西方石油 (OXY) 2021 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, and welcome to the Occidental's Second Quarter 2021 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Please note, this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Jeff Alvarez, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

下午好，歡迎參加西方石油公司 2021 年第二季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）請注意，正在記錄此事件。我現在想將會議交給投資者關係副總裁傑夫·阿爾瓦雷斯 (Jeff Alvarez)。請繼續。

Thank you, Chad. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for participating in Occidental's Second Quarter 2021 Conference Call. On the call with us today are Vicki Hollub, President and Chief Executive Officer; and Robert Peterson, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝你，查德。大家下午好，感謝您參加西方石油公司 2021 年第二季電話會議。今天與我們通話的是總裁兼執行長 Vicki Hollub；資深副總裁兼財務長羅伯特彼得森 (Robert Peterson)。

This afternoon, we will refer to slides available on the Investors section of our website. The presentation includes a cautionary statement on Slide 2 regarding forward-looking statements that will be made on the call this afternoon. I'll now turn the call over to Vicki. Vicki, please go ahead.

今天下午，我們將參考我們網站投資者部分提供的幻燈片。該簡報在投影片 2 上包含了有關今天下午電話會議上將做出的前瞻性陳述的警告聲明。我現在將電話轉給 Vicki。維琪，請繼續。

Thank you, Jeff, and good afternoon, everyone. Our strong operational performance in the second quarter continued to drive robust financial performance as we marked our second consecutive quarter of generating the highest level of free cash flow in over a decade. As was the case last quarter, our cost structure and capital intensity leadership were catalysts for our strong results and continue to provide a solid foundation for free cash flow generation in the future.

謝謝傑夫，大家下午好。我們第二季強勁的營運業績持續推動強勁的財務業績，我們連續第二季創造了十多年來最高水準的自由現金流。與上季的情況一樣，我們的成本結構和資本密集度領先地位是我們強勁業績的催化劑，並繼續為未來產生自由現金流奠定堅實的基礎。

We were especially pleased to have been in a position at the end of the second quarter to launch a tender process to retire over $3 billion of debt using excess cash generated from operations as well as proceeds from divestitures. While we made incremental progress in reducing debt throughout 2020 in the first half of 2021, the completion of this tender represents a sizable step forward in our deleveraging efforts.

我們特別高興的是，我們能夠在第二季末啟動招標程序，利用營運產生的多餘現金以及資產剝離收益來償還超過 30 億美元的債務。雖然我們在 2020 年全年的債務削減方面在 2021 年上半年取得了漸進的進展，但本次招標的完成代表著我們的去槓桿化努力向前邁出了一大步。

This morning, I'll cover our second quarter operational performance and divestiture progress, and Rob will cover our financial results and balance sheet improvement as well as our updated guidance, which includes an improvement to our DD&A rate, an increase in guidance for our full year production and for midstream and OxyChem's 2021 earnings.

今天早上，我將介紹我們第二季度的營運業績和剝離進展，羅布將介紹我們的財務業績和資產負債表的改進以及我們更新的指導，其中包括提高我們的 DD&A 率、提高我們全面的指導年產量以及中游和OxyChem 的2021 年收益。

In the second quarter, our business -- all of our businesses outperformed. Our capital discipline and efficiency, combined with the supportive and improving commodity price environment, positions us to generate the highest level of free cash flow before and after working capital since the third quarter of 2008 when WTI hit $145 a barrel. We are proud of our teams for this accomplishment, and we appreciate that they are continuing to improve our capital execution and operating efficiencies to further expand our margins.

在第二季度，我們的所有業務都表現出色。我們的資本紀律和效率，加上大宗商品價格環境的支持和改善，使我們能夠在營運資本前後產生自 2008 年第三季度 WTI 觸及每桶 145 美元以來最高水平的自由現金流。我們為我們的團隊所取得的這項成就感到自豪，我們感謝他們繼續提高我們的資本執行和營運效率，以進一步擴大我們的利潤。

We exited the quarter with approximately $4.6 billion of unrestricted cash, which does not include cash received in July from the recently closed divestiture or the cash used for the debt tender which closed in July. Rob will touch on the tender in a little more detail, but I would like to reiterate how pleased we are to be once again making notable progress in reducing debt and strengthening our balance sheet.

本季結束時，我們擁有約 46 億美元的非限制性現金，其中不包括 7 月從最近結束的剝離中收到的現金或用於 7 月結束的債務投標的現金。羅布將更詳細地談及此次招標，但我想重申，我們很高興在減少債務和加強資產負債表方面再次取得顯著進展。

Turning to our operational results. Our oil and gas business delivered second quarter production from continuing operations of over 1.2 million BOE per day, with total company-wide capital spending of almost $698 million. Our domestic oil and gas operating cost of $6 per BOE came in substantially below our full year guidance as our teams continued to demonstrate their innovative operations expertise by finding new ways to safely reduce costs in our field operations.

轉向我們的營運表現。我們的石油和天然氣業務第二季的持續營運產量每天超過 120 萬桶油當量，全公司資本支出總額近 6.98 億美元。我們的國內石油和天然氣營運成本為每桶油當量 6 美元，遠低於我們的全年指導，因為我們的團隊透過尋找安全降低現場營運成本的新方法，繼續展示他們的創新營運專業知識。

In the second quarter, OxyChem continued to benefit from robust PVC demand and pricing as well as gradual strengthening in the caustic soda market. We believe the fundamentals for these markets will remain supportive through the second half of 2021, and we are confident in increasing our full year guidance to a midpoint of $1.25 billion, representing an almost 60% increase over our original guidance for the year.

第二季度，OxyChem 繼續受益於 PVC 需求和定價的強勁以及燒鹼市場的逐步走強。我們相信，這些市場的基本面將在 2021 年下半年保持支撐，並且我們有信心將全年指引提高至 12.5 億美元的中位數，比我們最初的全年指引增長近 60%。

The ability of our oil and gas business to overcome challenges while increasing efficiencies has been transformational. Looking back over the first 6 months of this year, we overcame the impacts of a major weather event and divested a producing asset. We were able to make up the loss and divested production and have increased our full year production guidance for continuing operations to 1.15 million BOE per day.

我們的石油和天然氣業務在提高效率的同時克服挑戰的能力已經發生了變化。回顧今年前6個月，我們克服了重大天氣事件的影響，剝離了一項生產性資產。我們能夠彌補損失並剝離生產，並將持續營運的全年產量指引提高至每天 115 萬桶油當量。

We continue to be highly encouraged by well performance across our portfolio. For example, in the Texas Delaware, we recently brought online a new Silvertip development that is producing approximately 20% more oil compared to a prior development in this area. Additionally, in an area of roughly 10 miles southeast of Silvertip, we brought online a 5-well development with average 30-day peak rates of almost 5,000 BOE per day.

我們的投資組合的良好表現繼續令我們深受鼓舞。例如，在德克薩斯州特拉華州，我們最近上線了一個新的 Silvertip 開發項目，與該地區先前的開發項目相比，該項目的石油產量增加了約 20%。此外，在 Silvertip 東南約 10 英里的區域，我們上線了 5 口井開發項目，平均 30 天峰值產量接近每天 5,000 BOE。

As I mentioned, operationally, our teams continue to set new efficiency records while constantly pursuing opportunities to improve. We set new quarterly records across our portfolio on feet drilled and hours pumped in a single day. In the Midland Basin, we set a new drilling record with over 9,500 feet drilled in 24 hours, contributing to a new Oxy Permian spud-to-rig-release record, drilling a 10,000-foot horizontal well in only 8 days.

正如我所提到的，在營運方面，我們的團隊不斷創造新的效率記錄，同時不斷尋求改進機會。我們的投資組合單日鑽進次數和泵送時間創下了新的季度記錄。在米德蘭盆地，我們在 24 小時內鑽探超過 9,500 英尺，創造了新的鑽井記錄，並創造了新的含氧二疊紀鑽機釋放記錄，僅用 8 天就鑽出了 10,000 英尺水平井。

In the DJ Basin, we set a new company-wide frac record of pumping over 23 hours in a single day. Utilizing Oxy Drilling Dynamics in the Gulf of Mexico, we have significantly lowered drilling cost and duration as the wells drilled in 2021 have cost 15% less than the average for 2019. As I mentioned on last quarter's call, we've had excellent results leveraging remote operations. Our innovative mindset and ability to leverage technological breakthroughs have allowed us to continue pushing the performance envelope, giving me confidence that our best-in-class capital efficiency will continue.

在 DJ 盆地，我們創下了單日泵送時間超過 23 小時的全公司壓裂新紀錄。利用墨西哥灣的Oxy Drilling Dynamics，我們大幅降低了鑽井成本和持續時間，因為2021 年鑽探的油井成本比2019 年的平均成本低15%。我們利用Oxy Drilling Dynamics 取得了出色的成果遠端操作。我們的創新思維和利用技術突破的能力使我們能夠繼續突破業績極限，讓我相信我們將繼續保持一流的資本效率。

Our divestiture plan advanced in the second quarter with the recent closing of a non-core Permian acreage sale for approximately $510 million. Given our industry-leading inventory depth, we welcomed the opportunity to monetize these assets at an attractive price as it is unlikely that we would have developed this acreage in the near future. We expect to close at least $2 billion of divestitures post-Colombia. And as we've said previously, we'll always prioritize obtaining value for our shareholders over meeting a deadline.

我們的剝離計劃在第二季度取得進展，最近以約 5.1 億美元的價格完成了非核心二疊紀地區的出售。鑑於我們行業領先的庫存深度，我們很高興有機會以有吸引力的價格將這些資產貨幣化，因為我們不太可能在不久的將來開發這些土地。我們預計在哥倫比亞事件之後將完成至少 20 億美元的資產剝離。正如我們之前所說，我們始終優先考慮為股東創造價值，而不是按時完成任務。

I want to take a few minutes to talk about our Chemical business and how we plan to leverage its leadership and expertise into our Low Carbon Ventures business. OxyChem's success is demonstrated by its financial performance and track record of consistent free cash flow generation. OxyChem has been a consistent generator of free cash flow during the past downturns. And with the macro environment improving, OxyChem is on track to deliver record earnings this year, even surpassing 2018's results. The business may also continue to strengthen in future years as caustic soda, one of the key profit drivers for the business, has experienced only a moderate price recovery to date.

我想花幾分鐘時間談談我們的化學業務，以及我們計劃如何將其領導力和專業知識運用到我們的低碳創投業務中。 OxyChem 的成功體現在其財務業績和持續產生自由現金流的記錄。在過去的經濟低迷時期，OxyChem 一直是自由現金流的穩定產生者。隨著宏觀環境的改善，OxyChem 今年有望創紀錄的獲利，甚至超過 2018 年的表現。該業務在未來幾年也可能繼續加強，因為燒鹼（該業務的主要利潤驅動因素之一）迄今為止僅經歷了溫和的價格回升。

Last quarter, I spoke about how OxyChem's integration across multiple chlorine derivatives provides us with the ability to optimize our caustic soda production while opportunistically adjusting our production mix to maximize margins. There are many opportunities for us to apply the same approach to integration as we develop opportunities between OxyChem and our Low Carbon Ventures business. As a major producer of PVC and caustic potash, OxyChem has the engineering, R&D, and process technology expertise as well as the production capability necessary to build our Low Carbon business.

上個季度，我談到了 OxyChem 對多種氯衍生物的整合如何使我們能夠優化燒鹼生產，同時適時調整我們的生產結構以實現利潤最大化。當我們在 OxyChem 和我們的低碳創投業務之間開發機會時，我們有許多機會應用相同的整合方法。作為 PVC 和苛性鉀的主要生產商，OxyChem 擁有建立低碳業務所需的工程、研發和工藝技術專業知識以及生產能力。

OxyChem is a world leader in the customization, handling, and usage of PVC, which will be a major component in the construction and ongoing operation of the direct air capture facility. We're also one of the world's largest leading producers of caustic potash, the key chemical utilized in the direct air capture process to separate carbon dioxide for sequestration or carbon-neutral enhanced oil recovery. Our vast knowledge of equipment design and our experience with operating and handling the caustic potash will be key to helping us quickly optimize our direct air capture facility.

OxyChem 是 PVC 客製化、處理和使用領域的世界領導者，PVC 將成為直接空氣捕獲設施建設和持續營運的主要組成部分。我們也是世界上最大的苛性鉀領先生產商之一，苛性鉀是直接空氣捕獲過程中使用的關鍵化學品，用於分離二氧化碳以封存或碳中和提高石油採收率。我們豐富的設備設計知識以及操作和處理苛性鉀的經驗將是幫助我們快速優化直接空氣捕捉設施的關鍵。

In addition to being a market leader and consistent free cash flow generator, OxyChem is integral to our business of today and of tomorrow. It's also worth noting that OxyChem is a market leader in health, safety and environmental performance. OxyChem recently earned a remarkable 31 Responsible Care awards. These are from the American Chemistry Council and are the U.S. chemical manufacturing industry's leading performance awards. The awards recognize OxyChem's achievements in safety, waste reduction, and improving energy efficiency. Several of the award-winning initiatives focused on waste minimization, reuse, recycling, and energy efficiency, which will all contribute to our 2025 sustainability goals.

除了成為市場領導者和持續的自由現金流產生器之外，OxyChem 也是我們今天和未來業務不可或缺的一部分。另外值得注意的是，OxyChem 是健康、安全和環境績效的市場領導者。 OxyChem 最近榮獲 31 項責任關懷獎。這些獎項來自美國化學理事會，是美國化學製造業的領先績效獎。該獎項表彰了 OxyChem 在安全、減少廢物和提高能源效率方面的成就。多項獲獎措施著重於廢棄物最小化、再利用、回收和能源效率，這些都將為我們的 2025 年永續發展目標做出貢獻。

I will now hand the call over to Rob, who will walk you through our financial results for the second quarter and guidance for the remainder of the year.

現在我將把電話轉交給 Rob，他將向您介紹我們第二季的財務表現以及今年剩餘時間的指導。

Thank you, Vicki. Our businesses continued to perform well in the second quarter as our free cash flow generation affirmed our confidence in Oxy's ability to generate cash in a healthy price environment. The strong performance contributed to a quarter end unrestricted cash balance of $4.6 billion.

謝謝你，維基。我們的業務在第二季度繼續表現良好，因為我們的自由現金流產生證實了我們對 Oxy 在健康的價格環境下產生現金的能力的信心。強勁的業績使得季度末不受限制的現金餘額達到 46 億美元。

On our last call, I mentioned the potential for a partial reversal of the working capital change incurred in the first quarter. As expected, we benefited from a positive working capital change this quarter of approximately $600 million, further contributing to our cash build during the quarter. As Vicki mentioned, we launched a tender late in the quarter enabling us to repay over $3 billion of debt in July. Subsequent to successful execution of a debt tender in July, we received proceeds from the non-strategic Permian acreage, partially refreshing our post-tender cash position early in the quarter.

在我們上次的電話會議上，我提到第一季營運資金變動可能會部分逆轉。正如預期的那樣，我們受益於本季約 6 億美元的積極營運資本變化，進一步促進了我們本季的現金累積。正如 Vicki 所提到的，我們在本季末啟動了招標，使我們能夠在 7 月償還超過 30 億美元的債務。在 7 月成功執行債務招標後，我們收到了非戰略性二疊紀區塊的收益，部分刷新了本季初招標後的現金狀況。

In the second quarter, we announced an adjusted profit of $0.32 and a reported loss of $0.10 per diluted share. While we place a greater importance on cash flow generation, especially as we are focused on deleveraging, we are pleased to be generating income on an adjusted basis and view this is a positive indication that our financial position continues to improve. Our reported results were less than our adjusted results primarily due to the mark-to-market impact of derivatives.

第二季度，我們宣布調整後利潤為 0.32 美元，報告每股攤薄虧損為 0.10 美元。雖然我們更重視現金流的產生，特別是在我們專注於去槓桿化的情況下，但我們很高興能夠在調整後的基礎上產生收入，並認為這是我們財務狀況持續改善的積極跡象。我們報告的業績低於調整後的業績，主要是由於衍生性商品按市值計價的影響。

We delivered outstanding production results year-to-date while having deployed less than half of our full year capital budget of $2.9 billion. We expect capital expenditure to remain within budget, demonstrating our commitment to capital discipline and our capital intensity leadership, even as capital spending has been higher in the second half than the first half of the year.

年初至今，我們取得了出色的生產成果，而我們的全年資本預算（29 億美元）還不到一半。我們預計資本支出將保持在預算範圍內，這表明我們對資本紀律和資本密集度領先地位的承諾，儘管下半年的資本支出高於上半年。

The positive working capital change realized in the quarter was driven by lower cash payments for items that are accrued throughout the year and lower crude inventory from fewer barrels on the water, partially offset by higher accounts receivable balance due to the increase in commodity prices. As the interest payments on our bonds are made semi-annually, our cash interest payments are going to be lower in the second and fourth quarters than they are in the first and third quarters.

本季度實現的營運資本積極變化是由於全年應計項目的現金支付減少以及海上石油庫存減少而導致的原油庫存減少，但部分被大宗商品價格上漲導致的應收賬款餘額增加所抵消。由於我們的債券利息每半年支付一次，因此第二季和第四季的現金利息支付將低於第一季和第三季。

During the downturn last year, we received approximately $1 billion of additional cash flow from our oil hedges. To obtain a costless structure, we sold a 2021 call position of 350,000 barrels a day with an average strike price of $74.16 Brent. As the commodity prices rose at the end of the second quarter, we made payments of $5.7 million under the sold call position and $1 million under our gas hedges in July. Cash settlements paid to date on the hedges have been minimal and are certainly worth the benefit we received last year.

去年經濟低迷期間，我們從石油對沖中獲得了約 10 億美元的額外現金流。為了獲得無成本的結構，我們每天出售 35 萬桶 2021 年看漲期權，平均執行價格為 74.16 美元布倫特原油。隨著第二季末大宗商品價格上漲，我們在 7 月在賣出看漲期權頭寸下支付了 570 萬美元，在天然氣對沖項下支付了 100 萬美元。到目前為止，對沖支付的現金和解金額很少，而且肯定值得我們去年獲得的收益。

We continue to maintain an opportunistic approach towards hedging, and the forward curve is supportive but have not added any hedges past the end of this year. We believe creating a manageable debt maturity profile and reducing debt is a more effective long-term solution to derisking the balance sheet while providing shareholders with exposure to commodity price gains.

我們繼續保持對沖的機會主義態度，遠期曲線具有支撐性，但在今年年底之後沒有增加任何對沖。我們認為，創造可控的債務到期狀況並減少債務是降低資產負債表風險的更有效的長期解決方案，同時為股東提供大宗商品價格上漲的機會。

We raised our full year production guidance following our strong second quarter results and have increased our earnings guidance for OxyChem and midstream for the second time this year, reflecting strong first half performance and improved market conditions.

繼第二季業績強勁後，我們上調了全年產量預期，並今年第二次上調了 OxyChem 和中游業務的獲利預期，反映出上半年業績強勁和市場狀況改善。

We expect that 2021 will be a record year for OxyChem, even surpassing our earnings in 2018, when we benefitted from exceptionally strong caustic soda prices in the middle part of that year. Midstream is expected to benefit in the second half of the year from continued higher sulfur prices at Al Hosn as well as an uplift in the third quarter related to the timing of export sales.

我們預計 2021 年對於 OxyChem 來說將是創紀錄的一年，甚至超過我們 2018 年的盈利，當時我們受益於當年中期異常強勁的燒鹼價格。預計中游業務將在下半年受益於 Al Hosn 硫磺價格的持續上漲以及第三季與出口銷售時間相關的上漲。

We also lowered our DD&A guidance for 2021, reflecting the midyear reserves update. This update takes into account more supportive trailing 12-month commodity prices at mid-year compared to year-end 2020 as well as our activity plans and recent success in lowering operating costs. The combination of these factors have increased our proved reserves, which we expect to result in a lower DD&A rate going forward.

我們也降低了 2021 年 DD&A 指導，以反映年中儲備金更新。此次更新考慮了與 2020 年底相比，年中的 12 個月大宗商品價格更具支撐性，以及我們的活動計劃和最近在降低營運成本方面取得的成功。這些因素的結合增加了我們的探明儲量，我們預計這將導致未來 DD&A 費率降低。

Our production in the second half of 2021 is expected to average 1.14 million BOE per day. Production in the second quarter benefited from time-to-market acceleration in the Rockies and Permian. Favorable weather conditions and optimization of planned maintenance schedules to better sequence shutdown activities resulted in lower-than-expected downtime in the Gulf of Mexico, contributing to higher-than-expected production.

2021年下半年，我們的產量預計平均為每天114萬桶油當量。第二季的產量得益於洛磯山脈和二疊紀地區的上市時間加快。有利的天氣條件和優化計劃維護計劃以更好地按順序停工活動導致墨西哥灣的停工時間低於預期，從而導致產量高於預期。

Our expected third quarter production of 1.145 million BOE per day includes an allowance for seasonal weather and maintenance in the Gulf of Mexico, the divestiture of approximately 10,000 BOE per day in the Permian, the timing impact of our Rockies capital program, which was front-loaded in 2021, as well as PSC impacts due to price. Even as production in the second half of the year is expected to be lower than the impressive second quarter production result, we remain confident in our production trajectory leveling out as we enter 2022, where we anticipate a production pattern similar to 2021.

我們預計第三季的產量為每天114.5 萬桶油當量，包括墨西哥灣的季節性天氣和維護費用、二疊紀每天約10,000 桶油當量的剝離、我們落基山脈資本計劃的時間影響，該計劃是前沿的2021 年加載，以及價格造成的 PSC 影響。儘管下半年的產量預計將低於令人印象深刻的第二季產量結果，但我們仍然對進入 2022 年時生產軌跡趨於平穩充滿信心，預計生產模式將與 2021 年類似。

We have updated our activity slide to include two additional New Mexico rigs. The New Mexico activity change will be fully funded through the cost savings and optimization of our capital projects gained through efficiency improvements and will not increase our capital budget. Adding activity in one of our highest return to assets will place us in a strong position as we transition into 2022.

我們更新了我們的活動幻燈片，並添加了另外兩個新墨西哥鑽機。新墨西哥州的活動變更將透過提高效率來節省成本和優化我們的資本項目來提供全額資金，並且不會增加我們的資本預算。在我們資產回報率最高的領域之一增加活動將使我們在進入 2022 年時處於有利地位。

With the successful completion of our debt tender, we paid over $3 billion of 2022 through 2026 maturities and now have a clear runway over the next few years. As we generate cash from organic free cash flow, we continue to evaluate the options available for additional debt reduction, and we'll seek to further [level] (added by company after the call) our debt maturity profile so that we're not exposed to any significant amount of maturities in any single year. The options available to us for debt reduction include potentially calling the 2022 floating rate notes prior to maturity, executing additional tenders, exercising attractive make-whole provisions, pursuing open market debt repurchases, or we may choose, in some cases, to build a cash position which may be applied towards retiring maturities as they come due.

隨著債務招標的成功完成，我們在 2022 年至 2026 年期間支付了超過 30 億美元的債務，現在在未來幾年已經有了明確的發展方向。當我們從有機自由現金流中產生現金時，我們將繼續評估可用於額外削減債務的選項，並且我們將尋求進一步[水平]（由公司在電話會議後添加）我們的債務到期狀況，以便我們不會在任何一年內都面臨任何大量到期的風險。我們可用於減少債務的選項包括可能在到期前贖回2022 年浮動利率票據、執行額外投標、行使有吸引力的整體條款、進行公開市場債務回購，或者在某些情況下我們可以選擇建立現金其職位到期時可用於退休。

We also plan to retire $750 million of notional interest rate swaps in the third quarter for the fair value amount, which will improve cash flow by almost $50 million per annum at the current curve. We entered the second half of 2021 in a stronger position than at the beginning of the year, and as we look forward, we remain focused on maintaining a strong liquidity position, deleveraging to regain investment-grade metrics, and preserving financial policies and cash flow priorities that embed capital discipline.

我們還計劃在第三季以公允價值金額收回 7.5 億美元的名目利率掉期，這將按當前曲線每年改善現金流近 5,000 萬美元。進入 2021 年下半年，我們的處境比年初更加強勁，展望未來，我們仍然專注於保持強勁的流動性頭寸、去槓桿化以重新獲得投資級指標，並維護財務政策和現金流嵌入資本紀律的優先事項。

I will now turn the call back over to Vicki.

我現在將把電話轉回給 Vicki。

Thank you, Rob. We are proud of the substantial progress in delivering our near-term cash flow priorities. We have significantly de-risked our balance sheet with the successful completion of our recent debt tender. And this marks the next stage of our deleveraging effort as we work to further reduce debt and to lower our breakeven. While we still have work to do before transitioning to the next stage of our cash flow priorities, including returning additional capital to shareholders, we're confident that the steps we have completed to date and the strong operational performance that we continue to deliver will accelerate our progress.

謝謝你，羅布。我們對在實現近期現金流優先事項方面取得的實質進展感到自豪。透過最近的債務招標的成功完成，我們大幅降低了資產負債表的風險。這標誌著我們去槓桿化工作的下一階段，我們正在努力進一步減少債務並降低損益平衡點。雖然在過渡到現金流優先事項的下一階段之前我們仍有工作要做，包括向股東返還額外資本，但我們相信，我們迄今為止已完成的步驟以及我們繼續提供的強勁營運業績將加速我們的進步。

We'll now open the call to your questions.

我們現在將開始回答您的問題。

(Operator Instructions) And the first question will be from Neil Mehta with Goldman Sachs.

（操作員說明）第一個問題將由高盛的尼爾梅塔提出。

Thanks so much and really strong results here on Chemicals, and that's where I want to start. Can you talk to your views on caustic soda and PVC pricing for the remainder of the year and next year and the sustainability of the margins that we see out there?

非常感謝，在化學品方面取得了非常強勁的成果，這就是我想開始的地方。您能否談談您對今年剩餘時間和明年燒鹼和 PVC 定價以及我們看到的利潤可持續性的看法？

Yes, Neil. We continue to see very strong conditions in both our vinyl business and steady improvements in the caustic soda business, as Vicki indicated. As you can see on Slide 7 of the deck, these 2 businesses are the major profit drivers for our Chemical business. And it's unusual, but we do have conditions when both businesses are seeing favorable market conditions, the earnings impact that you're seeing is significant. So on the PVC business, the business remains extremely strong due to a tight supply/demand balance.

是的，尼爾。正如 Vicki 指出的那樣，我們的乙烯基業務狀況繼續強勁，燒鹼業務也穩步改善。正如您在幻燈片 7 上看到的，這兩項業務是我們化學業務的主要利潤驅動力。這很不尋常，但我們確實有條件，當兩家公司都看到有利的市場條件時，你看到的獲利影響是巨大的。因此，在 PVC 業務上，由於供需平衡緊張，業務仍然極其強勁。

On a year-to-date basis, we're seeing domestic demand as an industry about 16% higher compared to the same period in 2020. But more importantly, it's up 13% from where it was in 2019 in a non-COVID period. And so strong demand is also attributed to really low levels of inventory and supply chain, combined with the construction sector, which we're seeing in, obviously, in a lot of their construction materials.

今年迄今為止，我們看到該行業的國內需求比 2020 年同期增長了約 16%。 但更重要的是，在非新冠疫情期間，該需求比 2019 年增長了 13% 。如此強勁的需求也歸因於庫存和供應鏈水平非常低，再加上建築業，我們顯然在許多建築材料中看到了這一點。

And we expect demand to remain strong with a very favorable housing start outlook, mortgage rates remaining low, which tends to also drive historically the business and a lot of investment remodeling. And so we're -- those kind of factors are all pointing towards sustained improvement in the PVC business.

我們預計需求將保持強勁，房屋開工前景非常有利，抵押貸款利率保持在較低水平，這往往也將推動歷史上的業務和大量投資重塑。因此，這些因素都表明 PVC 業務將持續改善。

The other thing I would say is that when the export business is soft like it is now, where we're seeing year-to-date exports are down 33%, which tends to be the last location of PVC production, that's indicative of a strong market. And so when there's not enough product to go around, we should see margins remain favorable for us.

我想說的另一件事是，當出口業務像現在這樣疲軟時，我們看到年初至今的出口量下降了 33%，而這往往是 PVC 生產的最後一個地點，這表明市場強勁。因此，當沒有足夠的產品可供流通時，我們應該會看到利潤率仍然對我們有利。

On the chlor-alkali side, the chlorine molecule itself is very tight, and so producers are seeking the highest-value outlets for chlorine molecules. And as Vicki mentioned, our very diverse portfolio of chlorine derivatives allows us to really maximize the bag of these chlorine molecules through our chain of opportunities. And so chlor-alkali production itself has been under pressure for the year simply because of a lot of both unplanned and planned outages. And if you look at chlor-alkali rates, they're actually lower in '21 than they were in '20 year-to-date, running about 75% year-to-date versus 80% over the same period last year, resulting in about 6% less caustic production available this year versus last year.

在氯鹼方面，氯分子本身非常緊密，因此生產商正在尋找氯分子的最高價值出口。正如 Vicki 所提到的，我們非常多樣化的氯衍生物產品組合使我們能夠透過我們的機會鏈真正最大限度地利用這些氯分子。因此，今年氯鹼生產本身就面臨壓力，這僅僅是因為大量計劃外和計劃停電。如果你看一下氯鹼的比率，你會發現 21 年的氯鹼比率實際上低於 20 年迄今的比率，今年迄今約為 75%，而去年同期為 80%，因此與去年相比，今年可用的苛性鹼產量減少了約6%。

So caustic's been quite tight, which is helping to improve prices. And with planned outages scheduled in the third quarter, we would anticipate that -- further support for additional price increases in the caustic soda business. And then as you see, caustic for us tends to be something that moves with the global economy. And well, certainly, as economies open up and eventually travel restrictions close -- ease globally, we should see additional demand in underlying sectors. And so as far as the key demand sectors in the second half, we see better demand in the alumina sector, the pulp/paper sector, water treatment and certainly the bleaching sectors all improving in the third quarter.

因此，苛性鹼供應相當緊張，這有助於提高價格。由於計劃在第三季停電，我們預計，這將進一步支持燒鹼業務的進一步漲價。正如你所看到的，對我們來說，腐蝕性往往是隨著全球經濟的變化而變化的。當然，隨著經濟開放並最終關閉旅行限制（全球範圍內放鬆），我們應該會看到基礎行業的需求增加。就下半年的關鍵需求產業而言，我們看到氧化鋁產業、紙漿/造紙業、水處理以及漂白業的需求在第三季均有所改善。

So both sides of the ECU are looking strong headed into the second half of the year. And the underlying factors certainly are bullish for both of them as we move into 2022 and beyond.

因此，ECU 雙方在下半年都表現強勁。隨著我們進入 2022 年及以後，潛在的因素無疑對它們都有好處。

And the follow-up is one of the key takeaways from earnings season is the emphasis investors continue to place on cash returns. And at this point, Occidental is more focused on deleveraging the business, which makes a lot of sense. Can you just remind us what your absolute debt target is? And then at what point or what milestones should we be thinking about the company shifting from a deleveraging approach, to one of where you can reintroduce something like a dividend?

後續財報季的主要收穫之一是投資者繼續重視現金回報。在這一點上，西方石油公司更專注於業務去槓桿化，這很有意義。您能否提醒我們您的絕對債務目標是多少？然後，我們應該在什麼時候或什麼里程碑考慮公司從去槓桿化方法轉向可以重新引入股息之類的方法？

Yes. So certainly a topic du jour. So we depicted on the 13th slide of the deck, which was newly included, that we're essentially on a journey when it comes to cash flow priorities. And after a lot of risk in 2020, to de-risk the company in what I call a post-COVID world, between the stabilization of production, the slashing of our costs, and refinance near-term maturities, now we're making headway, as Vicki detailed, on our deleveraging process. And we took a significant step forward with the upside tender in July, through both a combination of cash available, from strong production performance, the continued capital execution and diligent cost management and really the remarkable turnaround in Chemicals, all contributed to the success of that.

是的。所以這肯定是一個熱門話題。因此，我們在新添加的幻燈片的第 13 張幻燈片中描述了，在現金流優先事項方面，我們基本上正處於旅程中。在 2020 年經歷了許多風險之後，為了在我所說的後新冠世界中降低公司的風險，在穩定生產、削減成本和為近期到期的再融資之間，現在我們正在取得進展正如Vicki 詳細介紹的我們的去槓桿化過程。我們在7 月的上行招標中向前邁出了重要一步，透過可用現金、強勁的生產業績、持續的資本執行和勤奮的成本管理以及化學品的顯著轉變，所有這些都為該專案的成功做出了貢獻。

And so now we've retired about $12.7 billion of principal since the middle of '19 through that combination of our organic cash generation and investor program. And I think we'll continue to work towards the $2 billion to $3 billion post-Colombia divesture target that we've established. But as we look forward, it's anticipated that the majority of free cash flow from the business will be the source of future cash for debt retirement. And it's critical that as we take advantage of the elevated prices, to deleverage the balance sheet because we know any time there are going to be changes in the macro environment that could affect or alter commodity prices, that it would inhibit our ability to do that.

因此，自 19 年中期以來，透過有機現金產生和投資者計畫的結合，我們已經收回了約 127 億美元的本金。我認為我們將繼續努力實現我們制定的哥倫比亞剝離後 20 億至 30 億美元的目標。但正如我們展望的那樣，預計該業務的大部分自由現金流將成為未來債務清償的現金來源。至關重要的是，當我們利用價格上漲的機會去槓桿化資產負債表時，因為我們知道任何時候宏觀環境都會發生變化，從而影響或改變大宗商品價格，這將抑制我們這樣做的能力。

So when I look at the time it takes, our path does remain focused right now on the 2 top priorities being that we're focused on in our list. And how long we're on that path is certainly dependent upon future commodity prices because that certainly impacts the rate at which we're able to move down the path. But I do think that the steps we've taken since March of '20 are all part of a long-term strategy around increasing value to our shareholders. For example, if you look at last year, in the de-risking side, we could have saved a little interest in our refinance process by using more onerous indentures.

因此，當我考慮所需的時間時，我們的路徑目前仍然集中在我們清單中關注的兩個首要任務上。我們在這條道路上走多久肯定取決於未來的大宗商品價格，因為這肯定會影響我們沿著這條道路前進的速度。但我確實認為，我們自 20 年 3 月以來採取的步驟都是圍繞增加股東價值的長期策略的一部分。例如，如果你看看去年，在去風險方面，我們可以透過使用更繁重的契約來節省再融資過程中的一點利息。

But we sit here today with a much less risky maturity profile and in the same simple capital structure we started with. And we do believe ultimately deleveraging the company is going to be the benefit of equity holders in the form of equity appreciation. And we also understand that, that leverage to oil price remains attractive and is a determinant of the pace of that process.

但我們今天坐在這裡，成熟度的風險要小得多，資本結構也與我們開始時一樣簡單。我們確實相信，最終公司去槓桿化將以股權增值的形式為股東帶來利益。我們也了解到，對油價的槓桿作用仍然具有吸引力，並且是這一進程步伐的決定因素。

And our EBITDA does fluctuate obviously a lot with commodity prices. And while some agencies have modestly increased their models, their prices are still well below the current strip. So that's why we keep saying that to get to a more sustainable debt level in the mid-20 range is likely necessary to achieve those IG-like financial metrics.

我們的 EBITDA 確實隨著大宗商品價格的變化明顯波動很大。儘管一些機構適度增加了型號，但其價格仍遠低於當前水平。因此，這就是為什麼我們一直說要達到 20 左右的更可持續的債務水平，可能有必要實現那些類似於 IG 的財務指標。

In addition to debt ratio, we understand obviously financial policies matter in investment grade decisions. So use of cash or dividends, growth, et cetera, will also be viewed in the near-term unfavorably, so that's why we remain focused on the deleveraging process. And once we reach that more sustainable debt level, we will start resuming a greater amount of cash to shareholders.

除了負債比率之外，我們顯然知道金融政策對投資層級決策也很重要。因此，現金或股息的使用、成長等在短期內也將被視為不利，這就是為什麼我們仍然關注去槓桿化過程。一旦我們達到更永續的債務水平，我們將開始向股東恢復更多現金。

And the next question will come from Doug Leggate with Bank of America.

下一個問題將由美國銀行的 Doug Leggate 提出。

It's amazing to me how folks continue to look for cash returns, Vicki, when you've got the potential of moving 40% of your market cap between debt and equity over the next year. And I guess it's -- that's really the rub of my question, these disposals and how you can accelerate that. But I would like to frame it like this. When you announced the $2 billion to $3 billion target post-Colombia, Brent was $42 for the $2 billion to $3 billion target. Obviously, it's not there today.

讓我驚訝的是，Vicki，當你有潛力在明年將 40% 的市值在債務和股權之間轉換時，人們如何繼續尋求現金回報。我想這確實是我的問題的難點，這些處置以及如何加速這個過程。但我想把它畫成這樣。當您宣布哥倫比亞之後的 20 億至 30 億美元目標時，20 億至 30 億美元目標的布蘭特原油價格為 42 美元。顯然，今天不存在了。

So can you just give us an update as to do you expect to do more than the [2.3] on a pari passu basis for the oil price? Or are you moving and are you targeting $2 billion to $3 billion albeit, I'm guessing, you can do that with fewer assets given where the oil price is? So I just wanted you to help me risk the $2 billion to $3 billion. It seems to me you can probably do a lot more in absolute terms given the oil prices are $30 higher.

那麼，您能否向我們介紹一下最新情況，您是否期望在同等基礎上對油價做出比 [2.3] 更多的事情？或者你是否正在搬家，你的目標是 20 億到 30 億美元，儘管我猜，考慮到油價的情況，你可以用更少的資產來實現這一目標？所以我只是想讓你幫我冒 20 億到 30 億美元的風險。在我看來，考慮到油價上漲了 30 美元，從絕對值來看你可能可以做更多的事情。

So at this point, we're not really prepared to change the goals that we've set out, although we feel very comfortable we will achieve the lower end of that goal. But Doug, you're exactly right. Given our portfolio, there could be other opportunities available to us to continue to optimize what we have today. And optimization to us is not just ensuring that you have the best quality assets in your portfolio, that you're putting your dollars where they generate the most value. It's also looking at the opportunities to do as we just did, and that is to monetize where you see that the monetization of that is going to be so far out into the future. It's not meaningful value for our shareholders today.

因此，在這一點上，我們還沒有真正準備好改變我們設定的目標，儘管我們對實現該目標的較低目標感到非常滿意。但是道格，你說得完全正確。鑑於我們的投資組合，我們可能還有其他機會來繼續優化我們今天所擁有的。對我們來說，優化不僅是確保您的投資組合中擁有最優質的資產，還要確保您將資金投入到能產生最大價值的地方。它還在尋找像我們剛才那樣做的機會，那就是在你認為貨幣化將在遙遠的未來實現的地方進行貨幣化。對於今天我們的股東來說，這沒有任何意義。

So we're constantly looking at and updating, optimizing our plans and looking at those opportunities, where could there be additional situations where we have the same thing that we just did with this Permian acreage, monetize it today and have the opportunity to create better value today than to keep it in the portfolio when we know we can't get to it.

因此，我們不斷地研究和更新，優化我們的計劃並尋找這些機會，在哪裡可能有其他情況，我們可以像我們剛剛在二疊紀地區所做的那樣，今天將其貨幣化，並有機會創造更好的今天的價值，而不是當我們知道我們無法獲得它時將其保留在投資組合中。

So we're still looking at all those things, not prepared yet to change our guidance, but I can say that, opportunistically, we do want to create value sooner rather than later. So we'll continue to keep that in mind as we review the portfolio and optimize as we go along.

因此，我們仍在考慮所有這些事情，尚未準備好改變我們的指導，但我可以說，從機會主義角度來看，我們確實希望儘早創造價值。因此，當我們審查產品組合併進行最佳化時，我們將繼續牢記這一點。

Vicki, I apologize for asking for clarification on this, but if you have the same number of assets, are you ahead of schedule then in terms of the absolute proceeds, again reflecting the fact that the oil price is higher?

Vicki，我很抱歉要求澄清這一點，但如果你擁有相同數量的資產，那麼就絕對收益而言，你是否提前了，再次反映了油價較高的事實？

We are on schedule with what we need to do. But with that said, given where oil prices are today, we're quite comfortable looking at opportunities as they come in. And by that, I mean, we're still getting opportunities coming in the door for various parts of our portfolio. And we look at all of those very critically. And I think that there's going to be situations that come up over the next 12 to 18 months that would provide us more opportunity to raise additional funds. But I don't want to commit to that because where we are now, and with respect to our cash flow generation and our deleveraging progress, we're in a position to be, I would say, much more careful, and careful is not the right word, but much more, I guess, opportunistic, is the only word I can think of, to ensure that we get maximum prices for what we would sell.

我們正在按計劃完成我們需要做的事情。但話雖如此，考慮到今天的油價，我們很樂意尋找機會。我們非常批判性地看待所有這些。我認為未來 12 到 18 個月內將會出現一些情況，這將為我們提供更多籌集額外資金的機會。但我不想承諾這一點，因為我們現在所處的位置，就我們的現金流生成和去槓桿化進展而言，我想說，我們能夠更加謹慎，而謹慎並不意味著正確的詞，但我想，機會主義是我能想到的唯一詞，以確保我們能夠以最高的價格出售我們的產品。

Because we started out the divestiture program by cutting off the very tail end of what we felt like fit within our portfolio, that could fit with another's portfolio in a higher level. But for us, the things we've sold just could not compete and could not add the value that other things in our portfolio could. So now as we have divested of those assets, we're now getting to the assets where we expect to get more value from a divestiture than those that were at the lower end, I guess, is the best way to say it. So -- but we're open to looking at opportunities as we see them.

因為我們通過切斷我們認為適合我們投資組合的尾部來開始剝離計劃，這可以在更高級別上與其他人的投資組合相適應。但對我們來說，我們出售的產品無法與我們產品組合中的其他產品競爭，也無法增加價值。因此，現在隨著我們已經剝離了這些資產，我們現在正在接觸那些我們期望從剝離中獲得比低端資產更多價值的資產，我想，這是最好的說法。所以——但我們願意尋找我們所看到的機會。

And the next question will come from Roger Read with Wells Fargo.

下一個問題將由富國銀行的羅傑·里德提出。

Thank you and congratulations on the quarter. It's nice to see everything clicking for the first time in a while. I guess what I would like to maybe address, some of the metrics you're using that underpin the decision to move away from any sort of a hedging strategy and maybe getting back to thinking about from a debt-to-EBITDA, debt-to-cap, maybe a long-term debt number you're more comfortable with, just maybe all the pieces that have gone into it that kind of speaks to where you are now versus where everything was 12 and 24 months ago.

謝謝您並恭喜本季。很高興看到一切在一段時間內第一次正常運作。我想我可能想解決的問題是，您正在使用的一些指標支撐著放棄任何形式的對沖策略的決定，也許會重新考慮從債務與 EBITDA、債務與-上限，也許是一個您更願意接受的長期債務數字，也許其中的所有部分都可以說明您現在的情況與12 和24 個月前的情況相比。

Yes, fair question, Roger. So certainly, historically, the company has not been one with a hedging philosophy and felt like the combination of our exposure to commodities and exposure to the price of a long-haul would ultimately deliver the most value to our shareholders versus attempting to use hedges to try and create value. And that certainly changed in 2020 because we were in a position where our leverage was such that it was necessary for us to create some protection in the event we were in a negative price environment, like -- but it ultimately worked out that way.

是的，這是合理的問題，羅傑。因此，可以肯定的是，從歷史上看，該公司並不是一家具有對沖理念的公司，我們認為，我們對大宗商品的敞口和對長途航班價格的敞口相結合，最終將為我們的股東帶來最大的價值，而不是試圖利用對沖來實現對沖。這種情況在 2020 年肯定發生了變化，因為我們的槓桿作用很大，如果我們處於負價格環境中，我們有必要提供一些保護，但最終的結果是這樣的。

And certainly, the $1 billion that we were able to create in value last year from the hedge was something that was critical to our success last year. And we'll continue to maintain the opportunistic approach. But as we evaluate hedges, we're considering a lot of factors. Number one is the cost to execute the hedge. Certainly, as the costless hedge that we did last year came with a call provision this year, which hasn't been very expensive, but they can be, and the implications that the hedge is going to have on the upside to leverage our oil price, such as a collar. And so a pure put hedge is pretty expensive. I think collars introduce an upside limitation that we would not like to put on our shareholders.

當然，我們去年透過對沖創造的 10 億美元價值對於我們去年的成功至關重要。我們將繼續保持機會主義的態度。但當我們評估對沖時，我們會考慮很多因素。第一個是執行對沖的成本。當然，由於我們去年進行的無成本對沖今年附帶了看漲準備金，這並不是很昂貴，但它們可以是，並且對沖將對槓桿我們的油價產生上行影響，例如領子。因此，純賣權對沖相當昂貴。我認為項圈引入了我們不希望對我們的股東施加的上行限制。

And so if you look at the -- we think that creating that manageable debt profile, as I discussed in the comments, particularly knocking down the taller towers beyond just the near-term stuff that we focused on, if you look at the recent tender, 80% of the bonds that we addressed were in that 2022 to 2024 time frame. And it's a more effective long-term solution by [certainly providing] that.

因此，如果你看看——我們認為，正如我在評論中討論的那樣，創建可管理的債務狀況，特別是拆除更高的塔樓，而不僅僅是我們關注的近期目標，如果你看看最近的招標，我們處理的債券中有 80% 是在 2022 年至 2024 年的時間範圍內。透過[當然提供]這一點，這是一個更有效的長期解決方案。

And so I do think that you can use a trailing -- if prices were to continue with the current strip values and use a trailing EBITDA by the end of the year, and we were able to continue on as we've been doing with debt retirement, we could be easily be below a 3x multiple. But certainly, as I discussed, that's not as necessarily with a strip value that's much higher than the -- what's being used by the rating agencies.

因此，我確實認為，如果價格繼續保持當前的剝離價值，並在年底前使用追蹤 EBITDA，那麼我們就可以繼續使用追蹤債務，就像我們一直在處理債務一樣退休後，我們的收入很可能會低於3 倍。但當然，正如我所討論的，這並不一定意味著剝離價值遠高於評級機構所使用的價值。

And so I do think it's important to us to maintain those ratios, but it's also why I mentioned in my comments it's important for us to really go after the maturities while we have the wind at our back in terms of commodity prices, which is exactly what we're doing. And so taking that out and continuing to move forward and then you can look at the way that we structured the tender and strategy approach on that, we left aside a significant amount of debt that's easily available to us, $2 billion worth, it's either going to be maturable before the end of the year, is callable before the end of the year, or we have attractive make-whole payments in addition to the floating interest rate notes.

因此，我確實認為維持這些比率對我們來說很重要，但這也是為什麼我在評論中提到，在大宗商品價格方面有優勢的情況下，我們真正追求到期日很重要，這正是我們正在做什麼。因此，把它拿出來並繼續前進，然後你可以看看我們建立招標和戰略方法的方式，我們留下了大量我們很容易獲得的債務，價值 20 億美元，要么年底前到期，年底前可贖回，或除了浮動利率票據外，我們還有有吸引力的全額付款。

And so that gives us access to very cheaply continue to retire debt moving forward over the balance of the year, which will go further and further towards that. And so we've just got work to do. We made a giant step forward with the debt tender in the last quarter. But we see still have a little more work to do. But I do feel like that the work we've done, particularly between the deleveraging and the cleaned out runway has given us a lot more selectivity around hedging strategies moving forward, not to say that we would never do them again, but it certainly is our preference to create the value for shareholders and give them the exposure to oil price, which is something that Oxy has to offer right now that many others don't.

因此，這使我們能夠以非常便宜的價格繼續在今年餘下的時間裡償還債務，這將朝著這一目標邁得越來越遠。所以我們還有工作要做。上個季度，我們在債務招標方面向前邁出了一大步。但我們發現還有更多工作要做。但我確實覺得我們所做的工作，特別是去槓桿化和清理跑道之間的工作，讓我們在未來的對沖策略方面有了更多的選擇性，並不是說我們永遠不會再這樣做，但確實如此我們傾向於為股東創造價值，並讓他們接觸石油價格，這是 Oxy 目前必須提供的東西，而許多其他公司卻沒有。

I appreciate that. That's a good answer and it just sort of gets to the reduced risk profile overall. I appreciate that. Maybe just changing directions with my other question a little bit here. The comment about being able to add the two rigs in New Mexico, no impact on CapEx. I was just curious, so does -- is that a function or a reflection of improved efficiency and productivity, some of the other things mentioned like the uptime on the pumping jobs. Maybe, Vicki, just a question overall as you're seeing the evolution and continued productivity and efficiency gains out on the field.

我很感激。這是一個很好的答案，它只是降低了整體風險狀況。我很感激。也許只是在這裡稍微改變一下我的其他問題的方向。關於能夠在新墨西哥州添加兩台鑽機的評論對資本支出沒有影響。我只是很好奇，這也是效率和生產力提高的功能或反映，提到的其他一些事情，例如泵浦工作的正常運行時間。也許，Vicki，這只是一個總體問題，因為您正在看到現場的演變以及生產力和效率的持續提升。

Yes, it was a combination of the efficiencies of the current drilling program and also the utilization of existing facilities to ensure that we could shift our capital to two additional rigs without needing any incremental infrastructure expenditures. So this has created a really good opportunity, the fact that our teams are continuing to improve what they're doing.

是的，它結合了當前鑽井計劃的效率以及現有設施的利用，以確保我們可以將資金轉移到另外兩個鑽機上，而無需增加任何基礎設施支出。因此，這創造了一個非常好的機會，事實上我們的團隊正在繼續改進他們正在做的事情。

And Roger, on top of what Vicki just said, I think it's important to note, I mean, if you look at our activity profile, I mean, we were ramping down through the year. So it's not that we necessarily are ramping up activity. It's not the case. We're just not ramping down. We still went from 12 rigs down to 10. Today, we're at 11. So we're just kind of flattening out that activity profile while still keeping the capital budget exactly the same. So we're not adding to that, as you pointed out.

羅傑，除了維基剛才所說的之外，我認為值得注意的是，我的意思是，如果你看看我們的活動概況，我的意思是，我們在這一年中一直在減少。因此，我們不一定要加大活動力道。事實並非如此。我們只是沒有減速。我們仍然從 12 台鑽機減少到 10 台。因此，正如您所指出的那樣，我們不會對此進行補充。

And the impact is really more about next year. If you look at that activity set, one rig started up, another will start up soon, it will add approximately 20,000 barrels a day to second quarter next year. So that will help our capital profile going into next year.

影響其實更多的是明年。如果你看一下該活動集，一個鑽井平台已啟動，另一個鑽井平台即將啟動，到明年第二季度，每天將增加約 20,000 桶。因此，這將有助於我們明年的資本狀況。

And the next question will be from Phil Gresh with JPMorgan.

下一個問題將由摩根大通的 Phil Gresh 提出。

Yes, Jeff, just to follow up on what you were talking about with the activity levels, as you look at the second half spending, you annualize that second half spending is around $3.2 billion or so. Any initial thoughts around the 2022 CapEx levels? Would you just be looking to kind of keep it where it is?

是的，傑夫，只是為了跟進您所談論的活動水平，當您查看下半年的支出時，您將下半年的支出年化約為 32 億美元左右。關於 2022 年資本支出水準有什麼初步想法嗎？您只是想將其保留在原處嗎？

It's a good question. And as you know, Phil, it's a little early for us to forecast what 2022 looks like. We usually do that on our fourth quarter call. But to your point about cadence because I think that's relevant and you can kind of read some things into that, when you look at our capital profile, and that's $2.9 billion for the year, as you mentioned, we spent $1.3 billion in the first half. And there's a couple of things that drive that, and you can see it. Like for example, our Chems business, we forecasted about $300 million. They've spent a little over $100 million. So a lot of those activities are back-end-weighted.

這是一個好問題。 Phil，如你所知，我們現在預測 2022 年的情況還為時過早。我們通常在第四季的電話會議上這樣做。但就你關於節奏的觀點而言，因為我認為這是相關的，當你查看我們的資本狀況時，你可以從中解讀一些內容，今年是29 億美元，正如你提到的，我們上半年花費了13 億美元。有幾件事推動了這一點，你可以看到它。例如，我們的化學業務，我們預測約為 3 億美元。他們已經花了 1 億多美元。因此，很多活動都是後端加權的。

On our Permian activity slide, you can see, of our $1.2 billion, we've only spent $500 million of that. And the reason for that is a lot of our Midland Basin wells were front-end-loaded, so much lower working interest with the carry. Now we're getting to some of our higher-working interest wells that go with that. So it's really more about where we're spending capital and how it is more than a cadence of an activity set drastically changing. So I wouldn't read into like a 800 quarter-type number being what we need for next year.

在我們的二疊紀活動幻燈片上，您可以看到，在我們的 12 億美元中，我們只花了其中的 5 億美元。原因是我們米德蘭盆地的許多井都是前端裝載的，因此運載的工作興趣要低得多。現在我們正在開發一些與此相關的高工作利益井。因此，真正重要的是我們將資本花在哪裡以及如何花掉，而不僅僅是徹底改變的活動節奏。所以我不會認為 800 個四分之一的數字就是我們明年所需要的。

So as you look to 2022, I mean, obviously, we would give a lot more color on this going forward, but I think the same narrative we've talked about in previous calls, we continue to see great improvement from an operational standpoint. I think when you look at what our teams have done this year, it's exceeded all of our expectations from an efficiency standpoint. I mean we -- every time we look to put the slides together and we ask for new records that have been set, we're blown away by the new things that come up again and again and again that our teams are doing.

因此，當你展望2022 年時，我的意思是，顯然，我們會在未來的發展中提供更多的色彩，但我認為我們在之前的電話會議中談到的同樣的敘述，從營運的角度來看，我們繼續看到巨大的進步。我認為，當你看到我們團隊今年所做的事情時，從效率的角度來看，它超出了我們所有的預期。我的意思是，每次我們希望將幻燈片放在一起並要求創造新的記錄時，我們都會被我們團隊正在做的一次又一次出現的新事物所震驚。

And so I don't think that's going to stop. I mean we -- even after we put the slides together for this, we got notice last night, where our Rockies team set a record for the month of July for pumping efficiency of like 630 hours pumped. So you start doing the math on that, and that's 10% better than our previous record and the best Western Hemisphere record for the service provider that did that in Halliburton.

所以我認為這不會停止。我的意思是，即使我們為此準備了幻燈片之後，我們昨晚還是收到了通知，我們的落基山脈團隊創下了 7 月份泵送效率的記錄，約為 630 小時的泵送時間。所以你開始計算一下，這比我們之前的記錄以及哈里伯頓服務提供者的西半球最佳記錄好 10%。

So I think we're going to continue to see those improvements that are going to help with capital efficiency going forward. And we do know there's takes against that, that we'll need to build in, that we've talked about. GoM was especially low this year, and we know that probably takes a little more capital to run the type of business we want to run there. We've got other projects going on that could push that up, but those will be offset by some improvement.

因此，我認為我們將繼續看到這些有助於提高未來資本效率的改善。我們確實知道有人反對這一點，我們需要將其納入其中，我們已經討論過。今年 GoM 的股價特別低，我們知道可能需要更多的資金來運作我們想要在那裡經營的業務類型。我們還有其他項目正在進行，可能會推動這一點，但這些將被一些改進所抵消。

So more to come on that in the future. But I do think, as we kind of roll that out, we will talk about some of the benefits and then some of the things that may cause us to spend a little more capital in the short term. But we definitely don't want to underestimate all the great things the teams are doing to get more efficient and get better results from the money that they spend. And I think that's what you saw in the first half of this year, is that rolling through and hence, why we could add activity compared to what we thought without increasing the capital budget.

未來還會有更多這樣的事情發生。但我確實認為，當我們推出這項計劃時，我們將討論一些好處，然後討論一些可能導致我們在短期內花費更多資本的事情。但我們絕對不想低估團隊為提高效率並從他們所花費的資金中獲得更好結果所做的所有偉大事情。我認為這就是你在今年上半年看到的情況，即滾動，因此，為什麼我們可以在不增加資本預算的情況下增加比我們想像的活動。

That makes sense. My next question, I guess, would be for Vicki. As you think about the EOR business moving forward, where would you say you are in terms of the opportunity to process anthropogenic CO2? And how should we think about the timing of potential updates from the company as we look ahead, say, the next 6 to 12 months around CCUS?

這就說得通了。我想我的下一個問題是問維姬的。當您考慮 EOR 業務的發展時，您認為您在處理人為二氧化碳的機會方面處於什麼位置？當我們展望未來（例如未來 6 到 12 個月）圍繞CCUS 的情況時，我們應該如何考慮公司潛在更新的時間？

As you may remember, we have 2 billion barrels of resources yet to be developed in the Enhanced Oil Recovery business in the Permian and the conventional reservoirs. And so we're really excited about the fact that the Low Carbon business will provide us either a very low cost or net 0 cost CO2 for those projects.

您可能還記得，我們​​在二疊紀和常規油藏的提高石油採收率業務中還有 20 億桶資源有待開發。因此，我們對低碳業務將為這些項目提供極低成本或淨零成本二氧化碳這一事實感到非常興奮。

But we see that the incremental for Enhanced Oil Recovery will probably come closer to the time of getting the first direct air capture facility online. We still have access to organic CO2, and we'll have minor increases as we continue to expand phases within the Permian EOR business. But significant improvement in escalation will come as a part of our low carbon strategy, and that will help to provide the low-decline assets and production that we've been used to having in the past, which will help to offset some of the Resources' decline.

但我們看到，提高石油採收率的增量可能會更接近第一個直接空氣捕獲設施上線的時間。我們仍然可以獲得有機二氧化碳，隨著我們繼續擴大二疊紀 EOR 業務的階段，我們的產量將會小幅增加。但升級方面的重大改善將作為我們低碳策略的一部分，這將有助於提供我們過去習慣的低衰退資產和生產，這將有助於抵消一些資源' 衰退。

So it's a key part of our low carbon strategy, and will be a key contributor and growth engine for us as we go forward beyond the implementation of the first few DACs.

因此，它是我們低碳策略的關鍵部分，隨著我們繼續實施最初的幾個 DAC，它將成為我們的關鍵貢獻者和成長引擎。

And the next question will come from Paul Cheng with Scotiabank.

下一個問題將由豐業銀行的 Paul Cheng 提出。

2 questions, please. First, Vicki, just curious, you guys are definitely one of the very efficient operators in Permian and you have done a good job. And in the past, that you have formed some joint ventures, you essentially are sort of like trying to pull the value forward and by having someone to fund you. But going forward, with your balance sheet starting getting in shape and cash flow getting better, have you looked at opportunities that if you talk to some of your peers, like Shell, to maybe pool the Permian asset together into a giant joint venture and you guys would [respond by] not going to extract cash upfront, but just drive really great efficiency gain going forward that leverages your technical expertise here.

請提 2 個問題。首先，Vicki，只是好奇，你們絕對是二疊紀非常有效率的操作員之一，而且做得很好。在過去，你成立了一些合資企業，本質上就像是試圖透過有人為你提供資金來推動價值向前發展。但展望未來，隨著您的資產負債表開始趨於完善，現金流變得越來越好，您是否考慮過與殼牌等同行交談的機會，也許可以將二疊紀資產合併成一家大型合資企業，然後您夥計們會[回應]不會預先提取現金，而只是利用您在這裡的技術專長來推動真正巨大的效率提升。

I think that's -- what you said is a great idea. We always look at opportunities to do that. For us, it's not a matter of how you do it. We just look for ways to create value. And any way that we can create value for our shareholders, we're open to doing it. And so the JV with EcoPetrol in the Midland Basin has been very successful for us. We actually may look at additional JVs in the Delaware Basin to continue to accelerate what we're doing there. And partnering with others where we can join forces and find ways to obtain synergies and to utilize our team for the execution part of it and the evaluation part, I think is a really good idea because I'm so proud of our teams.

我認為你所說的是個好主意。我們總是尋找機會做到這一點。對我們來說，這不是你如何做的問題。我們只是尋找創造價值的方法。我們願意以任何方式為股東創造價值。因此，與 EcoPetrol 在米德蘭盆地的合資企業對我們來說非常成功。實際上，我們可能會考慮在特拉華盆地建立更多合資企業，以繼續加快我們在那裡的工作。與其他人合作，我們可以聯合起來，找到獲得協同效應的方法，並利用我們的團隊來執行部分和評估部分，我認為這是一個非常好的主意，因為我為我們的團隊感到自豪。

As Jeff said, I can't reiterate enough how they've blown us away with the work that they've done that is not just at steady-state today, it's continuing to improve. As Jeff mentioned, the subsurface work goes beyond what I ever expected to see in the shale play. And they're now really pushing the technology envelope on how to model, how to first evaluate, do the data analytics, and then model the surface production in the shale reservoirs and to know exactly where to land and how to frac and how to complete. You combine that with the fact that our drilling and completion guys are continuing to set records.

正如傑夫所說，我無法充分重申他們所做的工作是如何讓我們震驚的，他們所做的工作不僅在今天處於穩定狀態，而且還在繼續改進。正如傑夫所提到的，地下工作超出了我在頁岩油區中看到的範圍。他們現在真正推動瞭如何建模、如何首先評估、進行數據分析，然後對頁岩油藏的地表生產進行建模，並準確地知道在哪裡著陸、如何進行壓裂以及如何完成的技術極限。您將這一點與我們的鑽井和完井人員不斷創造記錄的事實結合起來。

And I tell you, 3 years ago, we would not have predicted where we are today. And even last year, we wouldn't have predicted some of the things that are happening this year. That's why when we talk about capital in the future, it's really hard to say what our sustaining capital would be because we didn't expect it to be $2.9 billion this year back when we looked at it 18 months ago. So the progress made in pushing the envelope, being innovative and really developing the leading-edge part of the industry, with respect to this kind of technology, has been amazing. I'm so proud of the team. So I'll say again, I don't know of any other group that I've ever seen, that could do this kind of work and continue to progress it.

我告訴你，三年前，我們無法預測我們今天的處境。即使在去年，我們也無法預測今年會發生的一些事情。這就是為什麼當我們談論未來的資本時，很難說我們的維持資本是多少，因為當我們 18 個月前查看時，我們並沒有想到今年會達到 29 億美元。因此，就此類技術而言，在突破極限、創新和真正開發行業前沿部分方面取得的進展是令人驚嘆的。我為這個團隊感到非常自豪。所以我要再說一遍，我不知道我見過的任何其他團隊可以完成此類工作並繼續取得進展。

I'm just curious, Vicki, have you talked to any of your peers, the other CEOs? I mean because everyone seems to have a big ego and think their team is the best. But I mean, is that something that the industry is ready to do something like that. Because it could be great for you and great for everyone, actually for the whole industry, if someone was willing to say, put aside the ego and do something like that.

我只是好奇，Vicki，你和你的同事、其他執行長談過嗎？我的意思是因為每個人似乎都很自負，認為他們的團隊是最好的。但我的意思是，業界已經準備好做類似的事情了。因為這對你和每個人都有好處，實際上對整個行業也有好處，如果有人願意說，拋開自我，做類似的事情。

I don't want to mention names, but there has been some discussion around that. And I think that is something that the industry is opening up to because we as an industry, we want to create value, we want to do business differently than we've done in the past. We have to do that as an industry to attract investors back to the oil and gas industry. It's going to be important that we change our paradigm about how business should be done.

我不想提及名字，但圍繞這個問題已經進行了一些討論。我認為這是該行業正在開放的事情，因為我們作為一個行業，我們希望創造價值，我們希望以與過去不同的方式開展業務。作為一個產業，我們必須這樣做，才能吸引投資者重返石油和天然氣產業。我們改變關於如何開展業務的範式非常重要。

And I have had some conversations with other CEOs about exactly what you've said. And there are some open to it, some are not, but there are some open to that. And I think this sort of thing needs to happen and has to happen for us to maximize the value of the assets that we and others have today.

我已經與其他執行長就您所說的內容進行了一些對話。有些人對此持開放態度，有些則不然，但也有一些人對此持開放態度。我認為這種事情需要發生，並且必須發生，以便我們和其他人今天擁有的資產價值最大化。

Hey, Paul, and if I can add, I think a lot of people forget, I mean, our Permian position was built on one of those JVs. Basically, we bought the joint venture between what was Amoco, Shell and then BP, and ARCO, which was exactly that. So a lot of the people in the company are very well-versed and the benefits that come from that and continually look for those opportunities. But that is the heart of our Permian operation.

嘿，保羅，如果我可以補充一下，我想很多人都忘記了，我的意思是，我們的二疊紀地位是建立在其中一個合資企業的基礎上的。基本上，我們收購了阿莫科、殼牌、然後 BP 和 ARCO 之間的合資企業，就是這樣。因此，公司裡的許多人都非常精通由此帶來的好處，並且不斷尋找這些機會。但這是我們二疊紀業務的核心。

And the next question comes from Neal Dingmann with Truist.

下一個問題來自 Truist 的 Neal Dingmann。

Vicki, one, just sort of following on what you said earlier, I want to make sure I'm clear on this. You mentioned, I think, in the prepared remarks you said there could be some coordination, you said, between OxyChem and your decarbonization business. I'm just wondering what -- how you're thinking about that or how quickly you could -- something like this could occur.

Vicki，一，只是遵循你之前所說的，我想確保我清楚這一點。我認為，您在準備好的發言中提到，OxyChem 和您的脫碳業務之間可能存在一些協調。我只是想知道，你是如何考慮這個問題的，或者你能多快發生這樣的事情。

Well, OxyChem is already involved in the design of the direct air capture facility. So they will be a key part of the front-end engineering and design that's happening today. We're doing the FEED study. So OxyChem participants are a part of that. They're helping to drive that. And we really want to leverage their expertise around the use of caustic potash, and we need to use PVC products in the direct air capture facility that's going to be a key part of some of the components going into it.

嗯，OxyChem 已經參與了直接空氣捕捉設施的設計。因此它們將成為當今前端工程和設計的關鍵部分。我們正在進行 FEED 研究。所以 OxyChem 參與者也是其中的一部分。他們正在幫助推動這項進程。我們確實希望利用他們在使用苛性鉀方面的專業知識，並且我們需要在直接空氣捕獲設施中使用 PVC 產品，這將成為其中某些組件的關鍵部分。

So they will, not only in this, but in potential other kinds of processes in the future, with respect to how to use the product. So it's not just in the first direct air capture facility, we believe also they have an R&D mindset, and they have a group that's been very innovative in the past around developing new ways to do things. And Rob could speak more to that history if we had time. Maybe in the future, we will have them do that. But right now, they are a key part of the low carbon strategy and give us a strength that others don't have in this regard.

因此，他們不僅會在這方面，而且在未來潛在的其他類型的流程中，關於如何使用產品。因此，這不僅僅是在第一個直接空氣捕獲設施中，我們相信他們也有研發思維，他們有一個團隊在過去圍繞開發新的做事方式非常創新。如果我們有時間，羅布可以更多地講述這段歷史。也許將來我們會讓他們這樣做。但現在，它們是低碳策略的關鍵組成部分，在這方面給了我們其他人所沒有的優勢。

Got it. Got it. And then just my follow-up is just more on upstream activity. It appears, despite your kind of indication for stable U.S. activity going forward, it looks like you've slowed in the DJ from first to second half. I'm just wondering is this more of a function of slower permitting or shift of interest. I'm just wondering then as you see '22, would '22 be more like first half with more than 50 TILs or more like second half this year with less than 25 TILS.

知道了。知道了。然後我的後續行動更專注於上游活動。看來，儘管您暗示美國經濟活動未來將保持穩定，但從上半場到下半場，DJ 的速度似乎有所放緩。我只是想知道這更多的是一個較慢的許可或興趣轉移的功能。我只是想知道，正如您所看到的 '22，'22 會更像是上半年超過 50 個 TIL，還是更像今年下半年，少於 25 個 TILS。

Yes. I think what you're seeing there, when you look at wells online, that's heavily influenced by the amount of DUCs we brought on early in the year. So if you look at the activity set is relatively flat, we're basically running two rigs up there, one in the Powder, one in the DJ, and a frac core. That activity set is pretty consistent. But you're right, Neal, in that you point out, we think we brought on 70% of the wells, but that was heavily influenced. We brought on about 100 DUCs late last year into the early part of this year. So that's what's heavily influencing the wells online number. But the activity set is pretty constant, and the teams are continuing to build inventory so we can keep that activity set ongoing.

是的。我認為，當您在網上查看油井時，您所看到的情況很大程度上受到我們今年年初引入的 DUC 數量的影響。因此，如果你看看活動集相對平坦，我們基本上在那裡運行兩台鑽機，一台在粉礦中，一台在 DJ 中，還有一個壓裂核心。該活動集非常一致。但尼爾，你是對的，你指出，我們認為我們開發了 70% 的油井，但這受到了嚴重影響。從去年年底到今年年初，我們引進了大約 100 個 DUC。這就是對在線油井數量產生重大影響的因素。但活動集相當穩定，團隊正在繼續建立庫存，以便我們可以保持該活動集持續進行。

And the next question is from Leo Mariani with KeyBanc.

下一個問題來自 KeyBanc 的 Leo Mariani。

I wanted to just jump in a little bit more on the kind of direct air capture side of things here. So correct me if I'm wrong, but it's my understanding you have like a pilot project coming on in the Permian sometime early next year. I was just hoping to get a little more information about that in terms of like what type of capacity, in terms of tons of CO2 or whatever it might be able to kind of pull out of the air and maybe just a little bit more about what you're kind of hoping to achieve with that pilot.

我想進一步了解這裡的直接空氣捕獲方面。因此，如果我錯了，請糾正我，但據我所知，你們將在明年初的某個時候在二疊紀進行一個試點計畫。我只是希望獲得更多關於這方面的信息，比如什麼類型的能力，多少噸二氧化碳或任何它可能能夠從空氣中提取出來的東西，也許只是更多關於什麼的信息你有點希望通過那個飛行員實現目標。

We're using the technology that was developed by Carbon Engineering of which we're an equity owner. And Carbon Engineering has a pilot facility already in operation in Canada. So the pilot is already working. And so we'll be designing the facility that we build on the basis of that pilot. And that's where OxyChem also comes into play because OxyChem has done this in the past. They've done pilots and then scaled up those pilots and they've done that very successfully. So they have experience doing this.

我們使用的是 Carbon Engineering 開發的技術，我們是該公司的股權所有者。 Carbon Engineering 在加拿大設有一個試點設施，已投入營運。所以試點已經開始工作了。因此，我們將在該試點的基礎上設計我們建造的設施。這就是 OxyChem 發揮作用的地方，因為 OxyChem 過去已經做到了這一點。他們已經進行了試點，然後擴大了這些試點的規模，他們做得非常成功。所以他們有這方面的經驗。

So the one that we're going to build will be the largest direct air capture facility in the world. Currently, there are a couple of other different technologies that can capture CO2 from the air. Those other technologies, the largest one that's built today, captures about 4,000 tons per year. The facility that we intend to build in the Permian will capture 1 million tons per year. So it's on the basis of taking that pilot, upscaling it. And in the process, what we're also doing is we're working on the FEED study, is there's a separate group kind of working together to optimize the facility. So we're not wasting time to get it in operation and then see how it works. We're actually innovating as we build and as we look at the study for the engineering. As we're doing that, we're innovating, too. So we expect that when we get into operation, it's going to be, we think, certainly a better product than it would have been had we not involved both OxyChem in the innovation process simultaneous to the FEED study.

因此，我們要建造的設施將是世界上最大的直接空氣捕獲設施。目前，還有其他幾種不同的技術可以從空氣中捕獲二氧化碳。這些其他技術（目前已建成的最大技術）每年捕獲量約為 4,000 噸。我們打算在二疊紀建造的設施每年捕獲 100 萬噸。所以這是在試點的基礎上，擴大規模。在這個過程中，我們也在做 FEED 研究，是否有一個單獨的小組共同努力優化設施。因此，我們不會浪費時間讓它投入運行，然後看看它是如何運作的。我們在建構和研究工程研究時實際上是在創新。在我們這樣做的同時，我們也在創新。因此，我們預計，當我們投入營運時，我們認為，如果我們沒有在 FEED 研究的同時讓 OxyChem 參與創新過程，那麼它肯定會是一個更好的產品。

Okay. That's definitely helpful. And I guess, just can you remind us a little bit on the kind of rough timeline to get that first project in place? And then additionally, is there -- I think there was a plan to maybe fund that sort of off-balance sheet or maybe looking in kind of more creative financing. Can you maybe update us on where you are there?

好的。這絕對有幫助。我想，您能否提醒我們一點關於第一個專案到位的粗略時間表？另外，我認為有一個計劃可能會為這種表外資金提供資金，或者可能尋找更具創意的融資。您能否向我們介紹您所在的位置？

Well, the FEED study should be done, and we should have final investment decisions in the early part of next year, and we hope to begin construction by the end of 2022 or beginning of 2023. So -- and it should be then online toward the end of 2023 or into 2024. So it will be up and running certainly by 2024. The process around what we're doing to ensure that we get the right funding for it is we have been talking with partners. And so we have multiple opportunities to bring in others who want to be a part of this.

嗯，FEED 研究應該完成，我們應該在明年初做出最終的投資決定，我們希望在 2022 年底或 2023 年初開始建設。年啟動並運行。因此，我們有很多機會吸引其他願意參與其中的人。

United Airlines has announced that they will be a part of our direct air capture facility. So they will be not only contributing to the capital needed to build it, but they will be taking the fuel from the facility. So they are committing to an offtake of the low carbon fuel that will be provided by the CO2 that's captured from the air.

美國聯合航空公司宣布，它們將成為我們直接空中捕獲設施的一部分。因此，他們不僅會貢獻建設所需的資金，而且還會從該設施中獲取燃料。因此，他們致力於使用從空氣中捕獲的二氧化碳提供的低碳燃料。

So there are multiple ways to fund it. So one is to make an investment in the facility itself. Second is to commit to taking the CO2 credits. Third is to commit to purchasing the oil that's generated from the CO2 that goes into Enhanced Oil Recovery. So we have several ways of financing the facility. And so we haven't finalized how we'll do that. We're working through that now and talking to a lot of interested parties. We should have more information on how we're going to do that by early next year.

因此，有多種方式為其提供資金。因此，一是對設施本身進行投資。其次是承諾取得二氧化碳信用額。第三是承諾購買由二氧化碳產生的石油，用以提高石油採收率。因此，我們有多種方式為該設施融資。所以我們還沒有最終確定如何做到這一點。我們現在正在解決這個問題，並與許多有興趣的各方進行交談。我們應該在明年初之前獲得更多關於如何做到這一點的資訊。

But there's definitely a lot of interest in making this happen. It's for the U.S. and for the world. Direct air capture needs to happen successfully and happen in a big way. And so that's generating the interest in the parties that want to be contributing to it and then get to participate in the results of it.

但肯定有很多人對實現這一目標感興趣。這是為了美國和世界。直接空氣捕獲需要成功並大規模地進行。因此，這引起了希望為其做出貢獻並參與其結果的各方的興趣。

In the interest of time, this concludes our question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Vicki Hollub for any closing remarks.

由於時間關係，我們的問答環節到此結束。我想將會議轉回 Vicki Hollub 進行閉幕致詞。

I just want to thank you all for your questions and for joining our call today.

我只想感謝大家提出問題並參加我們今天的電話會議。

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

謝謝你。會議現已結束。感謝您參加今天的演講。您現在可以斷開連線。