Noble Corporation PLC (NE) 2023 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good morning. My name is Brianna, and I will be the conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to Noble Corporation's First Quarter 2023 Financial Results Conference Call. (Operator Instructions)

早上好。我叫 Brianna，今天我將擔任會議運營商。此時，我想歡迎大家參加來寶公司 2023 年第一季度財務業績電話會議。 （操作員說明）

I would like to turn the conference over to Ian MacPherson, Vice President of Relations.

我想將會議轉交給負責關係的副總裁 Ian MacPherson。

Thank you, Brianna, and welcome, everyone, to Noble Corporation's First Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. You can find a copy of our earnings report, along with the supporting statements and schedules on our website at noblecorp.com. This conference call will be accompanied by a slide presentation that you can also find located at the Investor Relations section of our website.

謝謝布麗安娜，歡迎大家參加來寶公司 2023 年第一季度收益電話會議。您可以在我們的網站 noblecorp.com 上找到一份我們的收益報告以及支持報表和時間表。本次電話會議將附有幻燈片演示，您也可以在我們網站的投資者關係部分找到該演示文稿。

Today's call will feature prepared remarks from our President and CEO, Robert Eifler, as well as our CFO, Richard Barker. Also joining on the call are Blake Denton, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Contracts; and Joey Kawaja, Senior Vice President of Operations.

今天的電話會議將由我們的總裁兼首席執行官 Robert Eifler 以及我們的首席財務官 Richard Barker 準備好發言。參加電話會議的還有營銷和合同高級副總裁 Blake Denton；和運營高級副總裁 Joey Kawaja。

During the course of this call, we may make certain forward-looking statements regarding various matters related to our business and companies that are not historical facts. Such statements are based upon current expectations and assumptions of management and are therefore subject to certain risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements, and Noble does not assume any obligation to update these statements. Also note that we are referencing non-GAAP financial measures on the call today. You can find the required supplemental disclosure for these measures, including the most directly comparable GAAP measure and associated reconciliation in our earnings report issued yesterday and filed with the SEC.

在本次電話會議期間，我們可能會就與我們的業務和公司相關的各種非歷史事實的事項做出某些前瞻性陳述。此類陳述基於管理層當前的預期和假設，因此受到某些風險和不確定性的影響。許多因素可能導致實際結果與這些前瞻性陳述存在重大差異，來寶不承擔任何更新這些陳述的義務。另請注意，我們在今天的電話會議上參考了非 GAAP 財務指標。您可以在我們昨天發布並提交給美國證券交易委員會的收益報告中找到這些措施所需的補充披露，包括最直接可比的 GAAP 措施和相關調節。

With that, I'll now turn the call over to Robert Eifler, President and CEO of Noble.

有了這個，我現在將電話轉給 Noble 總裁兼首席執行官 Robert Eifler。

Thank you, Ian. Good morning. Welcome, everyone, and thank you for joining us on the call today. I'll begin with some opening remarks on recent progress with our operations and contract awards and then provide some broader market outlook commentary before turning the call over to Richard to review the financial results and outlook. After our prepared remarks, we'll be happy to take your questions as always.

謝謝你，伊恩。早上好。歡迎大家，感謝您今天加入我們的電話會議。我將首先就我們的運營和合同授予的近期進展發表一些開場白，然後提供一些更廣泛的市場前景評論，然後再將電話轉給理查德審查財務業績和前景。在我們準備好的評論之後，我們將很樂意一如既往地回答您的問題。

Starting on Page 3 of our earnings slides. 2023 is off to a great start as we continue to make steady headway with our business integration and continue to find exciting opportunities for recontracting our fleet into an improving market.

從我們收益幻燈片的第 3 頁開始。 2023 年是一個良好的開端，因為我們將繼續在業務整合方面穩步取得進展，並繼續尋找令人興奮的機會將我們的機隊重新收縮到一個不斷改善的市場中。

Q1 was our second full quarter as a combined company, and I would again like to take a moment to express my profound appreciation to all of our fantastic offshore crews and global shore-based team who have embraced this integration and placed Noble on such solid footing at the outset of the exciting future ahead of our industry today.

第一季度是我們作為合併後公司的第二個完整季度，我想再次花點時間對我們所有優秀的離岸船員和全球岸基團隊表示深深的感謝，他們接受了這種整合，並使來寶立足於如此堅實的基礎在我們行業今天的激動人心的未來的開端。

Richard will speak more to the financials but our first quarter adjusted EBITDA of $138 million was, in our view, a good start to the year and a building block for what we expect to be progressively improving earnings over the course of the year as the contracted status of our fleet improves and we continue to realize integration synergies.

理查德將更多地談論財務狀況，但我們認為，我們第一季度調整後的 EBITDA 為 1.38 億美元，這是今年的良好開端，也是我們預計在一年中逐步提高收益的基石。我們的船隊狀況得到改善，我們繼續實現整合協同效應。

As an aside, we did encounter some additional slippage with the start-up of the Globetrotter I’s contract in Mexico, due to the permitting delays that we described on last quarter's call.

順便說一句，由於我們在上個季度的電話會議上描述的允許延遲，我們在墨西哥的 Globetrotter I 合同啟動時確實遇到了一些額外的延誤。

Fortunately, we have resolved that permit issue and the Globetrotter I’s contract with Petronas is now expected to commence within the next 1 to 2 weeks. So considering the subtraction of that contract's previously expected contribution during the month of March, which was not insignificant, we feel great about the results for the first quarter overall and would like to commend our offshore and onshore teams for the excellent operational performance.

幸運的是，我們已經解決了許可證問題，現在 Globetrotter I 與 Petronas 的合同預計將在未來 1 到 2 週內開始。因此，考慮到該合同在 3 月份之前預期的貢獻有所減少，這並非微不足道，我們對第一季度的整體業績感到滿意，並讚揚我們的海上和陸上團隊的出色運營表現。

We're pleased to announce several new contract awards that are shown in our earnings press release and updated fleet status report. First, on the jackup side, the Noble Tom Prosser has been awarded new contracts from 2 operators in Malaysia for a combined estimated duration of 650 days starting in July. So the Prosser will be idle through most of the first half of this year, as we had previously indicated, but with full utilization, a modest day rate uplift and a lower operating cost profile in Malaysia compared to its prior contract in Australia, this rig is now well placed for an improved margin contribution over the next couple of years.

我們很高興地宣佈在我們的收益新聞稿和更新的機隊狀態報告中顯示的幾項新合同授予。首先，在自升式平台方面，Noble Tom Prosser 已獲得馬來西亞 2 家運營商的新合同，從 7 月開始，預計總工期為 650 天。因此，Prosser 將在今年上半年的大部分時間處於閒置狀態，正如我們之前指出的那樣，但與之前在澳大利亞簽訂的合同相比，該鑽井平台在馬來西亞的充分利用、適度的日費率提升和較低的運營成本概況，現在已經準備好在未來幾年提高利潤率。

Next, we've recently secured several new contracts and commitments across the Floater fleet. First, the 6th gen semisubmersible Noble Discoverer has received a contract with Ecopetrol in Colombia for one well priced at an undisclosed rate. Colombia is a reemerging exploration basin with several incremental drilling campaigns under evaluation in addition to this one.

接下來，我們最近在 Floater 艦隊中獲得了幾項新合同和承諾。首先，第 6 代半潛式 Noble Discoverer 已收到哥倫比亞 Ecopetrol 的一份合同，價格未公開。哥倫比亞是一個重新出現的勘探盆地，除此之外，還有幾個正在評估的增量鑽探活動。

The Ecopetrol contract is expected to commence in Q4, and we are cautiously optimistic about filling more time on the Noble Discoverer between the conclusion of its current contract this month and the startup window for the Ecopetrol contract. Additionally, the Noble Valiant, which is currently finishing a program in Suriname, has been awarded a contract for one well in the Gulf of Mexico with an undisclosed customer at $450,000 per day and is expected to commence in Q4 2023.

Ecopetrol 合同預計將於第四季度開始，我們對在本月當前合同結束與 Ecopetrol 合同啟動窗口之間為 Noble Discoverer 投入更多時間持謹慎樂觀態度。此外，目前正在蘇里南完成一個項目的 Noble Valiant 已獲得墨西哥灣一口油井的合同，未透露姓名的客戶每天 450,000 美元，預計將於 2023 年第四季度開始。

Prior to that well, the Valiant will mobilize back to the U.S. Gulf of Mexico to drill the Kosmos well that had previously been assigned to the Faye Kozak. And then this newly awarded one well contract will follow in direct continuation of the Kosmos contract, which creates a nice sequence for the Valiant into the fourth quarter.

在那口井之前，Valiant 將動員回到美國墨西哥灣，鑽探之前分配給 Faye Kozak 的 Kosmos 井。然後這份新授予的一口井合同將直接延續 Kosmos 合同，這為 Valiant 進入第四季度創造了一個很好的序列。

We had ample opportunities for the Valiant in 2024, both in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and elsewhere and would expect this rig to participate in the improving day rate environment as we contracted 2024 days. The rig swap on the Kosmos well was to accommodate some potential long-term work for the Faye Kozak, starting in the fourth quarter, which we hope to finalize and announce soon.

我們在 2024 年為 Valiant 提供了充足的機會，無論是在美國墨西哥灣還是其他地方，並且隨著我們縮短 2024 天，我們預計該鑽井平台將參與日費率環境的改善。 Kosmos 井的鑽機交換是為了適應 Faye Kozak 的一些潛在長期工作，從第四季度開始，我們希望盡快完成並宣布。

Last but not least, we're very happy to announce that ExxonMobil has committed an additional 6.3 years of backlog under the commercial enabling agreement in Guyana. This additional term will be distributed evenly across our 4 drillships in Guyana, thus extending each of them from Q4 2025 into Q2 2027.

最後但並非最不重要的一點是，我們非常高興地宣布埃克森美孚已根據圭亞那的商業授權協議承諾額外 6.3 年的積壓工作。這一額外期限將平均分配給我們在圭亞那的 4 艘鑽井船，從而將每艘鑽井船從 2025 年第四季度延長至 2027 年第二季度。

The unique combination of long-term engagement and collaboration plus market pricing has proven to be an incredibly productive and mutually beneficial commercial model for the Guyana development and we believe that this new additional backlog commitment speaks directly to the success of this model. We are pleased to have been entrusted with further work and honored to continue to play our small part in that world-class project.

長期參與和協作加上市場定價的獨特組合已被證明是圭亞那開發的一種令人難以置信的高效和互惠互利的商業模式，我們相信這一新的額外積壓承諾直接說明了這種模式的成功。我們很高興被委以進一步的工作，並很榮幸能繼續在這個世界級的項目中發揮我們的微薄作用。

With these signings, our backlog as of May 1 has increased to $4.6 billion, up from $3.9 billion at the beginning of the year. In addition to these recent contracts and commitments, we're optimistic that we should have some additional UDW contracts finalizing over the coming weeks, which could further bolster our backlog, and could also potentially resolve some of the near-term variability around white space that still appears on our fleet status sheet as of today. So we appreciate your patience as we work to get some more of these contracts over the finish line and look forward to updating you.

通過這些簽約，截至 5 月 1 日，我們的積壓訂單已從年初的 39 億美元增加到 46 億美元。除了這些最近的合同和承諾之外，我們樂觀地認為我們應該在未來幾週內完成一些額外的 UDW 合同，這可能會進一步增加我們的積壓，並且還可能解決圍繞空白空間的一些近期可變性至今仍出現在我們的艦隊狀態表上。因此，我們感謝您的耐心等待，因為我們正在努力通過終點線獲得更多此類合同，並期待為您更新。

So with that, I'd like to turn now to a broader market outlook. Last quarter, we provided a detailed geographic description of incremental UDW rig demand, concluding that an estimate of 10 to 15 incremental units in the near term on top of the low 90s contracted rig count that prevailed then as well as now.

因此，我現在想談談更廣泛的市場前景。上個季度，我們提供了對增量 UDW 鑽機需求的詳細地理描述，得出的結論是，除了當時和現在普遍存在的 90 年代低合同鑽機數量之外，短期內估計還會增加 10 到 15 個單位。

As we roll that outlook 2 months forward, nothing has fundamentally changed and we remain highly optimistic that tightness will prevail going into 2024. Oil price volatility immediately ensued from the jolting news of bank failures in March and continues with recent news, but our customers' underlying economics remain robust, and we have observed no pause or change in customer sentiment or forward planning.

當我們將這一前景向前推進 2 個月時，一切都沒有發生根本性的變化，我們仍然高度樂觀地認為，緊縮將在 2024 年盛行。石油價格波動隨即從 3 月份銀行倒閉的令人震驚的消息中傳出，最近的消息仍在繼續，但我們客戶的基礎經濟仍然強勁，我們沒有觀察到客戶情緒或前瞻性計劃的暫停或變化。

Contracted utilization of the marketed UDW fleet has increased to 92 out of 99 rigs or 93% effective utilization, up very slightly from last quarter. With this steadily creeping tightness in the existing marketed fleet, there is now, as expected, increasing bidding momentum behind the dozen or so sideline premium deepwater rigs that are either cold stacked or stranded in shipyards.

已銷售的 UDW 船隊的合同利用率已增加到 99 台鑽機中的 92 台或 93% 的有效利用率，與上一季度相比略有上升。隨著現有市場船隊的這種穩步增長的緊張局勢，正如預期的那樣，現在有十幾個冷堆或擱淺在造船廠的副業優質深水鑽井平台背後的競標勢頭越來越大。

As previously stated, we continue to expect a near-term dynamic in which some of this idle capacity is reactivated into the market at below average pricing. While the scarcity premium for hot rigs that have near-term availability will continue to push leading-edge rates towards $500,000 per day. Demand growth for UDW units over the near term is primarily expected across South America and West Africa. With Petrobras representing the largest component, demonstrated by outstanding tenders for 8 floaters including 7 for Brazil and 1 outside Brazil versus only 2 incumbent floating rigs coming off contract.

如前所述，我們繼續期待近期動態，其中一些閒置產能將以低於平均價格的價格重新投入市場。雖然短期可用的熱鑽機的稀缺性溢價將繼續推動前沿費率達到每天 500,000 美元。短期內 UDW 裝置的需求增長主要預計在南美和西非。 Petrobras 代表了最大的組成部分，8 個浮動鑽井平台的未完成招標證明了這一點，其中 7 個在巴西，1 個在巴西境外，而只有 2 個現有浮動鑽井平台合同到期。

We also expect an additional tender for 1 to 2 more units coming up. This indicates a need for 6 to 8 additional rigs for Petrobras in the near to medium term. These tenders have recently been subject to customary delays and wider delivery windows for some of these start dates extending into late 2024, are seen as an inducement to attract reactivations into the biding as can be observed in the most recent tender results.

我們還預計還會有 1 到 2 個單位的額外招標。這表明 Petrobras 在中短期內需要增加 6 到 8 個鑽井平台。這些招標最近出現了慣常的延誤，其中一些開始日期延長至 2024 年底，交付窗口更寬，這被視為吸引重新激活投標的誘因，正如在最近的招標結果中所觀察到的那樣。

Turning back to the Noble Fleet. As it stands today, we currently have approximately half of our marketed floater fleet exposed to contract rollovers over the next year. In addition to the 4 rigs operating under the CEA in Guyana, which reprice every 6 months. This affords us a great deal of attractive repricing leverage with a partial offset being the short-term utilization inefficiencies that arise from a backlog structure that for now still holds a meaningful amount of short-term contracts.

回到貴族艦隊。就目前情況而言，我們目前有大約一半的上市浮動船隊在明年面臨合同展期。除了在圭亞那的 CEA 下運營的 4 個鑽井平台外，每 6 個月重新定價一次。這為我們提供了大量有吸引力的重新定價槓桿，部分抵消了由積壓結構引起的短期利用效率低下，目前仍持有大量短期合同。

As previously stated, contract gaps and a relatively high number of 10-year SPSs are weighing on the utilization rates of our floater fleet over the near term despite the exceptionally tight underlying supply/demand. The periodic surveys for our floater fleet will peak in 2024 before normalizing significantly lower thereafter. This leaves backlog composition as the other area where we have an opportunity to pursue some utilization upside moving forward. A key question is whether customers are willing and motivated to start contracting on a longer-term basis. We see indications that some are.

如前所述，儘管基本供需異常緊張，但合同缺口和相對較多的 10 年期 SPS 正在對我們的浮動船隊的利用率產生壓力。我們的漂浮船隊的定期調查將在 2024 年達到頂峰，然後正常化顯著降低。這使得積壓構成成為我們有機會追求一些利用上行的另一個領域。一個關鍵問題是客戶是否願意並有動力開始簽訂長期合同。我們看到一些跡象。

Up to this point, apart from our unique arrangement in Guyana, Petrobras has been the main customer that has been taking a significant volume of multiyear floater contracts. If you look at the average duration of new floater contracts awarded, excluding Exxon Guyana and Petrobras Brazil, the average duration of all other floater contract awards year-to-date has been 12 months, which is an increase of more than 50% compared to the average of under 8 months per fixture during the comparable period a year ago. So term has already begun to expand and we would expect this trend to continue because contractors and operators are generally aligned around the motivations to reactivate the dozen or so high-spec sideline rigs and it simply won't be possible to satisfy implied demand of 10 to 15 additional deepwater rigs without an acceleration of reactivations, and these reactivations require multiyear contract support.

到目前為止，除了我們在圭亞那的獨特安排外，巴西國家石油公司一直是獲得大量多年期浮動合同的主要客戶。如果你看一下授予的新浮動合同的平均期限，不包括埃克森圭亞那和巴西石油公司，今年迄今為止所有其他浮動合同授予的平均期限為 12 個月，與相比增加了 50% 以上在一年前的可比期間平均每個裝置不到 8 個月。因此，期限已經開始擴大，我們預計這種趨勢將繼續下去，因為承包商和運營商通常圍繞重新激活十幾台高規格副業鑽井平台的動機達成一致，而且根本不可能滿足 10 台的隱含需求到 15 個額外的深水鑽井平台，而無需加速重新啟動，而這些重新啟動需要多年合同支持。

We are continuing to evaluate interesting opportunities to reactivate our cold stacked 7th generation drillship Meltem with appropriate contract coverage and will maintain our previously outlined disciplined approach with this rig. As a reminder, we estimate the Meltem would require at least $100 million total capital in a year or longer to reactivate.

我們正在繼續評估有趣的機會，以重新激活我們的冷堆第 7 代鑽井船 Meltem，並提供適當的合同範圍，並將保持我們之前概述的對該鑽井平台的紀律方法。提醒一下，我們估計 Meltem 在一年或更長時間內需要至少 1 億美元的總資本才能重新啟動。

Now on the jackup. Our outlook here is essentially the same as what we described last quarter. The Tom Prosser's new contracts for a combined 650 days are a welcome addition to our jackup backlog. Leading-edge jackup day rates outside of Norway and the North Sea are now in the $125,000 to $150,000 range. And while we do have bidding activity underway that could provide additional [backlog] for this year. These are generally more incremental in nature, and we continue to see improving demand possibilities for 2024 and beyond.

現在在自升式平台上。我們在這裡的前景與我們上個季度所描述的基本相同。 Tom Prosser 的合計 650 天的新合同是對我們自升式積壓訂單的一個受歡迎的補充。挪威和北海以外的前沿自升式平台日費率目前在 125,000 美元至 150,000 美元之間。雖然我們確實正在進行投標活動，但可能會為今年提供額外的[積壓]。這些通常在本質上更具增量性，我們將繼續看到 2024 年及以後的需求可能性有所改善。

This includes the ultra-harsh jackup Noble Interceptor and Noble Intrepid, which are continuing to muddle through very soft spot market conditions over the balance of this year.

這包括超嚴酷的自升式平台 Noble Interceptor 和 Noble Intrepid，它們在今年餘下的時間裡繼續應對非常疲軟的現貨市場狀況。

Additionally, the Regina Allen is undergoing repairs to its leg and jacking system with marketability into jobs starting in early 2024. So no change to our prior view that jackups will contribute no more than about 10% of our total EBITDA this year, but there should be ample headroom for improvement beyond this year.

此外，Regina Allen 正在對其支腿和千斤頂系統進行維修，從 2024 年初開始投入使用。因此，我們先前的觀點沒有改變，即自升式平台今年貢獻的 EBITDA 不超過我們總 EBITDA 的 10%，但應該今年以後有足夠的改進空間。

As of today, excluding the Regina Allen and the one-stack Noble Highlander, the remaining 11 jackups are approximately 70% contracted over the balance of this year at an average day rate in the $120,000 range. So when we frame the future revenue and EBITDA potential for our jackup fleet, it is from a fairly low baseline as of today, relative to forward indicators for dayrates and utilization.

截至今天，不包括 Regina Allen 和單層式 Noble Highlander，其餘 11 個自升式平台在今年餘下時間以 120,000 美元的平均日費率簽訂了約 70% 的合同。因此，當我們為我們的自升式鑽井船隊規劃未來收入和 EBITDA 潛力時，相對於日費率和利用率的前瞻性指標，它是從今天相當低的基線開始的。

Obviously, a recovery in Norway is an important driver for us, and the tightening harsh semi market is a constructive leading indicator. In addition to the incremental Equinor jackup demand for 2024 work, which is important to restoring a more balanced supply-demand situation for Norway jackups.

顯然，挪威的複蘇對我們來說是一個重要的推動力，而緊縮的半成品市場是一個建設性的領先指標。除了對 2024 年工作的增量 Equinor 自升式需求外，這對於恢復挪威自升式平台更平衡的供需狀況很重要。

For now -- for our non-Norway class jackups, there continue to be global opportunities for some of these rigs that may provide better near- and long-term visibility than the U.K. and Southern North Sea. Since these are more geographically fungible than CJ70s, our strategy is to deploy these assets wherever is appropriate to capture the best returns.

目前——對於我們的非挪威級自升式鑽井平台，其中一些鑽井平台在全球範圍內繼續存在機會，這些鑽井平台可能提供比英國和北海南部更好的近期和長期能見度。由於這些資產在地理上比 CJ70 更具可替代性，我們的策略是在適當的地方部署這些資產以獲得最佳回報。

To summarize, we still have a somewhat bifurcated outlook for the deepwater and jackup fleets, but the recontracting trajectory for both remains very promising from where we stand currently. We've had a few nice contract wins recently for our deepwater fleet, and we're optimistic about signing up some additional high-quality backlog in the near term.

總而言之，我們對深水和自升式船隊的前景仍然有些分歧，但從我們目前的立場來看，這兩者的重新簽約軌跡仍然非常有希望。我們最近為我們的深水船隊贏得了一些不錯的合同，我們對在短期內簽署一些額外的高質量積壓訂單持樂觀態度。

With that, I'd like to pause now and turn the call over to Richard to go over the financials.

有了這個，我現在想暫停一下，把電話轉給理查德來檢查財務狀況。

Thank you, Robert, and good morning or good afternoon all. In my remarks today, I will go over some brief highlights of our first quarter results, our recently completed refinancing and then discuss the outlook for the rest of the year.

謝謝你，羅伯特，大家早上好或下午好。在我今天的發言中，我將簡要回顧我們第一季度業績的一些亮點、我們最近完成的再融資，然後討論今年剩餘時間的前景。

Contract Drilling Services revenue for the first quarter totaled $575 million, down slightly from $586 million in the fourth quarter. Adjusted EBITDA was $138 million in Q1, down from $157 million in Q4 of 2022. Diluted earnings per share were $0.74 and adjusted diluted EPS was $0.19. Capital expenditures for the first quarter were $63 million.

第一季度合同鑽井服務收入總計 5.75 億美元，略低於第四季度的 5.86 億美元。第一季度調整後的 EBITDA 為 1.38 億美元，低於 2022 年第四季度的 1.57 億美元。攤薄後每股收益為 0.74 美元，調整後攤薄後每股收益為 0.19 美元。第一季度的資本支出為 6300 萬美元。

As anticipated, the sequential decrease in revenue and EBITDA was driven by fewer operating days for our jackup fleet, which was partially offset by increased dayrates on our floaters. Our 13 marketed jackups were 67% contracted in the first quarter compared to 85% in the fourth quarter. This decrease was driven primarily by the Noble Regina Allen, Noble Tom Prosser and Noble Invincible, all of which were highly utilized during the fourth quarter of 2022, but were off contract for the majority of the first quarter of 2023.

正如預期的那樣，收入和 EBITDA 的環比下降是由於我們的自升式鑽井船隊的運營天數減少，這部分被我們浮式浮船的日費率增加所抵消。我們銷售的 13 個自升式平台在第一季度的合同率為 67%，而第四季度為 85%。這一下降主要是由 Noble Regina Allen、Noble Tom Prosser 和 Noble Invincible 推動的，它們在 2022 年第四季度都得到了高度利用，但在 2023 年第一季度的大部分時間都處於合同到期狀態。

Our 16 marketed floaters were 91% used in the first quarter, similar to the fourth quarter with average dayrates across our floater fleet increasing by 9% sequentially to approximately 332,000 per day. With average embedded dayrates in our floater backlog above 400,000 per day and leading-edge rates still trending higher, we anticipate further repricing upside to support visible revenue and EBITDA expansion in the quarters ahead. The delayed start for the Noble Globetrotter I in Mexico did have a negative impact on the quarter versus our expectations.

我們的 16 種上市漂浮物在第一季度的使用率為 91%，與第四季度相似，我們漂浮物船隊的平均日費率環比增長 9%，達到每天約 332,000 次。由於我們的浮動積壓訂單中的平均嵌入式日費率超過每天 400,000，並且前沿費率仍呈上升趨勢，我們預計將進一步重新定價上行以支持未來幾個季度的可見收入和 EBITDA 擴張。與我們的預期相比，Noble Globetrotter I 在墨西哥的推遲開賽確實對該季度產生了負面影響。

As summarized on Page 5 of the earnings presentation slides, our total backlog as of May 3 stood at $4.6 billion, up from $3.9 billion at the start of this year. This includes approximately $1.3 billion that is scheduled for revenue conversion over the remainder of 2023 and approximately $1.3 billion that is scheduled for 2024.

正如收益演示幻燈片第 5 頁所總結的那樣，截至 5 月 3 日，我們的積壓訂單總額為 46 億美元，高於今年年初的 39 億美元。這包括計劃在 2023 年剩餘時間內用於收入轉換的約 13 億美元和計劃於 2024 年進行的約 13 億美元。

We were very pleased last month to complete our refinancing redeeming prior issued senior notes and issuing $600 million principal amount of new 8% senior unsecured notes due 2030 and securing an amended and restated senior secured revolving credit agreement which provides a commitment to $550 million and maturity in April 2028.

我們很高興上個月完成了再融資，贖回之前發行的優先票據，發行本金 6 億美元的 2030 年到期的新的 8% 優先無抵押票據，並獲得經修訂和重述的高級有擔保循環信貸協議，該協議提供 5.5 億美元和到期的承諾2028 年 4 月。

We believe this streamlined capital structure, which includes no maturities for 5 years and no amortization payments provides ample liquidity and flexibility to [iterate] business effectively on a through-cycle basis and to execute on our stated capital allocation priorities, including the return of capital to shareholders.

我們認為，這種精簡的資本結構（包括 5 年無期限和無攤銷付款）提供了充足的流動性和靈活性，可以在整個週期的基礎上有效地 [迭代] 業務，並執行我們規定的資本分配優先事項，包括資本回報給股東。

There are also numerous other integration-related benefits that this refinancing unlocks for us. Additionally, we believe it is a terrific outcome for Noble to become the first offshore driller in many years to reestablish an efficient regular structure supported by an unsecured bond.

這次再融資還為我們解鎖了許多其他與整合相關的好處。此外，我們認為，對於 Noble 來說，成為多年來第一家重建由無擔保債券支持的高效常規結構的海上鑽井公司是一個了不起的結果。

Our integration remains on track. We continue to expect to have realized over 3/4 of the $125 million targeted annual run rate cost synergies in the fourth quarter of this year. As of the end of the first quarter, we have achieved approximately $60 million of synergies.

我們的整合仍在進行中。我們繼續期望在今年第四季度實現 1.25 億美元目標年運行率成本協同效應的 3/4 以上。截至第一季度末，我們已實現約 6000 萬美元的協同效應。

Referring to Page 9 of the earnings slides, we are maintaining our full year guidance, including total revenue between $2.35 billion and $2.55 billion, which includes approximately $200 million of combined reimbursables and noncash revenue amortization. Adjusted EBITDA between $725 million and $825 million, and capital expenditures of $325 million and $365 million, excluding any customer reimbursable CapEx and capital related to the Noble Regina Allen leg repair given the expected insurance proceeds.

參考收益幻燈片的第 9 頁，我們維持全年指導，包括 23.5 億美元至 25.5 億美元的總收入，其中包括約 2 億美元的合併報銷和非現金收入攤銷。調整後的 EBITDA 在 7.25 億美元至 8.25 億美元之間，資本支出在 3.25 億美元至 3.65 億美元之間，不包括任何客戶可償還的資本支出和與 Noble Regina Allen 腿部維修相關的資本，因為預期的保險收益。

While we remain confident with these ranges, the delayed start of the Noble Globetrotter I contract has been a discrete setback relative to our outlook at the start of the year. So all else equal, this leaves us with work to do in order to derisk the upper half of this adjusted EBITDA range. This could, for example, be determined by additional contracting wins, which we believe are attainable but as always subject to timing and certainty as well as potential gaps between contracts.

雖然我們對這些範圍仍然充滿信心，但相對於我們年初的展望，Noble Globetrotter I 合同的延遲啟動是一個離散的挫折。因此，在其他條件相同的情況下，這讓我們有很多工作要做，以便降低調整後 EBITDA 範圍的上半部分的風險。例如，這可能取決於額外的合同勝利，我們認為這是可以實現的，但始終取決於時間和確定性以及合同之間的潛在差距。

We continue to expect a steadily upward progression of EBITDA each quarter, with the fourth quarter expected to be the highest EBITDA contribution of the year. As we progress from Q1 into Q2, we expect to realize revenue improvement from several areas, most notably, a full quarter of the most recent CEA repricing that took effect in March. Start-up of the Noble Globetrotter I contract in Mexico, commencement of the Innovator's contract in the North Sea and positive repricing for both the Noble Faye Kozak and the Noble Viking towards the end of Q2.

我們繼續預計每個季度的 EBITDA 將穩步上升，預計第四季度將是今年最高的 EBITDA 貢獻。隨著我們從第一季度進入第二季度，我們預計將在幾個方面實現收入改善，最值得注意的是 3 月份生效的最新 CEA 重新定價的整個季度。在墨西哥啟動 Noble Globetrotter I 合同，在北海啟動 Innovator 合同，並在第二季度末為 Noble Faye Kozak 和 Noble Viking 重新定價。

As we look ahead to the fourth quarter of this year, we believe that we could approach an annualized run rate for adjusted EBITDA of around $1 billion, subject to the same aforementioned provided that there were a few pending contract awards that would serve to derisk this view.

展望今年第四季度，我們相信我們可以將調整後 EBITDA 的年化運行率接近 10 億美元左右，前提是有一些待定的合同授予可以降低這種風險看法。

The negative free cash flow of $126 million that we incurred in the first quarter was primarily driven by a net working capital build of $170 million, and we expect the majority of this to unwind in the second quarter. In the first quarter, we repurchased $10 million of shares. I would note that we were subject to extended blackout restrictions during Q1 driven by the pending refinancing, which significantly limited our ability to repurchase shares. With the refinancing now behind us, we very much look forward to ramping up our return of capital to shareholders.

我們在第一季度產生的 1.26 億美元的負自由現金流主要是由 1.7 億美元的淨營運資本增加推動的，我們預計其中大部分將在第二季度解除。第一季度，我們回購了 1000 萬美元的股票。我要指出的是，由於未決的再融資，我們在第一季度受到了延長的停電限制，這大大限制了我們回購股票的能力。隨著我們現在的再融資，我們非常期待增加我們對股東的資本回報。

That concludes my remarks, and I'd now like to pass the call back to Robert for closing comments.

我的發言到此結束，現在我想將電話轉回給羅伯特以徵求意見。

Thank you, Richard. With an expected upward progression of our quarterly EBITDA through 2023 and a viable path to $1 billion of annualized adjusted EBITDA in the fourth quarter of this year, the financial outlook for 2024 and beyond continues to remain extremely robust. We now have our refinancing in the rearview mirror and we'll look to return a significant majority of our free cash flow to shareholders going forward. You can expect us to continue to execute on our share repurchase program and to continuously evaluate if and when a dividend might be appropriate. Exceptional colleagues and to help bring the best of both legacy Noble and Maersk Drilling together to better serve our customers.

謝謝你，理查德。預計到 2023 年我們的季度 EBITDA 將呈上升趨勢，並且有可能在今年第四季度實現 10 億美元的年化調整後 EBITDA，因此 2024 年及以後的財務前景將繼續保持極其強勁的勢頭。我們現在在後視鏡中進行再融資，我們希望將大部分自由現金流返還給未來的股東。您可以期待我們繼續執行我們的股票回購計劃，並不斷評估是否以及何時派發股息是合適的。傑出的同事，幫助將傳統的 Noble 和 Maersk Drilling 的精華結合在一起，以更好地為我們的客戶服務。

As we continue on our journey to creating the leading offshore drilling company, we remain very encouraged by both the commercial pipeline of activity from our customers as well as a structurally redefined supply side dynamics of our business, which is still in the early stages of emergence from a deep and protracted underinvestment cycle.

在我們繼續創建領先的海上鑽井公司的過程中，我們仍然對客戶的商業活動渠道以及我們業務的結構重新定義的供應方動態感到非常鼓舞，該業務仍處於出現的早期階段來自一個深刻而持久的投資不足週期。

With that, I'd like to turn the call back to the operator for questions.

有了這個，我想把電話轉回接線員詢問問題。

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from the caller Kurt Hallead with Benchmark.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自 Benchmark 的來電者 Kurt Hallead。

You laid out the groundwork here for obviously continued improvements throughout the year. You did tease the dynamic here that you could potentially have some additional contract announcements before the end of the year. I guess my question in that dynamic. Are these additional contract announcements pushing up above the recent leading-edge rates of, I guess, we're in the $400,000 to $450,000 per range? And could you just give us some color around how you see that evolving? You don't have to get into specifics, obviously, and you wouldn't on this call, but I'm just trying to gauge how you feel about the potential pricing of these contracts coming up in the back half of the year?

您在這里為全年持續改進奠定了基礎。你確實在這裡調侃說你可能會在年底前發布一些額外的合同公告。我想我的問題是動態的。這些額外的合同公告是否推高了最近的前沿利率，我猜，我們在每個範圍 400,000 美元到 450,000 美元之間？你能給我們一些關於你如何看待這種演變的顏色嗎？顯然，您不必深入了解細節，也不會參加這次電話會議，但我只是想了解您對這些合同在今年下半年出現的潛在定價有何看法？

Sure. Yes. I mean we feel very comfortable with where we've priced these. We're big believers in the market in riding the market where it goes, not over the finish line, so I don't want to get ahead of ourselves, but we're -- marketing groups done an incredible job of making sure that we're looking around corners and pricing effectively. And so I'm quite comfortable that these will be well appreciated fixtures if and when they come through.

當然。是的。我的意思是我們對我們為這些定價的地方感到非常舒服。我們堅信市場會駕馭市場，而不是越過終點線，所以我不想超越自己，但我們 - 營銷團隊做了令人難以置信的工作以確保我們正在四處尋找並有效定價。因此，我很高興這些固定裝置在它們通過時會受到高度讚賞。

Got it. Appreciate that. So on the Meltem, would that be a possibility here before the end of the year to potentially have a contract for that as well?

知道了。感謝。那麼在 Meltem 上，是否有可能在今年年底之前也有可能為此簽訂合同？

It's basically where we've said before, as conservative as an approach as we're taking. There's only -- for now, only a couple of contracts really kind of per year, kind of 1 to 3, I'd say, per year that would qualify for our criteria. I mentioned last quarter that we could relax that criteria going forward, but we've said today that we're not planning to right now.

這基本上就是我們之前說過的地方，就像我們正在採取的方法一樣保守。只有——目前，每年只有幾份合同，我想說，每年只有 1 到 3 份合同符合我們的標準。我在上個季度提到過，我們可以在未來放寬該標準，但我們今天已經說過，我們現在不打算這樣做。

So yes, it's a possibility. And we're -- we think that work -- excuse me, that, that rig ends up back in the marketplace. It's a highly capable rig, and we're just trying to be patient and pick the right opportunity for it.

所以是的，這是一種可能性。而且我們 - 我們認為這是可行的 - 對不起，那個鑽機最終會回到市場上。這是一個功能強大的鑽機，我們只是想耐心等待並為它選擇合適的機會。

So it's -- I don't want to put a percentage to it, but we are actively chasing opportunities, and we'll see what happens.

所以它 - 我不想給它一個百分比，但我們正在積極追逐機會，我們會看到會發生什麼。

Okay. Great. Appreciate that. Maybe if I just wrap up, you referenced you're going to be returning cash to shareholders. So number of companies have kind of pegged a certain percentage of free cash flow that they were going to allocate. Have you given some consideration to a percentage of cash flow that you may return to shareholders?

好的。偉大的。感謝。也許如果我只是總結，你提到你將向股東返還現金。因此，許多公司已經確定了他們將要分配的一定比例的自由現金流。您是否考慮過可以返還給股東的現金流的百分比？

Yes, Kurt, we haven't put a specific number on it. Obviously, the refi that we got down here in April was helpful to that. So we're now seeing a significant majority but we're not putting a specific number to it right now.

是的，庫爾特，我們還沒有給出具體數字。顯然，我們 4 月份在這裡進行的重新整理對此有所幫助。所以我們現在看到了絕大多數，但我們現在沒有給出具體數字。

Our next question comes from Eddie Kim with Barclays.

我們的下一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的 Eddie Kim。

Just a quick follow-up on the Meltem. So you mentioned Petrobras might be setting some contract dates to commence late 2024 to induce some cold stack rigs into bidding on some of their tenders. Are you currently bidding the Meltem into work now? And ideally, how long of a contract would you be looking to secure to justify the reactivation of that rig?

只是對 Meltem 的快速跟進。所以你提到巴西國家石油公司可能會將一些合同日期設定為 2024 年底開始，以吸引一些冷堆鑽井平台參與投標。您目前正在競標 Meltem 開始工作嗎？理想情況下，您希望獲得多長時間的合同以證明重新激活該鑽井平台是合理的？

Yes. So I guess, a few things there. One, the public results of the Petrobras tender would show that we don't -- we're not in the current tenders with that rig. And we have our specific reasons for that. For one thing that -- I don't want to presuppose where we might end up bidding that rig or looking to put that rig into a maiden contract. It is a question of risk tolerance around some of the criteria that I've outlined previously, including termination rights and time to perform the shipyard work and reactivation work before liquidated damages or termination rights might kick in. So as we looked at the net public tenders, we didn't think that was the best fit for the Meltem, but that doesn't mean that it would be precluded from something there in the future by any means.

是的。所以我想，那裡有一些事情。第一，Petrobras 招標的公開結果表明我們沒有——我們不在當前的招標中。我們有我們的具體原因。一方面，我不想預先假設我們最終可能在哪裡競標該鑽井平台或希望將該鑽井平台納入首份合同。這是一個圍繞我之前概述的一些標準的風險承受能力問題，包括終止權和執行造船廠工作的時間以及在違約金或終止權可能生效之前重新啟動工作的時間。因此，當我們查看網絡公眾時標書，我們認為這不是最適合 Meltem 的，但這並不意味著它將以任何方式在未來被排除在外。

Generally speaking, at current rates, 2 to 3 years is a time frame that I think works quite well for an initial contract for that rig. Again, extremely important to us is the -- are the contract terms that sit around the financials.

一般來說，按照目前的速度，我認為 2 到 3 年的時間框架對於該鑽井平台的初始合同來說非常有效。同樣，對我們來說極其重要的是——圍繞財務的合同條款。

Got it. Got it. Understood. And that all makes sense. Just my follow-up is on the comment in prepared remarks that the dayrates are trending towards $500,000 a day. Some of your peers highlighted the same earlier this week. Would you expect us to be at that level by the end of the year? Or do you think that we'll see a contract signed with a 5 handle. Does that get pushed out kind of mid or late next year.

知道了。知道了。明白了。這一切都是有道理的。我的後續行動是針對準備好的評論中的評論，即日費率趨向於每天 500,000 美元。本週早些時候，您的一些同行強調了同樣的觀點。您希望我們在年底前達到那個水平嗎？或者你認為我們會看到一份帶有 5 句柄的合同。這會在明年年中或年底被推出嗎？

There are a couple of things that need to fall into place, I think, to see another step change up in rates. I've said, and I still believe very much believe that it's possible that we see it this year. obviously, not for work starting this year, but that we see the fixture. I think you'll see some oiling contract value rates that for sure meet that threshold. But in terms of just a flat and clean rate, there is a path. I think we need for one thing, Petrobras to execute on a lot of the contracts that they're out tendering for. And from there, as I said in the remarks, we see some tightness in 2024, that's very much conducive to some rate appreciation here.

我認為，有幾件事需要落實到位，才能看到利率進一步上升。我已經說過，而且我仍然非常相信我們有可能在今年看到它。顯然，不是為了今年開始的工作，而是我們看到了固定裝置。我認為您會看到一些肯定會達到該閾值的石油合同價值率。但就平坦和清潔率而言，有一條路可走。我認為我們需要做一件事，Petrobras 執行他們正在招標的許多合同。從那裡開始，正如我在評論中所說，我們看到 2024 年會出現一些緊縮，這非常有利於這裡的利率升值。

Our final question comes from Fredrik Stene with Clarksons Securities.

我們的最後一個問題來自 Clarksons Securities 的 Fredrik Stene。

I wanted to touch a bit more about the projected -- the guidance you gave here, Richard, and how we can expect the years to develop and potentially reaching a run rate EBITDA of $250 million by the end of the year -- sorry, $1 billion by the end of the year, but I guess that would be around $250 million for the quarter. When we look at the $138 million adjusted you delivered today and then reaching $250 million by the end of this year, do you have any idea of how that slope will look through 2024 at this point. But I guess we're also expecting to see more work for your jackups and not only improved performance based on repricing floaters. Kind of any color you can give on how you think your financials will continue to develop, it would be super helpful.

我想多談談預計——理查德，你在這裡給出的指導，以及我們如何期待這些年的發展，並可能在年底前達到 2.5 億美元的運行率 EBITDA——抱歉，1 美元到今年年底將達到 10 億美元，但我估計本季度將達到 2.5 億美元左右。當我們看一下您今天交付的 1.38 億美元調整後到今年年底達到 2.5 億美元時，您是否知道此時到 2024 年該斜率將如何。但我想我們也期待看到更多的自升式鑽井平台的工作，而不僅僅是基於重新定價浮子的改進性能。您可以給出您認為您的財務狀況將如何繼續發展的任何顏色，這將非常有幫助。

Yes. So obviously, our guidance for 2023 is the same as what it was at the start of the year. So Q1 EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA was $138 million. We see a path to $1 billion of annualized EBITDA in Q4, which is $250 million. That's not guidance per se, but we can see a path towards that for sure.

是的。很明顯，我們對 2023 年的指導與年初相同。所以第一季度 EBITDA，調整後的 EBITDA 為 1.38 億美元。我們看到第四季度年化 EBITDA 達到 10 億美元，即 2.5 億美元。這本身並不是指南，但我們可以肯定地看到一條通往該指南的道路。

Our jackup fleet is not contributing much candidly to EBITDA this year. So we only see it as about 10% of our EBITDA. So as you think beyond 2023, I think there's significant upside or option value, if you will, or EBITDA upside that's not necessarily incorporated in the numbers this year. So I think that as we sit here today, we see quarterly progression in EBITDA as we move through 2023. And I think we're very optimistic about 2024 as well.

我們的自升式船隊今年對 EBITDA 的貢獻並不大。所以我們只將其視為我們 EBITDA 的 10% 左右。因此，正如你所想的那樣，2023 年以後，我認為有很大的上升空間或期權價值，如果你願意的話，或者 EBITDA 上升空間不一定包含在今年的數字中。所以我認為，當我們今天坐在這裡時，我們會看到 EBITDA 在 2023 年的季度進展。而且我認為我們對 2024 年也非常樂觀。

I also wanted to touch a bit on contracting strategy. You do not seem to disclose your actual strategies, but particularly with the SPSs coming up for a large part of the fleet. And what you said in your prepared remarks about some of these assets being repriced this year, there's some short-term coverage on a meaningful part of the fleet. I guess you can kind of look at this 2 ways, but obviously, there's a utilization impact of having short-term contracts.

我還想談談合同策略。您似乎沒有透露您的實際策略，但特別是在大部分艦隊即將推出 SPS 的情況下。正如你在準備好的評論中所說，今年對其中一些資產進行了重新定價，對機隊中有意義的部分進行了一些短期覆蓋。我猜你可以從這兩種方式來看，但顯然，短期合同會對利用率產生影響。

But on the other hand, you are kind of helping the market by repricing that fleet a bit more often. So have you taken kind of -- do you have any SPS strategy in how you're managing this portfolio of your floaters in particular now? Or are you actively holding out or chasing short-term contracts just because you want to reprice further? Or are you actually looking to limit the amount of short-term work.

但另一方面，你通過更頻繁地為該機隊重新定價來幫助市場。那麼，您是否採取了某種方式 - 您是否有任何 SPS 策略來管理您的漂浮物投資組合，特別是現在？還是您只是因為想進一步重新定價而積極持有或追逐短期合約？或者您實際上是想限制短期工作的數量。

It's a good question, Fredrik. I'll take it and then fill in if I missed something. But first of all, you mentioned SPSs that had no effect on our contracting strategy. it can create some friction in white space just because if they fall in between customers, which probably was your point that it sometimes can -- and it has, in our case, led to just a little bit of inefficient white space, but generally speaking, that's just a function of offshore assets and you work with your customer to find the time in between wells to do it, and it's something that's discussed prior to signing contracts and known to everyone for a long time, et cetera. So while it does affect maybe some tactics or some efficiency, it doesn't really affect strategy per se.

這是個好問題，弗雷德里克。如果我遺漏了什麼，我會接受它然後填寫。但首先，您提到的 SPS 對我們的合同策略沒有影響。它會在空白空間中產生一些摩擦，因為如果它們落在客戶之間，這可能是你的觀點，它有時會——在我們的例子中，它導致了一點點低效的空白空間，但一般來說，這只是離岸資產的一個功能，你和你的客戶一起尋找井與井之間的時間來做這件事，這是在簽訂合同之前討論的事情，而且很長一段時間以來大家都知道，等等。因此，雖然它確實可能會影響某些戰術或某些效率，但它並不會真正影響戰略本身。

I think Noble's journey has been just very slightly different than others because we're very thankful to have the CEA in Guyana. And since that's a big component of our Tier 1 drillships and it reprices, we haven't been -- I don't think we've felt as pressured over the past couple of years to take on longer-term contracts and that's thankfully played, I think, to our benefit here putting us to present.

我認為 Noble 的旅程與其他人略有不同，因為我們非常感謝在圭亞那擁有 CEA。而且由於這是我們一級鑽井船的重要組成部分並且它重新定價，我們沒有 - 我認為我們在過去幾年中沒有感受到簽訂長期合同的壓力而且值得慶幸的是，我認為，為了我們的利益，我們在這裡展示。

We have a large fleet. We have, I think, the largest Tier 1 fleet in the world, but certainly, we have global scale with our EDW fleet. And from where we sit today and where we see pricing despite the fact that we see pricing increasing, as I've said, there's room for a couple of long-term contracts, I think, in our fleet today and it has some helpful implications.

我們有一個龐大的艦隊。我認為，我們擁有世界上最大的一級車隊，但可以肯定的是，我們的 EDW 車隊具有全球規模。從我們今天所處的位置和我們看到的價格來看，儘管我們看到價格在上漲，正如我所說，我認為在我們今天的機隊中有幾個長期合同的空間，這有一些有益的影響.

So we are by no means shying away from bidding on longer-term contracts even though you may not have seen us win in some of those -- in fact, I guess, all of those that have been announced so far. We are participating and by no means is it excluded from our strategy. I think a mix is helpful. And the last little bit of color I'd give is that in our 6th generation fleet, we're a little bit more likely, I think, there to seek out term than we would in the 7th generation fleet, if that answers your question.

因此，我們絕不會迴避競標長期合同，即使您可能沒有看到我們在其中一些合同中獲勝——事實上，我想，所有這些合同到目前為止已經宣布。我們正在參與，絕不是將其排除在我們的戰略之外。我認為混合是有幫助的。我要給出的最後一點顏色是，在我們的第 6 代艦隊中，我認為，我們比第 7 代艦隊更有可能尋找任期，如果這回答了你的問題.

Yes, it is super helpful, super hopeful. Final one for me since it looks no one else in the queue, at least when I started. Just on the capital allocation framework, you're buying back shares, your new debt stack, congratulations, by the way, gives you see more flexibility on shareholder paybacks. Are you kind of -- which criteria needs to be met for you to have a well-defined policy in the sense that you're paying out a certain amount of net income or a certain amount of cash flow so that we get even more visibility than what we have today.

是的，它非常有幫助，非常有希望。對我來說是最後一個，因為隊列中看起來沒有其他人，至少在我開始時是這樣。就資本配置框架而言，你正在回購股票，你的新債務堆棧，順便說一句，恭喜你，讓你看到了股東回報的更多靈活性。你是不是——你需要滿足哪些標準才能製定明確的政策，即你要支付一定數量的淨收入或一定數量的現金流，這樣我們才能獲得更多的知名度比我們今天所擁有的。

Yes, it's a very good question and something obviously that we are very focused on. We -- the refi was very important to us, right? It gives us better visibility around our capital structure and just allows us to manage the business through cycle better. So obviously, we were free cash flow negative in Q1, and we expect that to reverse here obviously into Q2, and then we expect to generate an attractive level of free cash flow for the entire year.

是的，這是一個很好的問題，而且顯然是我們非常關注的問題。我們 - refi 對我們來說非常重要，對吧？它使我們能夠更好地了解我們的資本結構，並使我們能夠更好地管理業務週期。很明顯，我們在第一季度的自由現金流為負，我們預計這種情況會在第二季度明顯逆轉，然後我們預計全年將產生有吸引力的自由現金流水平。

So we're looking now to return a significant majority of our free cash flow to shareholders. We're not putting today a specific percentage to that, but I think it's fair to say that it's obviously going to be closer to 100% -- than 50% today.

因此，我們現在希望將大部分自由現金流返還給股東。我們今天並沒有為此設定一個具體的百分比，但我認為可以公平地說，它顯然會接近 100%——而不是今天的 50%。

We have no further questions at this time. I would like to now turn the call back over to Ian MacPherson.

目前我們沒有其他問題。我現在想把電話轉回 Ian MacPherson。

Thank you, everyone, for dialing in and for your continued interest in Noble, and we look forward to speaking with you again next quarter.

感謝大家撥入電話並感謝您對來寶的持續關注，我們期待下個季度再次與您交談。

Ladies and gentlemen, that concludes today's call. Thank you for joining. You may now disconnect.

女士們，先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的加入。您現在可以斷開連接。