Dynagas LNG Partners LP (DLNG) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Thank you for standing by, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Dynagas LNG Partners Conference Call on the first-quarter 2024 financial results. We have with us Mr. Tony Lauritzen, Chief Executive Officer; and Mr. Michael Gregos, Chief Financial Officer of the company.

女士們、先生們，感謝大家的支持，歡迎參加 Dynagas LNG 合作夥伴關於 2024 年第一季財務表現的電話會議。與我們在一起的還有執行長 Tony Lauritzen 先生；以及公司財務長 Michael Gregos 先生。

At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. (Operator Instructions) I must advise you that this conference is being recorded today. Please be reminded that the company announced its results with a press release that has been publicly distributed.

此時，所有參與者都處於只聽模式。（操作員指示）我必須通知您，今天的會議正在錄製。請注意，該公司透過公開發布的新聞稿公佈了其業績。

At this time, I would like to remind everyone that in today's presentation and conference call, Dynagas LNG Partners will be making forward-looking statements. These statements are within the meaning of the federal securities laws. This conference call and slide presentation contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

此時，我想提醒大家，在今天的簡報和電話會議中，Dynagas LNG Partners 將做出前瞻性聲明。這些聲明符合聯邦證券法的涵義。本電話會議和投影片簡報包含 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》安全港條款意義內的某些前瞻性陳述。

The statements in today's conference call that are not historical facts, including among other things, the expected financial performance of Dynagas LNG Partners' business, Dynagas Partners LNG ability to pursue growth opportunities, Dynagas Partners LNG expectations or objectives regarding future and market charter rate expectations and in particular, the effects of COVID-19 on financial condition and operations of Dynagas Partners LNG and the LNG industry in general, maybe forward-looking statements as such as defined in Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as amended.

今天電話會議中的陳述並非歷史事實，其中包括 Dynagas LNG Partners 業務的預期財務業績、Dynagas Partners LNG 追求成長機會的能力、Dynagas Partners LNG 對未來和市場租船費率預期的預期或目標特別是，COVID -19 對Dynagas Partners LNG 的財務狀況和營運以及整個液化天然氣產業的影響，可能是經修訂的1934 年《證券交易法》第21E 條中定義的前瞻性聲明。

Matters discussed may be forward-looking statements which are based on current management expectations that involve risks and uncertainties that may result in such expectations not being realized. I kindly draw your attention to slide 2 of the webcast presentation, which has the full forward-looking statement and the same statement was also included in the press release. Please take a moment to go through the whole statement and read it.

討論的事項可能是前瞻性陳述，這些陳述基於當前管理層的預期，涉及可能導致此類預期無法實現的風險和不確定性。請您注意網路廣播簡報的幻燈片 2，其中包含完整的前瞻性聲明，新聞稿中也包含了相同的聲明。請花一點時間瀏覽並閱讀整個聲明。

And now, I'll pass the floor to Mr. Lauritzen. Please go ahead, sir.

現在，我將請 Lauritzen 先生發言。請繼續，先生。

Morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us in our three months ended March 31, 2024 earnings conference call. I'm joined today by our CFO, Michael Gregos. We have issued a press release announcing our results for the set period. Certain non-GAP measures will be discussed on this call and we have provided a description of those measures as well as a discussion of why we believe this information to be useful in our press release.

大家早安，謝謝您參加我們截至 2024 年 3 月 31 日的三個月收益電話會議。今天我們的財務長 Michael Gregos 也加入了我的行列。我們已發布新聞稿，宣布設定期間的結果。本次電話會議將討論某些非 GAP 措施，我們對這些措施進行了描述，並討論了為什麼我們認為這些資訊在我們的新聞稿中有用。

Let's start the presentation and move to slide 3. We today present results for the three month period ending on March 31, 2024. We are pleased to announce that all six LNG carriers in our fleet were operating under long-term charters with esteemed international gas companies.

讓我們開始演示並轉到幻燈片 3。我們今天公佈截至 2024 年 3 月 31 日的三個月業績。我們很高興地宣布，我們船隊中的所有六艘液化天然氣運輸船均與知名國際天然氣公司簽訂了長期租約。

For the first quarter of 2024, we reported net income of $11.8 million and earnings per common unit of $0.23. Our adjusted net income stood at $12.4 million, translating into adjusted earnings per common unit of $0.25. Furthermore, our adjusted EBITDA for the same period reached $29 million.

2024 年第一季度，我們報告淨利潤為 1,180 萬美元，每普通單位收益為 0.23 美元。我們調整後的淨利為 1,240 萬美元，換算成調整後每普通單位收益為 0.25 美元。此外，我們同期調整後的 EBITDA 達到 2,900 萬美元。

We are also pleased to report that subsequent to the quarter, we concluded a new lease financing agreement with China Development Bank Financial Leasing for four out of our six LNG carriers. This financing, totaling $345 million, along with available cash reserves, has enabled us to fully repay our existing debt before the facility's maturity in September '24.

我們也很高興地報告，本季結束後，我們與國開金融租賃有限公司就六艘液化天然氣運輸船中的四艘簽訂了新的租賃融資協議。這筆融資總額為 3.45 億美元，加上可用現金儲備，使我們能夠在該貸款於 2024 年 9 月到期之前完全償還現有債務。

After a long period of strategic deleveraging, we now enjoy significantly lower debt levels and a flexible financing package with two of our LNG carriers debt free. This position is as well for the partnerships next phase.

經過長期的策略去槓桿化，我們現在的債務水準顯著降低，並享有靈活的融資方案，我們的兩艘液化天然氣運輸船沒有債務。這一立場也適用於下一階段的合作關係。

I will now turn the presentation over to Michael, who will provide you with further comments to the financial results.

我現在將把演示文稿交給邁克爾，他將為您提供對財務業績的進一步評論。

Thank you, Tony. Moving on to slide 4, we are extremely pleased with closing of our $345 million lease financing for four out of our six LNG carriers, which along with $63.6 million cash on hand refinanced the remaining balance of $408 million under our initially $675 million senior secured credit facility at a significantly reduced margin and with an age-adjusted profile of about 23 years.

謝謝你，托尼。轉向幻燈片4，我們非常高興地為六艘液化天然氣運輸船中的四艘完成了3.45 億美元的租賃融資，該融資連同手頭的6360 萬美元現金，為我們最初的6.75 億美元高級擔保信貸下的剩餘4.08 億美元餘額進行了再融資設施的利潤率顯著降低，年齡調整後的概況約為 23 年。

Our three steam turbine LNG carriers built 2007 and 2008 have been lease financed with a tenor of five years and a purchase obligation at the end of five years of 20% of the initial financing amount. Our 2013 built vessel Arctic Aurora has been lease financed with a tenor of 10 years with a purchase obligation of 15% of the initial finance amount.

我們於 2007 年和 2008 年建造的三艘蒸汽渦輪機液化天然氣運輸船採用租賃融資，期限為五年，並在五年結束時承擔初始融資金額 20% 的購買義務。我們於 2013 年建造的船舶 Arctic Aurora 已採用租賃融資，期限為 10 年，購買義務為初始融資金額的 15%。

Following this refinancing, our total debt outstanding stands at $345 million, a reduction of $75 million compared to the prior quarter, while two of our vessels are now debt free. Following this floating rate refinancing, our total annual debt amortization will amount to $44 million.

此次再融資後，我們的未償債務總額為 3.45 億美元，比上一季減少了 7,500 萬美元，而我們的兩艘船現在已經沒有債務了。此次浮動利率再融資後，我們的年度債務攤銷總額將達到 4,400 萬美元。

We expect that this refinancing will provide a partnership with greater flexibility as there are no financial covenants and no prohibition on distribution to our common unit holders. On a steady state basis, we expect to reduce our financial leverage even further based on our current run rate EBITDA of $115 million, to approximately three times.

我們預計這次再融資將為合作夥伴提供更大的靈活性，因為沒有財務契約，也沒有禁止向我們的普通單位持有人分配。在穩定狀態的基礎上，我們預計將根據目前 1.15 億美元的 EBITDA 運行率進一步降低財務槓桿，降低至約三倍。

Moving to slide 5. Following the recent refinancing, we project the free cash flow to common equity after distribution to preferred unitholders to be approximately $8 million per quarter, contingent on the current SOFR rates, utilization and operating expenses.

轉到投影片 5。在最近的再融資之後，我們預計分配給優先單位持有人後的普通股自由現金流約為每季 800 萬美元，具體取決於當前的 SOFR 利率、利用率和營運費用。

Please note that our interest rate swap expires in September, and therefore from that point on, we will be fully exposed to current SOFR rates. This slide outlines the pro-forma cash breakeven per vessel per day based on the terms of our new financing.

請注意，我們的利率掉期將於 9 月到期，因此從那時起，我們將完全承受當前 SOFR 利率的影響。這張投影片概述了根據我們新融資條款每艘船每天的預計現金收支平衡。

For these calculations, we've utilized actual Q1 data for operating expenses, administrative expenses, and preferred distributions. We have also projected the debt service for the next 12 months using current SOFR rates and the scheduled amortization of the lease financing.

在這些計算中，我們使用了營運費用、管理費用和優先分配的實際第一季數據。我們還使用目前的 SOFR 利率和租賃融資的預定攤銷預測了未來 12 個月的償債情況。

As illustrated, the daily cash breakeven per day per vessel is $49,600 excluding preferred distributions compared to our actual contracted net rate of $71,380 per vessel per day in Q1.

如圖所示，每艘船每天的現金盈虧平衡點為 49,600 美元（不包括優先分配），而我們第一季的實際合約淨費率為每艘船每天 71,380 美元。

Moving on to slide 6, just a couple of words on the first quarter. Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net income were up by 23% and 87.7% respectively, primarily due to the increase in the voyage revenues of the Arctic Aurora following its new time charter party agreement with Equinor, which commenced in September 2023.

轉到投影片 6，只介紹第一季的幾句話。調整後 EBITDA 和調整後淨利潤分別成長 23% 和 87.7%，主要是由於 Arctic Aurora 與 Equinor 於 2023 年 9 月開始簽訂新期租約後航次收入增加。

As previously mentioned, we are very satisfied with the new lease financing arrangements secured for four of our vessels. These arrangements are structured to be organically repairable and do not restrict distributions to our common unitholders. Our main objective going forward is to focus on the utilization of our free cash flow.

如前所述，我們對我們四艘船舶的新租賃融資安排非常滿意。這些安排的結構是可有機修復的，並且不限制對我們的共同單位持有者的分配。我們未來的主要目標是專注於自由現金流的利用。

That wraps it up for my side. I will pass the presentation over to Tony.

我這邊就這樣結束了。我會將簡報轉交給東尼。

Thank you, Michael. Let's move on to slide 7 of the presentation. Currently, our fleet comprises of six LNG carriers with an average age of approximately 13.9 years. Our present charters include multiple gas companies such as Equinor, SEFE, and Yamal Trade. Also, Rio Grande LLC, a subsidiary of NextDecade, has forward chartered our vessels, Clean Energy and Arctic Aurora.

謝謝你，麥可。讓我們繼續觀看簡報的幻燈片 7。目前，我們的船隊由六艘液化天然氣運輸船組成，平均船齡約 13.9 年。我們目前的特許經營範圍包括多家天然氣公司，例如 Equinor、SEFE 和 Yamal Trade。此外，NextDecade 的子公司 Rio Grande LLC 也遠期包租了我們的清潔能源號和北極極光號船舶。

As of June 20, 2024, our fleet's contracted backlog stood at approximately $1.07 billion, which translates to an average of about $178.3 million per vessel. The fleet also enjoys an average remaining charter period of approximately 6.6 years.

截至 2024 年 6 月 20 日，我們船隊的合約積壓約為 10.7 億美元，相當於每艘船平均約 1.783 億美元。該船隊的平均剩餘租期約為 6.6 年。

Moving on to slide 8. Our commercial strategy is centered on securing long-term charters with prominent gas companies, ensuring a stable revenue stream. As a result of this approach, we have accumulated a solid contract backlog. Barring any unforeseen events, we have no contractual vessel availability until the year 2028, when the Clean Energy, Ob and Amur River will be available.

繼續看投影片 8。我們的商業策略的核心是與知名天然氣公司獲得長期特許，確保穩定的收入來源。透過這種方法，我們累積了堅實的合約積壓。除非發生任何不可預見的事件，否則我們在 2028 年之前都不會提供合約船舶，屆時清潔能源、鄂畢河和阿穆爾河將可用。

Following this, the Arctic Aurora will come off the Rio Grande energy contract in 2033 with the Yenisei and Lena River becoming available in the year 2034, provided that the charters do not exercise their extension options. The global fleet of energy carriers has expanded rapidly, with the new building order book now exceeding more than 50% of existing fleets.

此後，北極極光號將於 2033 年脫離格蘭德河能源合同，而葉尼塞河和勒拿河將於 2034 年啟用，前提是租船合約不行使延期選項。全球能源運輸船隊規模迅速擴大，新船訂單現已超過現有船隊的 50% 以上。

Most of these new builds are scheduled for delivery between now and 2028, and a significant majority of these orders have already been committed to specific charters. In the medium to long term, we anticipate that the current order book will be absorbed through the replacement of aging vessels and the global need to transport future incremental energy production.

大多數新船計劃從現在到 2028 年交付，其中絕大多數訂單已經簽訂了特定的包機合約。從中長期來看，我們預計目前的訂單將透過更換老化船舶和全球運輸未來增量能源生產的需求來吸收。

Notably, around 18% of the current energy fleet consists of smaller steam powered vessels with an average age exceeding 23 years. This older segment is likely to be phased out or replaced as newer, more efficient vessels come online.

值得注意的是，目前約 18% 的能源船隊由平均船齡超過 23 年的小型蒸汽動力船舶組成。隨著更新、更有效率的船舶上線，這舊的部分可能會被淘汰或取代。

Additionally, increased transportation needs will arise from the 35% expansion in new energy capacity, which has already been approved and is at various stages of construction scheduled to come online before the year 2030. Given these factors, we believe our portfolio is strategically well positioned with no contractual availability until 2028.

此外，新能源產能擴張35%將帶來運輸需求的增加，產能已獲得批准並處於不同建設階段，計劃於2030年之前上線。考慮到這些因素，我們相信我們的投資組合在策略上處於有利位置，直到 2028 年才會簽訂合約。

In general, we anticipate that the long-term demand for energy will remain strong due to several factors. These include its favorable emission profile compared to traditional fossil fuels, the growing global demand for electrification, the efficiency of combined cycle power plants fueled by natural gas, the existing global infrastructure for energy production and distribution, and the absence of a superior alternative on a comparable scale.

總體而言，由於多種因素，我們預計能源的長期需求將保持強勁。這些因素包括與傳統化石燃料相比其有利的排放特徵、全球對電氣化不斷增長的需求、以天然氣為燃料的聯合循環發電廠的效率、現有的全球能源生產和分配基礎設施以及缺乏更好的替代方案可比規模。

Let's move to slide 9. Our new financing arrangements are not only low leverage, flexible, and low cost, but also come with long tenors, significantly enhancing our strategic flexibility for future initiatives. A major achievement in our financial management has been the substantial reduction in debts, where we have successfully lowered our outstanding debt from $675 million in September 2019 to $345 million today.

讓我們轉到投影片 9。我們新的融資安排不僅槓桿低、彈性、成本低，而且期限長，大大增強了我們未來措施的策略彈性。我們財務管理的一項重大成就是債務大幅減少，我們已成功地將未償債務從 2019 年 9 月的 6.75 億美元降低到今天的 3.45 億美元。

This reduction has also improved our net debt to EBITDA ratio, bringing it down from 6.6 times in September '19 to 3.3 times by March '24. Also, a notable portion of our fleet, amounting to 33%, now operates free of debt, thereby strengthening our asset base and providing a robust foundation for future growth.

這一減少也提高了我們的淨債務與 EBITDA 的比率，從 2019 年 9 月的 6.6 倍降至 24 年 3 月的 3.3 倍。此外，我們機隊的很大一部分（佔 33%）現在無債務運營，從而增強了我們的資產基礎，並為未來的成長奠定了堅實的基礎。

Our equity book value has seen significant growth, rising from $311 million in September 2019 to $457 million as of March 2024. Alongside this, our run-rate EBITDA has improved from $95 million in September 2019 to [$115] million as of today.

我們的股權帳面價值大幅成長，從 2019 年 9 月的 3.11 億美元增至 2024 年 3 月的 4.57 億美元。除此之外，我們的 EBITDA 運行率已從 2019 年 9 月的 9,500 萬美元提高到今天的 [1.15 億美元]。

Our strategy of organic deleveraging supported by contracted cash flows has been instrumental in maintaining a stable and predictable financial profile. We have ensured sustained income streams and as of today we maintain a contracted average revenue backlog of $178 million per vessel.

我們以合約現金流為支持的有機去槓桿化策略對於維持穩定且可預測的財務狀況發揮了重要作用。我們確保了持續的收入流，截至目前，我們的合約平均積壓收入為每艘船 1.78 億美元。

In summary, with new-found financial flexibility, a solid foundation of contracted cash flows, reduced leverage, and a broadened strategic vision, we believe the partnership is in a stable phase and well equipped to explore new opportunities. Thank you for your attention. We now have concluded the presentation and we invite you to ask any questions you may have.

總而言之，憑藉新的財務靈活性、堅實的合約現金流基礎、降低的槓桿率以及更廣闊的策略願景，我們相信雙方的合作關係處於穩定階段，並且有能力探索新的機會。感謝您的關注。我們現在已經結束了演示，歡迎您提出任何問題。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

Ben Nolan, Stifel.

本諾蘭，史蒂菲爾。

Thank you. Hey, Tony, Michael. First, congrats on the finalization of the new financing. I wanted to ask first, you guys talked about sort of the next phase of the company, the free cash flow of -- depending on what interest rates are, call it, $8 million a quarter, it sounds like your top priority here is for distributions, but could you maybe talk through both sort of how you think about where you envision that cash flow going and when you expect to make some sort of announcement about when that happens?

謝謝。嘿，托尼，邁克爾。首先，恭喜新融資完成。我想先問，你們談論了公司的下一階段，自由現金流——取決於利率，稱之為，每季度 800 萬美元，聽起來你們的首要任務是分配，但你們能否談談你們如何看待現金流的去向以及您預計何時發布某種公告？

Yes. Hi, Ben. Well, for the moment, [the end] from our refinancing is still worth, I mean we closed it yesterday. We just paid $63 million of our own cash to fully prepare our previous credit facility. So I guess we have to evaluate this on a quarter by quarter basis, given the prevailing circumstance at the time, and whether to utilize our cash for growth or distribution to prominent unitholders or otherwise. So I think it's a watch-the-space situation.

是的。嗨，本。好吧，就目前而言，我們的再融資[結束]仍然值得，我的意思是我們昨天結束了它。我們剛剛支付了 6300 萬美元的自有現金，以充分準備我們先前的信貸安排。因此，我想，考慮到當時的普遍情況，我們必須逐季度進行評估，以及是否利用我們的現金來實現增長或向知名單位持有人進行分配或以其他方式進行分配。所以我認為這是一種觀察空間的情況。

Okay. And is this something that we should expect, some sort of, in the coming quarter, for instance, some sort of change or is it a little further out?

好的。這是我們應該期待的事情嗎？

Well, as I said, we are going to evaluate this on a quarter by quarter basis. I don't have something to tell you now. We cannot commit on a timeline of when a decision will be made and what the decision will be. But it's on the radar screen.

嗯，正如我所說，我們將逐季度對此進行評估。我現在沒有什麼要告訴你的。我們無法承諾何時做出決定以及決定內容。但它出現在雷達屏幕上。

Okay. And then for my second question, whatever it is, you have those two now unencumbered assets. Do you think there is any potential to be able to finance those separately, or is the thinking that those probably just remain unencumbered?

好的。對於我的第二個問題，無論是什麼，你現在都擁有這兩項未支配資產。您認為是否有可能單獨為這些項目提供資金，或認為這些項目可能不會受到阻礙？

No, in theory it is possible to finance them. I think we've taken the decision for the moment that it's best for the partnership to keep them unencumbered. It's in line with our strategy of the deleveraging and bring the leverage down.

不，理論上是可以為他們提供資金的。我認為我們目前已經做出決定，最好讓合作夥伴保持不受阻礙。這符合我們的去槓桿、降槓桿的策略。

Okay. All right. That is it for me. Thanks.

好的。好的。對我來說就是這樣。謝謝。

Thank you, Ben.

謝謝你，本。

Thank you. (Operator Instructions)

謝謝。（操作員說明）

Mr. Lauritzen, it seems that there are no other questions at this time. I'll turn the floor back to you for any final comments.

Lauritzen先生，目前似乎沒有其他問題了。我將把最後的意見轉回給您。

Okay. Thank you. We appreciate your time and attention. Thank you for your participation, and we look forward to connecting with you again on our next call. Thank you very much and goodbye.

好的。謝謝。我們感謝您的時間和關注。感謝您的參與，我們期待在下次通話中再次與您聯繫。非常感謝，再見。

Thank you. This concludes today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與。