那裡有很多價值。而這個過程的一部分，或許就是把各個部分更清楚地呈現給投資人。它並不是特別隱藏。也不是那種大家算不出來的隱藏價值。所以我們只是試著在這方面提供協助。我想目前這也是我們在董事會層級每季都會討論的事情。我們會持續分析——現階段除了向投資社群指出這些之外，沒有其他實質的行動方案。

The next question is from Subhasish Chandra from Guggenheim.

下一個問題來自 Guggenheim 的 Subhasish Chandra。

I'm thinking out loud a little bit here, but this ties in David's question. So the upstream companies with niche amenities have often complained about some of our discounts. It hasn't worked. I don't think pointing it out has helped others either. But one of the things that seems to have worked at least in the EQT/Rice deal is somewhat of a return of capital strategy. So as you know, today's point as you -- and you -- I think you've answered it. It's something you're well aware of and you've discuss at the board level. But when do you go to Plan B? If just the information does not close the sum of parts?

我這裡稍微把想法講出來，但這也呼應 David 的問題。因此，具備利基型配套設施的上游公司，經常抱怨我們的一些折價。這沒有奏效。我不認為把它點出來也對其他人有幫助。但看起來至少在 EQT/Rice 這筆交易中，有效的一件事是某種資本回饋策略。所以如你所知，今天的重點是你——以及你——我想你已經回答了。這是你非常清楚、而且你們已在董事會層級討論過的事情。但你們什麼時候會轉向 B 計畫？如果僅靠資訊揭露無法縮小分部加總（SOTP）的差距呢？

Yes, there's no time line on that. I don't think we're going to hold out that we'll have a plan by the end of 2018 or anything like that. But it's something that we continue to study and are very aware of. I mean, we're shareholders, as well, in a pretty big way. And it's something that we would like to see more value there in the share price. So can't really give you a time line, Subhasish, but it's something that we do think about and spend time on for sure.

是的，這件事沒有時間表。我不認為我們會硬說到 2018 年底前就會有一個計畫之類的。但這是我們持續研究、也非常留意的事情。我的意思是，我們也是股東，而且持股比重相當大。我們也希望股價能反映出更多價值。所以 Subhasish，我無法真的給你一個時間表，但這確實是我們會思考並投入時間的事情。

Yes. And so what you think of range sort of hinted at it to go down the Cabot path. What you think of return of capital -- pre-capital or dividend, that all.

是的。所以你提到的 Range 其實某種程度暗示了走 Cabot 那條路。你怎麼看資本回饋——不管是回購或股利之類的？

Yes, I think that's within the horizon that we look at. Certainly, over the next few years, we do expect to be fairly free cash flow neutral, here over the next couple of years. So we are getting to that point as well. And it's something that's certainly will be considered at the board level.

是的，我認為那在我們評估的範圍之內。當然，在接下來幾年，我們預期在未來幾年會大致達到自由現金流中性，至少在接下來這一兩年。所以我們也正在接近那個階段。而這也肯定會在董事會層級被納入考量。

Got it. Okay. My next question is, say, in the PV-10, how much of the increase -- because it was quite strong relative to at least our expectations in the value of the reserves. Was there a lower operating cost structure?

了解。好。我下一個問題是，例如在 PV-10 裡，增幅中有多少——因為相對於至少我們對儲量價值的預期，它相當強勁。是來自較低的營運成本結構？

We certainly had some lower well cost built in. So that's come down over time. I think there's a slide on the website, a slide that shows you quarter-by-quarter but we saw another notch down, particularly in the Utica on the well cost in the second quarter. Operating cost, no real change there. The 600 wells that were upgraded type curve that drives partly the acquisitions drive it. We added quite a bit of PV-10 by adding those acquisitions here in the first 6 months of the year. But also, we're just continually adding acreage on the ground and back to the core -- number of core locations slide, I think it was Slide #8. We do a very meticulous bottoms up analysis on core locations. And it's tied to our 3P locations, that's why we disclosed 3P reserves. It's very much bottoms up, laying out lateral links and well density on our acreage position. And we do the same analysis for all the peers. Where some companies, some peers, just simply do a top-down analysis on these locations, and that's what drives analysis around NAV, it's on the Street. If you just use a top line acreage number divide that well density, that gets you to a number of locations. But that's not the same as you're looking at it on the ground because a lot of acreage is scattered. And we don't really count that. So we're kind of 85% efficient in our location counts in both our reserves and on this slide, I mean, at least 15% of the acreage out that's scattered, and we do the same for other operators. So it's truly developable acreage. But we saw nice uptick in that 400 locations you see here on the slide in the first half of the year. And so that's part of the driver behind the PV-10 pickup.

我們確實把一些較低的單井成本納入了假設。所以這段時間以來一直在下降。我想網站上有一張投影片，按季度呈現；但我們又看到再往下調一檔，特別是第二季 Utica 的單井成本。營運成本方面，沒有什麼實質變化。那 600 口井的升級型曲線（type curve）部分是由併購所驅動。我們在今年前 6 個月透過新增這些併購，增加了相當多的 PV-10。但同時，我們也持續在地面上增加土地部位，回到核心——核心井位數量那張投影片，我想是第 8 張。我們對核心井位做非常細緻的由下而上分析。而且它與我們的 3P 井位相連結，這也是我們為什麼揭露 3P 儲量。這非常由下而上：在我們的土地部位上規劃水平段連結與井距密度。我們也對所有同業做同樣的分析。有些公司、一些同業，只是對這些井位做由上而下的分析，而這也驅動了華爾街上圍繞 NAV 的分析。如果你只是用一個總體土地面積數字再除以井距密度，就會得到一個井位數。但那和你在地面上實際看是不一樣的，因為很多土地是零散分布的。而我們不太把那種算進去。所以在我們的井位計數上——不論是在儲量或這張投影片——我們大概有 85% 的效率；也就是說，至少有 15% 的土地是零散在外的；我們對其他營運商也做同樣的處理。所以這是真正可開發的土地。但我們在上半年看到你在投影片上看到的那 400 個井位有不錯的上升。因此，這也是 PV-10 增加背後的部分驅動因素。

And just final one from me. Is the Rover included the Rover FD and so on included in the reserve report?

我最後一個問題。Rover 是否包含在儲量報告裡——包含 Rover 的 FD 等等也都包含嗎？

Yes, I mean, we factor in all of our firm transport in that in terms of pricing and cost.

是的，我的意思是，我們在定價與成本方面，把所有的確定運輸（firm transport）都納入考量。

Yes. And net- backs -- and the ultimate sales price for each Mcf to go into the volumetrically proportional ultimate sales price. So yes, a Rover net-back would be included in that reserve report, and it would be -- I don't know the day-to-day, say, Rover comes on, but it's probably October Phase I and December Phase II, I'm sure they're conservative on that.

是的。以及淨回收（net-backs）——每 Mcf 的最終銷售價格會納入按體積比例計算的最終銷售價格。所以是的，Rover 的淨回收會包含在那份儲量報告中，而且它會——我不清楚日常細節，例如 Rover 何時上線，但大概是 10 月第一期、12 月第二期；我確定他們在這方面會採取保守假設。

The last question is from James Sullivan from Alembic Global Advisors.

最後一個問題來自 Alembic Global Advisors 的 James Sullivan。

Maybe you could talk about it as it pertains to the PV-10, but also maybe in the medium-term about how ethane pricing worked into your assumptions? And maybe just first on the PV-10, and then what you guys are seeing in terms of the near-term market there? If you could just update us on that -- on how you're feeling about that from the marketing side?

也許你可以談談它與 PV-10 的關聯，但也許在中期方面，乙烷定價是如何納入你們的假設？也許先談 PV-10，然後再談你們對那邊近期市場的觀察？如果可以的話，請就行銷端的角度更新一下——你們對此的感受如何？

Yes, I can tackle the first part of that and maybe Paul for the second on that marketing kind of going forward. But we assume that we extract as much ethane as we need to both meet pipelines spec, but also to meet various contracts that we have in place. One being the Borealis contract, for instance that sprays into place once ME2 is online or is up and running. So the -- those kind of things were baked in. And we don't assume any more than that, so we're not recovering all of the ethane by any means in the reserve report. So it's very much tied to what we're doing on the ground.

是的，我可以先回答第一部分，第二部分關於未來行銷面的部分也許由 Paul 來補充。但我們假設我們會抽取足夠多的乙烷，以同時符合管線規格（spec），也滿足我們已簽訂的各項合約。例如其中一個是 Borealis 合約，一旦 ME2 上線或開始運轉就會生效。所以——這類事項都已納入假設。而且我們不會假設超過那個程度，因此在儲量報告中，我們絕不是把所有乙烷都回收。所以這非常取決於我們在現場實際的作法。

Yes, that's right. And in terms of economics right now, as Glen mentioned, we're recovering just enough ethane to stay within spec for the pipelines. And so 3/4 of the ethane at least is being left in the stream. And the economic dictates that, that one gets paid more on Btu basis for the ethane. Right now, leaving it in the stream. The forward curve would say that we will be recovering next year ethane is up in the 26, 27 range, and it goes up further from there. So that will get into recovery mode [indiscernible] -- so we'll expect to recover more and certainly, as we get towards Cal 20 and Cal 21, or some really big volumes for sales, which (inaudible) on their cracker and others. As that comes closer and closer, there'll be better and better economics for recovering ethane, ultimately.

是的，沒錯。就目前的經濟性而言，如 Glen 提到的，我們回收的乙烷僅足以讓管線規格達標。因此，至少有 3/4 的乙烷被留在氣流中。而經濟性驅動了這個決策：以 Btu 基礎計價，乙烷留在氣流中，現在拿到的報酬更高。目前是把它留在氣流中。遠期曲線顯示，明年我們會進入乙烷回收，乙烷價格會到 26、27 的區間，之後還會更高。所以那將進入回收模式 [indiscernible]——因此我們預期會回收更多；而且當我們接近 2020 年與 2021 年（Cal 20、Cal 21）時，會有一些非常大的銷售量，這與他們的裂解廠（cracker）以及其他項目有關（(inaudible)）。隨著那個時間點越來越近，回收乙烷的經濟性最終會越來越好。

Okay. Great. And can you just remind us what the pricing mechanism there? Or how exactly on the Borealis contract and what you put over on MET what you guys are expecting to get for that portion of your ethane stream?

好的。很好。那您能否提醒我們一下那邊的定價機制是什麼？或者說，在 Borealis 合約上具體是怎麼定價的，以及你們在 MET 那邊所安排的部分，對於你們乙烷氣流那一部分預期能拿到什麼價格？

Well, we can't get into the exact particulars of the contract. But suffice it to say that it's based on gas value and recovery of cost and net of transportation. So I feel it's a reasonable contract, and we have others that are in a similar range.

嗯，我們無法談到合約的確切細節。但簡單來說，它是以天然氣價值為基礎，並包含成本回收，且扣除運輸費用後計算。所以我認為這是一份合理的合約，而且我們也有其他合約落在相近的區間。

But it's price -- a premium to gas value at the end of the day, mostly its cost side.

但就價格而言——到最後是相對於天然氣價值有溢價，主要體現在成本端。

Okay. So you guys are thinking about it as an increment off of what you're -- of what you've been realizing in the middle part of this year?

好的。所以你們的想法是，相較於你們——相較於今年年中那段時間你們實現的價格，會有一個增量？

Yes, that's right. The premium to gas value, net of cost.

是的，沒錯。相對於天然氣價值的溢價，扣除成本後的淨額。

Great. And just 2 other ones that are also kind of ethane-related. But on your Slide 3, where you show your 17 program pads you kind of estimated you'll [work] for 1,000 feet, are those with or without ethane recovery? I know you're obviously doing some partial ethane recovery, so I just want to know what the actual are? If you could just show in the C3+ processed going on?

很好。另外還有兩個也算是跟乙烷相關的問題。在你們的投影片第 3 頁，你們展示了 17 個計畫井台（program pads），你們大概估計每 1,000 英尺會[作業]，那些數字是包含乙烷回收還是不包含？我知道你們顯然在做一些部分乙烷回收，所以我只是想知道實際情況是什麼？如果你們能在正在處理的 C3+ 方面呈現一下？

I believe these are all just wellhead.

我相信這些都只是井口端（wellhead）。

Yes, they're with ATEX.

是的，它們是搭配 ATEX 的。

So that's not assuming -- it's not putting 6x multiple on ethane extracted, it's just simply wellhead production.

所以那並不是假設——並不是對抽取出的乙烷套用 6 倍倍數，而只是單純的井口產量。

So that's actually wellhead without any processing?

所以那其實是未經任何處理的井口產量？

Correct.

正確。

Okay. All right, that's good. And then, you guys have typically shown those pre- and post-processing numbers in your type curves and you guys gave a kind of wellhead number with your increase here from 172 in the central part of (inaudible) in Tyler. But if you were to just take a stab at, we're like at for 1,250 Btu per cubic foot or would be standard like a wet gas window type curve that's now being upgraded for 172 would have post-processing per foot type curve number would be roughly, including and excluding ethane?

好的。好，這樣就清楚了。然後，你們通常會在你們的型態曲線（type curves）中展示處理前與處理後的數字，而你們這次在 Tyler 的（聽不清）中部把數字從 172 提升時，給的是一個井口端的數字。但如果要你們大概估一下，假設是每立方英尺 1,250 Btu，或是像濕氣窗（wet gas window）那種標準型態曲線，現在升級到 172 之後，處理後按每英尺的型態曲線數字大概會是多少——包含與不包含乙烷各是多少？

Yes, that's a good question. People are always confused about that wellhead versus process. And if you look at the bottom of Page 3, you can see by well pad what the average processed Bcfe per 1,000. So whenever we put e on the end of Bcf, that denotes that it's been processed. So you can see that these average -- all these pads that we've completed this year and they've been online for 60, 90 days-plus, so much -- quite a bit longer, some are up to 6 months, I think, average about 2.5 Bcfe per 1,000. And that's all for that roughly 2 Bcf type curve at the wellhead.

是的，這是個好問題。大家總是對井口端與處理後的差異感到困惑。如果你看第 3 頁底部，你可以按井台看到每 1,000（英尺）的平均處理後 Bcfe。所以當我們在 Bcf 後面加上 e，表示它已經過處理。因此你可以看到這些平均值——我們今年完工的所有這些井台，而且它們已上線 60、90 天以上，所以時間——相當長，有些我想已經到 6 個月，平均大約 2.5 Bcfe/1,000。而這些都對應到井口端大約 2 Bcf 的型態曲線。

So that's a pretty good rule of thumb, that a 2.0 Bcf converts to a 2.5. It will depend a little bit on Btu. But add a 0.5 factor to convert to equivalent and that is with ethane left in the stream.

所以這是一個相當不錯的經驗法則：2.0 Bcf 會轉換成 2.5。這會稍微取決於 Btu。但加上 0.5 的係數來換算成等值（equivalent），而且這是在乙烷仍留在氣流中的情況下。

Those on Page 3 would probably have -- take all the averages just under 1,250 Btu, maybe 1,240 Btu, or 1,230 Btu, close enough.

第 3 頁上的那些，平均值大概會——把所有平均值加總起來大約略低於 1,250 Btu，可能是 1,240 Btu 或 1,230 Btu，差不多就可以了。

So when that bottom's trip on 3 that is with ethane left in the stream?

所以第 3 頁底部那一排，是在乙烷仍留在氣流中的情況下？

That's correct. If you've extracted ethane and multiply it by 6 because you really have -- you're getting good market value for ethane above gas value. The net would jump at 2.5 number up into the below 3 region or 3 to 3.2, probably something like that with Tcfe production.

沒錯。如果你把乙烷抽取出來並乘以 6，因為你確實——乙烷相對於天然氣價值能取得不錯的市場價值。淨額會把 2.5 那個數字推升到接近 3 以下的區間，或 3 到 3.2 左右，大概會是那樣的 Tcfe 產量。

This concludes our question-and-answer session. I would now like to turn the conference back over to Mr. Kennedy for any closing remarks.

我們的問答環節到此結束。我現在想把會議交回給 Kennedy 先生，請他做任何結語。

Thank you for joining us for today's conference call. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us. Thanks again.

感謝各位參加今天的電話會議。如果您還有任何進一步的問題，歡迎隨時與我們聯繫。再次感謝。

The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.

本次會議到此結束。感謝您參加今天的簡報。您現在可以掛線。