Vital Energy Inc (VTLE) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good day, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Vital Energy Inc.'s fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 earnings conference call. My name is Desiree and I will be your operator for today.

女士們、先生們，美好的一天，歡迎參加 Vital Energy Inc. 的第四季度和 2023 年全年收益電話會議。我叫 Desiree，今天我將擔任您的接線生。

At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. We will be conducting a question-and-answer session after the financial and operations report. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded for replay purposes.

此時，所有參與者都處於只聽模式。我們將在財務和營運報告之後舉行問答環節。謹此提醒，本次會議正在錄製以供重播。

It is now my pleasure to introduce Mr. Ron Hagood, Vice President, Investor Relations. You may proceed, sir.

現在我很高興向大家介紹投資者關係副總裁 Ron Hagood 先生。您可以繼續了，先生。

Thank you, and good morning. Joining me today are Jason Pigott, President and Chief Executive Officer; Bryan Lemmerman, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer; Katie Hill, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer; as well as additional members of our management team.

謝謝你，早安。今天加入我的還有總裁兼執行長傑森‧皮戈特 (Jason Pigott)；布萊恩‧萊默曼 (Bryan Lemmerman)，執行副總裁兼財務長；凱蒂·希爾，高級副總裁兼營運長；以及我們管理團隊的其他成員。

During today's call, we will be making forward-looking statements. These statements, including those describing our beliefs, goals, expectations, forecasts and assumptions, are intended to be covered by the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

在今天的電話會議中，我們將做出前瞻性聲明。這些陳述，包括那些描述我們的信念、目標、期望、預測和假設的陳述，旨在涵蓋 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》的安全港條款。

Our actual results may differ from these forward-looking statements for a variety of reasons, many of which are beyond our control. In addition, we'll be making reference to non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations to GAAP financial measures are included in the press release and presentation we issued yesterday. Press release and presentation can be accessed on our website at www.vitalenergy.com.

由於多種原因，我們的實際結果可能與這些前瞻性陳述有所不同，其中許多原因是我們無法控制的。此外，我們將參考非公認會計準則財務指標。我們昨天發布的新聞稿和簡報中包含了公認會計準則財務指標的調節表。新聞稿和簡報可在我們的網站 www.vitalenergy.com 上存取。

I'll now turn the call over to Jason Pigott, President and Chief Executive Officer.

現在我將把電話轉給總裁兼執行長傑森·皮戈特 (Jason Pigott)。

Thank you, Ron, and thank you for joining us this morning. 2023 was a great year for Vital Energy as we drove change on multiple fronts. Throughout the year, we executed on our strategy to build shareholder value, expand our development portfolio, generate free cash flow and strengthen our balance sheet.

謝謝你，羅恩，也謝謝你今天早上加入我們。 2023 年對 Vital Energy 來說是偉大的一年，我們在多個方面推動了變革。在這一年中，我們執行了創造股東價值、擴大開發投資組合、產生自由現金流和強化資產負債表的策略。

In 2023, we achieved record production of 96,600 barrels of oil equivalent per day and oil production of 46,300 barrels per day, an increase of 17% and 22%, respectively, versus full year 2022 at lower-than-anticipated capital costs. 12 months, we increased our oil production by approximately 60%.

2023 年，我們實現了創紀錄的日產量 96,600 桶油當量和日產量 46,300 桶，分別比 2022 年全年增長 17% 和 22%，資本成本低於預期。 12個月，我們的石油產量增加了約60%。

For the full year 2023, net income of $695.1 million, adjusted net income of $325 million, and cash flows from operating activities of over $811 million. Closed six accretive Permian Basin acquisitions for $1.6 billion in cash and stock, adding approximately 88,000 net acres and 465 gross oil-weighted locations, 280 of which were announced with the acquisitions, increasing inventory of oil-weighted development locations to more than 10 years at current activity levels, an increase of 85% compared to the beginning of the year.

2023年全年淨利為6.951億美元，調整後淨利為3.25億美元，營運活動現金流超過8.11億美元。以16 億美元現金和股票完成六次二疊紀盆地增值收購，增加約88,000 淨英畝土地和465 個總石油權重地點，其中280 個是在收購中宣布的，將石油權重開發地點的庫存增加到10 年以上目前的活動水準比年初增加了85%。

We exited 2023 with a net debt to consolidated EBITDAX ratio of 1.09 times, which was 8% lower than the prior year end for a reduced Scope 1 greenhouse gas emissions intensity and methane emissions intensity of 38% and 65%, respectively, as of year end 2022. Additionally, we were the first Permian operator to receive the third-party TrustWell certification for responsible operations, placing Vital Energy in the top quartile of US onshore operators.

2023 年結束時，我們的淨負債與合併 EBITDAX 比率為 1.09 倍，比去年末低 8%，因為截至 2023 年，範圍 1 溫室氣體排放強度和甲烷排放強度分別降低了 38% 和 65% 2022 年底。此外，我們是第一家獲得第三方 TrustWell 負責任營運認證的二疊紀營運商，使 Vital Energy 躋身美國陸上營運商前四分之一之列。

Our strategic shift to focus on entry into the Delaware Basin and expand into the Southern Midland Basin is paying off, and the transition process is going extremely well. We are drilling wells faster, well costs are cheaper, and they are more productive than originally anticipated. Socially, we are transferring knowledge and technology across both basins, making us a stronger operator, setting us up for more record-breaking activity in 2024.

我們專注於進入特拉華盆地並擴展到南米德蘭盆地的戰略轉變正在取得回報，而且過渡過程進展得非常順利。我們的鑽井速度更快，鑽井成本更便宜，而且生產率比最初預期的更高。在社會方面，我們正在兩個流域轉移知識和技術，使我們成為更強大的營運商，為我們在 2024 年創造更多破紀錄的活動做好準備。

Turning to 2024, we are entering the year in a position of strength as a result of our work to extend our bond maturities, reduce the amount drawn on the RBL, and reduce our total leverage. We are pleased to confirm our prior guidance adjusted for the recently announced working interest additions of capital investment between $750 million and $850 million with oil production guidance of 55,000 to 59,000 barrels of oil per day and total production of 116.5 to 121.5 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day.

展望 2024 年，由於我們努力延長債券期限、減少 RBL 提取金額以及降低總槓桿率，我們將在這一年處於有利地位。我們很高興地確認我們的先前指引已根據最近宣布的資本投資工作利息增加調整為 7.5 億至 8.5 億美元，石油產量指引為每天 55,000 至 59,000 桶石油，總產量為 116.5 至 121,500 桶油當量每天。

We plan to generate more than $350 million of adjusted free cash flow at current prices, and our cash flow projections are supported by a strong hedge book, focused on further paying down debt and reducing our leverage ratio to less than 1.0 times throughout the year. Strategically, in 2024, we maintained focus on our core principles of generating free cash flow, reducing debt and leverage, expanding our development portfolio, advancing sustainability and integrating digital solutions.

我們計劃以當前價格產生超過 3.5 億美元的調整後自由現金流，我們的現金流預測得到強大的對沖賬簿的支持，重點是進一步償還債務並將我們的槓桿率全年降低至 1.0 倍以下。從策略上講，到 2024 年，我們繼續專注於產生自由現金流、減少債務和槓桿、擴大開發組合、推動永續發展和整合數位解決方案等核心原則。

I will now turn the call over to Katie to provide an operational update.

我現在將把電話轉給凱蒂，以提供最新的營運情況。

Thank you, Jason. Operationally, we had an extremely successful 2023. We consistently exceeded production expectations throughout the year, delivered capital investments below plan, successfully integrated six asset acquisitions, and established a core operating position in the Delaware Basin.

謝謝你，傑森。在營運方面，我們的 2023 年非常成功。我們全年持續超越產量預期，資本投資低於計劃，成功整合了六項資產收購，並確立了在特拉華盆地的核心營運地位。

Our team has extensive experience onboarding new assets and optimizing development plans as we successfully demonstrated in our Howard County position over the past few years. We've gained experience with the asset, we refined spacing, design, completion techniques and production methods.

我們的團隊在新資產引進和優化開發計劃方面擁有豐富的經驗，正如我們過去幾年在霍華德縣的成功展示的那樣。我們累積了該資產的經驗，並改進了間距、設計、完成技術和生產方法。

Bulk of our 2023 development was in Howard County, and the results showcase the success of this integration and optimization process. New wells in Howard regularly exceeded production expectations, and we continue to drive execution efficiencies. In the fourth quarter, we set company records in drilling, delivering a 10,000-foot lateral in 6.5 days, and a record-setting 7,716 drill feet in a day. We also set records in completions during the fourth quarter for daily pumping hours, stages per day, and average transition times on a pad.

我們 2023 年的大部分開發案位於霍華德縣，結果展示了這個整合和優化過程的成功。霍華德的新井產量經常超出預期，我們將繼續提高執行效率。第四季度，我們創造了公司鑽井記錄，在 6.5 天內完成了 10,000 英尺的橫向鑽探，並創下了單日鑽探 7,716 英尺的記錄。我們還在第四季度創下了每日泵送時間、每日階段以及墊上平均過渡時間的完成記錄。

Production processes brought on high-value production from wells earlier than modeled as we optimized on sizes to dewater wells more quickly after drill out and to better recover from offset brackets. Our fourth-quarter oil production, driven by outperformance in Howard County and our recently integrated assets in Upton County, exceeded the midpoint of our guidance range by 7% or 3,700 barrels per day. Two-thirds of the beat was driven by new wells delivering above expectation.

由於我們優化了尺寸，以便在鑽出後更快地對井進行脫水，並更好地從偏移支架中恢復，因此生產過程比模型更早地從油井中實現了高價值生產。在霍華德縣的優異表現以及最近整合的厄普頓縣資產的推動下，我們第四季度的石油產量超出了我們指導範圍的中點 7%，即每天 3,700 桶。三分之二的成長是由新油井的產量超出預期推動的。

A good driver of our 2023 results has been the optimization of our base production. Last year, wells brought online prior to January 1 exceeded production expectations by 10%. It was accomplished through both process improvement and the continued application of optimization technologies. The end result has been faster and more targeted response times and increased mechanical runtimes across the field.

我們 2023 年業績的一個良好推動因素是我們基礎生產的優化。去年，1 月 1 日之前上線的油井產量超出預期 10%。這是透過流程改善和優化技術的持續應用來實現的。最終結果是響應時間更快、更有針對性，並增加了整個現場的機械運行時間。

This operating model has proved to be scalable, and we are improving results through integration of the Driftwood and Forge acquisitions that we closed on in early 2023. Production from new wells on the asset is exceeding expectations by 10% on legacy Driftwood and 33% on legacy Forge acreage.

事實證明，這種營運模式具有可擴展性，我們正在透過整合 2023 年初完成的 Driftwood 和 Forge 收購來改善業績。該資產的新井產量比傳統 Driftwood 地區高出 10%，而傳統 Forge 地區則高出 33%。

We are early in the process of optimizing base operations on the properties that are already exceeding production expectations on the legacy Forge asset by 4%. We have also reduced well costs in the Delaware Basin by 12% versus what was assumed at the time of close through improved cycle time, supply chain optimization, and well redesign.

我們正處於優化資產基礎營運的早期階段，這些資產的產量已經超出了傳統 Forge 資產 4% 的預期。透過縮短週期時間、優化供應鏈和重新設計油井，我們也將特拉華盆地的油井成本比關閉時的假設降低了 12%。

We are delivering wells more quickly for less capital and with higher productivity than expected at acquisition. These results have been built into our forward-looking forecast and reflect continued year-over-year improvement. As we onboard these assets, our teams are evaluating geologic data, cost assumptions and production results from our asset and from offset operators.

我們以比收購時預期的更少的資本和更高的生產力更快地交付油井。這些結果已納入我們的前瞻性預測中，並反映出持續的逐年改善。當我們安裝這些資產時，我們的團隊正在評估我們的資產和補償營運商的地質數據、成本假設和生產結果。

Based on this work, we have organically added another 185 high-return wells to the 280 originally included in our acquisition assumptions. In the Midland Basin, we added 65 Spraberry and Wolfcamp locations in Upton County through detailed technical evaluation, that incorporated offset operator results, and importantly, a robust dataset acquired from a vertical well we drilled on our acreage that collected high-quality geologic data.

基於這項工作，我們在最初納入收購假設的 280 口高回報井的基礎上有機地增加了另外 185 口高回報井。在米德蘭盆地，我們透過詳細的技術評估在厄普頓縣添加了65 個Spraberry 和Wolfcamp 地點，其中納入了偏移操作員的結果，更重要的是，我們從我們在該地區鑽探的垂直井中獲取了可靠的數據集，收集了高品質的地質數據。

In the Delaware Basin, we added 120 wells in core development horizons across the position based on results from our recently completed wells and the improved economics from reducing well costs, 12% since we began operating in the area. In 2024, we remain focused on organically adding low-cost inventory through additional technical work and through increased opportunities to bolt on acreage adjacent to our leasehold.

在特拉華盆地，我們在核心開發範圍內增加了120 口井，這是基於我們最近完成的井的結果以及因降低井成本而提高的經濟效益（自我們開始在該地區運營以來增加了12 %）。到 2024 年，我們仍然致力於透過額外的技術工作和增加緊鄰租賃地塊的機會來有機地增加低成本庫存。

Our capitally efficient development plan optimizes activity between the Midland and Delaware Basin. This quarter, we are bringing online several Delaware packages and a 20-well western Glasscock package. Fluid production data from our recently turned-in-line Delaware wells continues to support our development plans.

我們的資本效率開發計畫優化了米德蘭和特拉華盆地之間的活動。本季度，我們將推出幾個特拉華軟體包和一個 20 孔西方 Glasscock 軟體包。我們最近上線的特拉華井的流體生產數據繼續支持我們的開發計劃。

On the Midland Basin, western Glasscock package, drilling, and completion operations have gone very well, and five wells are currently flowing back. Pressure on these wells is promising, and the package is already producing 3,000 gross barrels per day. Clients, the remainder of the package, will be brought online over the next four to six weeks with peak oil planned for the middle of the second quarter.

在米德蘭盆地，西部Glasscock成套設備、鑽井和完井作業進展順利，目前有五口井正在回流。這些油井的壓力是有希望的，該方案已經每天生產 3,000 總桶。該計劃的其餘部分將在未來四到六週內上線，並計劃在第二季中期達到石油高峰。

I'll now turn the call over to Bryan for a financial update.

我現在將把電話轉給布萊恩，以了解最新的財務狀況。

Thank you, Katie. During the fourth quarter, we closed three previously announced Permian acquisitions and an additional transaction to increase working interest on a portion of the acquired properties. Our thoughtful approach to financing these transactions has significantly strengthened our capital structure. Recently, our bonds were upgraded by Moody's and our bond yields have improved by around 175 basis points.

謝謝你，凱蒂。在第四季度，我們完成了三項先前宣布的二疊紀收購和一項額外交易，以增加部分所收購財產的使用權益。我們為這些交易融資的深思熟慮的方法顯著增強了我們的資本結構。近期，我們的債券獲得穆迪評級，債券殖利率提高了約175個基點。

2024 budget is designed to generate substantial free cash flow while growing full-year average production versus fourth-quarter 2023 volumes. Free cash flow is expected to build throughout the year with capital being highest in the first quarter and then coming down throughout the year.

2024 年預算旨在產生大量自由現金流，同時相對 2023 年第四季產量提高全年平均產量。自由現金流預計全年都會增加，資本在第一季最高，然後全年下降。

The capital progression is driven by first-quarter activity being on higher working interest wells. And as more activity moves to the Delaware Basin, the average working interest will lower, resulting in lower quarterly capital spend. We are focused on further strengthening our balance sheet, and we plan to utilize free cash flow to reduce absolute debt and achieve our year-end 2024 target debt ratio of 1.0 times.

資本進展是由第一季作業利息較高的油井活動所推動的。隨著更多活動轉移到特拉華盆地，平均工作興趣將會降低，從而導致季度資本支出下降。我們專注於進一步強化資產負債表，並計劃利用自由現金流減少絕對債務，實現 2024 年底債務比率 1.0 倍的目標。

Debt reduction will be focused on our credit facility, and we expect the balance to be zero in the third quarter of the year. We believe we can achieve substantial benefits from utilizing free cash flow to reduce leverage, including lower future interest expense.

債務削減將集中在我們的信貸安排上，我們預計今年第三季的餘額為零。我們相信，利用自由現金流來降低槓桿率可以帶來巨大的好處，包括降低未來的利息支出。

In early February, we announced a second transaction to acquire additional working interest on some of our recently acquired Permian properties. Due to the shares issued in this transaction, our NOL carry forwards will likely be subject to 382 limitations. Importantly, we have been managing our utilization of intangible drilling credits and estimate that at current pricing and projected activity levels, we will not pay federal cash taxes for at least the next three years.

2月初，我們宣布了第二筆交易，以獲得我們最近收購的一些二疊紀資產的額外工作權益。由於本次交易中發行的股票，我們的 NOL 結轉可能會受到 382 的限制。重要的是，我們一直在管理無形鑽探信貸的使用，並估計按照目前的定價和預計的活動水平，我們至少在未來三年內不會繳納聯邦現金稅。

So I'll now turn the call back over to Jason for closing comments.

因此，我現在將把電話轉回傑森以徵求結束意見。

Hey, Bryan. To close, I want to reiterate that Vital Energy is a much different company today than we were a year ago. We are much stronger, and this would not have been possible without the talented team we have behind us.

嘿，布萊恩。最後，我想重申，今天的 Vital Energy 與一年前相比是一家截然不同的公司。我們更加強大，如果沒有我們背後的才華橫溢的團隊，這是不可能實現的。

Operator, I will now turn the call over for questions.

接線員，我現在將電話轉過去詢問問題。

(Operator Instructions) Neal Dingmann, Truist Securities.

（操作員指示）Neal Dingmann，Truist 證券公司。

Good morning, all, nice quarter. Just my first question, maybe both of them are going to be around maybe slide 9 and 8. First, maybe some of you and Katie said that on both of these, could you maybe start on slide 9, like where you show about the successful integration of the properties?

大家早安，美好的季度。這是我的第一個問題，也許它們都會出現在投影片 9 和 8 上。首先，也許你們中的一些人和凱蒂說，對於這兩個問題，您可以從幻燈片 9 開始，例如您展示的成功整合屬性的地方嗎？

And I'm just wondering now that you've done that, when you look at both now the mixture of the recently added Delaware as well as the Midland Basin, I mean, has that changed? I know you've got the four-well -- four-rig focus this year. Could you maybe talk about how you plan to attack that now that you've got all the assets working together?

我只是想知道，現在你已經做到了這一點，當你現在看看最近添加的特拉華州和米德蘭盆地的混合物時，我的意思是，情況是否發生了變化？我知道今年你們的重點是四井四鑽機。既然你已經讓所有資產一起工作，你能談談你計劃如何解決這個問題嗎？

Sure. Good morning, Neal. This is Katie. Throughout the year, this year, we are planning to run, like you said, a four-rig program. And we're continuing with our strategy, of course drilling our best wells next. So as we think about the capital allocation throughout the year, we will shift a little bit more heavily into the Delaware in the second half.

當然。早安，尼爾。這是凱蒂。今年，正如您所說，我們計劃全年運行一個四鑽機專案。我們將繼續執行我們的策略，當然接下來會鑽探我們最好的油井。因此，當我們考慮全年的資本配置時，我們將在下半年轉向特拉華州更多。

There's some really good opportunity as we've closed on the assets and integrated them. We've been able to optimize the plan this year, and we're excited to get some capital deployed in that area. As we think about moving into '25, there's still some really great investment opportunity in the Midland.

當我們關閉並整合資產時，有一些非常好的機會。今年我們已經能夠優化該計劃，我們很高興能在該領域部署一些資本。當我們考慮進入 25 世紀時，米德蘭仍然存在一些非常好的投資機會。

So we'll continue with that mix of Midland, Delaware Basin, and try to optimize across the two assets throughout the next couple of years here. I think there's additionally quite a bit of opportunity in the Delaware that we've built into the plan around our production optimization work.

因此，我們將繼續採用米德蘭和特拉華盆地的組合，並在未來幾年內嘗試優化這兩個資產。我認為特拉華州還有很多機會，我們已經將其納入了圍繞生產優化工作的計劃中。

As you mentioned on slide 9, you can see that we've outperformed on base production assumptions early in the Driftwood and Forge assets from early 2023. And as we think about deploying that technology and base optimization work across the three assets we closed in the second half of the year, that will continue to support the 2024 plan and the projections that we have out there. So I think a lot of really good opportunity for us across the two basins.

正如您在幻燈片 9 中提到的，您可以看到，從 2023 年初開始，我們在浮木和鍛造資產的基礎生產假設上表現優於預期。當我們考慮在下半年關閉的三項資產中部署該技術和基礎優化工作時，這將繼續支援 2024 年計畫和我們的預測。所以我認為這兩個盆地對我們來說有很多非常好的機會。

Great details, Kate. And then just a follow-up, looking actually at slide 7 or 8, where you talked about the additional zones and then you show the cost reductions. I'm just wondering -- something you had mentioned -- when you now tackle -- I guess, what do you all view as the optimal project or optimal pad size? It seems like for even being a smaller operator, you've all been able to walk that up and capture some efficiencies. So again, I guess when I'm looking at these two, I'm just wondering like when you co-develop now, how big of projects are optimal and you think makes the most sense for you all.

很棒的細節，凱特。然後只是後續行動，實際上看看幻燈片 7 或 8，您在其中談到了額外的區域，然後展示了成本的降低。我只是想知道 - 你提到過的事情 - 當你現在解決時 - 我猜，你們都認為最佳項目或最佳焊盤尺寸是什麼？看來即使是規模較小的營運商，你們也都能夠提高效率並提高效率。所以，我想，當我看到這兩個項目時，我只是想知道，當你們現在共同開發時，多大的項目是最佳的，你們認為對你們所有人來說最有意義。

Yeah, Neil. This is Kyle Coldiron. So I think the answer really depends on the area and the stack pay that you have. So if you look at our western Glasscock package that we have coming online right now, essentially, that's two very large pads that -- where we drilled those 20 wells. And one of the great benefits of that was that we were basically able to park our Halliburton frac through there and complete 10 of those wells without ever having to move the fleet. So just the efficiency really skyrockets from those big pads.

是的，尼爾。這是凱爾·科爾鐵隆。所以我認為答案實際上取決於您所擁有的區域和堆疊工資。因此，如果你看看我們現在上線的西部 Glasscock 包，本質上，這是兩個非常大的平台，我們在那裡鑽了 20 口井。這樣做的一大好處是，我們基本上能夠將哈里伯頓壓裂停泊在那裡，並完成其中 10 口井，而無需移動船隊。因此，這些大墊的效率確實飛速上升。

As we move over to the Delaware side, we tend to drill a little bit smaller pads in the three to five type of range. Ultimately, a lot of that has to do with just our well spacing assumptions over there and what targets we're hitting.

當我們移動到特拉華州一側時，我們傾向於在三到五種類型的範圍內鑽一點較小的焊盤。最終，這很大程度上與我們對那裡的井距假設以及我們要達到的目標有關。

So I think to your question, it depends on the area. But across the board, we are a continuous improvement culture on our operations team and we've been able to drive both drilling and completion costs down across both basins, I think as you can see the materials that we shared today.

所以我認為你的問題，這取決於地區。但總的來說，我們的營運團隊擁有持續改進的文化，我們已經能夠降低兩個盆地的鑽井和完井成本，我想您可以看到我們今天分享的材料。

Makes sense. Thanks for the details. Great job, guys.

說得通。感謝您提供詳細資訊。幹得好，夥計們。

Zach Parham, JPMorgan.

札克·帕勒姆，摩根大通。

Good morning. Thanks for taking my question. I guess, first, can you talk a little bit about the inventory additions in the Delaware? In the Midland, it seems pretty clear you added two additional zones based on some industry activity around you. But can you detail exactly what you added in the Delaware and how that fits into the program going forward?

早安.感謝您提出我的問題。我想，首先，您能談談特拉華州的庫存增加嗎？在米德蘭，很明顯地您根據周圍的一些行業活動添加了兩個額外的區域。但您能否詳細說明您在特拉華州添加的內容以及它們如何融入未來的計劃？

Yeah, good morning. This is Jason. I'll take a stab and then I'll hand it over to Kyle. I mean, one of the things that we've done repeatedly is add inventory after we've completed acquisitions. You saw it in Howard County when we added the middle Spraberry. In western Glasscock, we added the Wolfcamp D and that's a zone that's being completed today in those large pads we've got out there.

是的，早安。這是傑森。我會刺一下，然後把它交給凱爾。我的意思是，我們反覆做的事情之一就是在完成收購後增加庫存。當我們添加中間的斯普拉莓時，你在霍華德縣看到了它。在格拉斯科克西部，我們增加了 Wolfcamp D，這是今天在我們已經擁有的大型基地中完成的一個區域。

So as you mentioned, again, we've added lower Spraberry and Wolfcamp A in Howard -- or sorry, the Southern Midland. We took core data that should -- indicate to us these zones would be good, and then we have offset operators that brought those online and confirmed what we saw on the geology.

正如您再次提到的，我們在霍華德（或抱歉，南米德蘭）添加了較低的 Spraberry 和 Wolfcamp A。我們獲取了核心數據，這些數據應該向我們表明這些區域會很好，然後我們讓抵消運營商將這些數據帶到網上並確認我們在地質上看到的情況。

We would develop a little bit differently than some of the offsets where they lined wells on top of each other where we would stagger them. So we think there's some upside even to those results that you could see out there.

我們的開發方式與某些偏移井略有不同，在這些偏移井中，我們將井排列在彼此之上，我們將它們錯開。因此，我們認為即使是您可以看到的這些結果也有一些好處。

We go to Delaware. That's driven by costs. And when you reduce well costs from $12 million to $10.5 million, that improves the economics of every well in the field. When your production performance is 33% higher, that improves economics of every well out there. So it's, again, improving total returns across all those areas.

我們去特拉華州。這是由成本驅動的。當油井成本從 1,200 萬美元降至 1,050 萬美元時，油田每口井的經濟效益都會提高。當您的生產性能提高 33% 時，每口井的經濟效益都會提高。因此，這再次提高了所有這些領域的總回報。

And I think the other thing, too, is I mean, we've got other zones that we're going to be testing this year. We've got the Wolfcamp C, which we're going to be test -- is coming online today in western Glasscock. That's a totally new zone for us that could add future inventory at our future earnings calls. So we're putting a full court press on testing multiple zones across both the Midland and Delaware to again continue to increase inventory over time.

我認為另一件事也是，我的意思是，我們今年將測試其他區域。我們將要測試的 Wolfcamp C 今天將在格拉斯科克西部上線。這對我們來說是一個全新的領域，可以在我們未來的財報電話會議上增加未來的庫存。因此，我們正在全力測試米德蘭和特拉華州的多個區域，以便隨著時間的推移再次繼續增加庫存。

And I'll turn it over to Kyle now. He can give you a little more details on what they're doing on the operational front to create these efficiencies and outperformance.

我現在就把它交給凱爾。他可以向您提供更多有關他們在運營方面所做的工作的詳細信息，以創造這些效率和卓越績效。

Yes, so Zach, to your question on the Delaware side specifically, the intervals or the inventory that we added was across our 2nd Bone, 3rd Bone, Wolfcamp A, Wolfcamp B, which are core development horizons. So these aren't new horizons or anything that we haven't previously disclosed.

是的，扎克，針對您在特拉華州方面提出的具體問題，我們添加的間隔或庫存橫跨我們的第二塊骨頭、第三塊骨頭、Wolfcamp A、Wolfcamp B，它們是核心開發視野。因此，這些並不是新領域，也不是我們之前沒有披露過的任何內容。

But as Jason said it well, ultimately, the improved economics of $1.5 million off of your well cost improves all of the inventory and ultimately just provides a lot more opportunity to develop. Also, the well performance has been outstanding so far, as you can see, both from the [cume] time curve and the IPs that we've highlighted here that -- from our recent packages that we've turned in line. The well productivity has been fantastic, and so it just gives us a lot of confidence that we can go and develop across those benches there on the Delaware side.

但正如 Jason 所說，最終，油井成本減少 150 萬美元的經濟效益將改善所有庫存，並最終提供更多的開發機會。此外，正如您所看到的，到目前為止，井的性能非常出色，無論是從[cume]時間曲線還是我們在這裡強調的IP——從我們最近提交的包來看。井的生產力非常好，因此這給了我們很大的信心，我們可以在特拉華州一側的這些長凳上進行開發。

Thanks. Appreciate the color there. I guess my follow-up just on M&A specifically, I mean, you've done a number of deals in 2023. But just talking about these organic inventory additions -- I mean, that's two-plus years of inventory -- how do you think about M&A versus organic additions at this point? Where does M&A fit in your mind going forward?

謝謝。欣賞那裡的顏色。我想我的後續行動只是針對併購，我的意思是，你們在 2023 年完成了許多交易。但僅談論這些有機庫存增加——我的意思是，這是兩年多的庫存——您目前如何看待併購與有機庫存增加？未來併購在您心目中的位置在哪裡？

Yeah, another great question. I think we did amazing work in '23 to continue our transformation as a company. We've talked a lot last year about this transition to Small Ball, which was performing a series of smaller transactions that weren't as competitive when, again, the larger peers were bidding on things. And it was wildly successful for us again, as we completed again, almost $1.6 billion -- or over $1.6 billion in transactions.

是的，另一個很好的問題。我認為我們在 23 年做了出色的工作，以繼續我們作為一家公司的轉型。去年我們就向小球的過渡討論了很多，小球正在執行一系列較小的交易，而當較大的同行再次競標時，這些交易的競爭力就不那麼強了。我們再次取得了巨大成功，我們再次完成了近 16 億美元的交易，或超過 16 億美元的交易。

In '24, we're switching a little bit more to the Moneyball, which is let's spend less testing new zones and get wells not for free but almost for free. As you think about adding 185 wells in total last year with the acquisitions, again, we brought on 485 wells. And if you divide that by a rate of 80 wells per year, we added six years of inventory last year alone. And so we're in really good shape. And as I mentioned, we're going to be testing some of these new zones. So I think we can get outsized well additions with less costs.

在 24 年，我們將更多地轉向“點球成金”，即讓我們花更少的錢測試新區域並獲得不免費但幾乎免費的油井。當你想到去年透過收購總共增加 185 口井時，我們又增加了 485 口井。如果將其除以每年 80 口井，光是去年我們就增加了六年的庫存。所以我們的狀態非常好。正如我所提到的，我們將測試其中一些新區域。所以我認為我們可以用更少的成本增加超大的油井。

However, we will still be active in the market. There's deals out there today. There's going to be deals in the future, but I would say the bar has been raised for us. Any deals that we look at will need to be accretive to us, and inventory will need to -- jump the inventory that we've added this year.

不過，我們仍將活躍於市場。今天那裡有優惠。未來將會有交易，但我想說的是我們的門檻已經提高了。我們考慮的任何交易都需要對我們有利，庫存也需要增加我們今年增加的庫存。

So I'd say we're still going to look at it. I mean, there's going to be great opportunities with an OXY or a Diamondback. They're looking to or endeavor -- former endeavor properties that are adjacent to us and can make a lot of sense as those come to the market. So we're going to continue to be active and look at creating scale. But I'd say for us, the bar is raised on the type of things that we'll look at in 2024.

所以我想說我們仍然會考慮它。我的意思是，OXY 或 Diamondback 將會有很好的機會。他們正在尋找或嘗試 - 與我們相鄰的前嘗試房產，當這些房產進入市場時可能會很有意義。因此，我們將繼續積極主動並考慮擴大規模。但我想說的是，對我們來說，2024 年我們將看到的事情類型的門檻將會提高。

Great. Thanks for taking my questions.

偉大的。感謝您回答我的問題。

Tim Rezvan, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

Tim Rezvan，KeyBanc 資本市場。

Hey, good morning, folks. Thanks for taking my question. This may be best for Katie. I know you all are pretty vocal about what you're doing on the technology side to optimize base production. And you gave an update on what's happening at that Driftwood and Forge.

嘿，早上好，夥計們。感謝您提出我的問題。這對凱蒂來說可能是最好的。我知道你們都非常熱衷於在技術方面為優化基地生產所做的工作。您也介紹了浮木和熔爐的最新情況。

Was wondering if you could give an update on how things stand with the recently acquired assets and maybe when you would get that fully implemented into your cloud system, what the timeline for that would be. Thanks.

想知道您是否可以提供有關最近收購的資產的最新情況，也許您何時將其完全實施到您的雲端系統中，時間表是什麼。謝謝。

Sure. Good morning, Tim. So I think we would consider the technology implementation to typically come in phases. I think at this stage, we're really excited about the progress we've made on our early '23 acquisitions. So Driftwood, the Southern Midland Basin assets are effectively fully integrated into our operating platform.

當然。早安，提姆。所以我認為我們會考慮技術實施通常是分階段進行。我認為現階段，我們對 23 年早期收購所取得的進展感到非常興奮。因此，南米德蘭盆地的 Driftwood 資產已有效地完全整合到我們的營運平台中。

We've taken some really strong stats on that first Delaware asset and Forge like you mentioned. When we think about the three assets that were in the second half of the year, I think we've been successful at deploying our operating platform from a people standpoint. So really good work from the team on applying some of the technical learnings that we've seen in the Midland with specialized focus on either compression uptime on ESP and artificial lift optimization, and then on really great support for flowback in new wells that you see in our results from the second half of the year.

正如您所提到的，我們對第一個特拉華州資產和 Forge 進行了一些非常強大的統計數據。當我們考慮下半年的三項資產時，我認為從人員的角度來看，我們已經成功地部署了我們的營運平台。因此，團隊在應用我們在米德蘭看到的一些技術知識方面做得非常出色，特別關注ESP 的壓縮正常運行時間和人工舉升優化，然後對您所看到的新井中的回流提供真正的大力支持在我們下半年的業績中。

What we're working on today is the deployment of the hardware and the structure that will allow for us to then apply that AI and machine-learning work that we've been focused on for the last couple of years. I think that's really a fall 2024 effort to get the system stood up and actually start to deploy that AI piece that's late in the year this year.

我們今天所做的工作是硬體和結構的部署，這將使我們能夠應用過去幾年我們一直關注的人工智慧和機器學習工作。我認為這確實是 2024 年秋季的一項工作，目的是讓系統站起來，並在今年稍後真正開始部署人工智慧部分。

We do assume continued success because we've seen such great work in the Midland across a variety of wells. So both wells that are lifted from [ESC], from gas lift, so different artificial lift types, different GORs. We've seen really successful implementation of AI, and we assume success in the Delaware as well. So it's built into our forward-looking plan, but we expect it to take most of 2024 to get there.

我們確實認為會繼續取得成功，因為我們已經在米德蘭的各種油井中看到瞭如此出色的工作。因此，兩口井都是從 [ESC] 和氣舉中舉升，因此不同的人工舉升類型，不同的 GOR。我們已經看到人工智慧的真正成功實施，我們假設特拉華州也能取得成功。因此，它已納入我們的前瞻性計劃中，但我們預計需要 2024 年的大部分時間才能實現這一目標。

Okay. Thanks for the color. And then as my follow-up, I'm looking at your deck on slide 6 and 11 and just trying to understand the pace of activity. Obviously, you're working down some DUCs with that Glasscock pad this year.

好的。謝謝你的顏色。然後，作為我的後續行動，我正在查看幻燈片 6 和 11 上的演示文稿，並試圖了解活動的節奏。顯然，今年您正在使用 Glasscock 墊處理一些 DUC。

I'm just trying to understand that the Delaware activity, 40 spuds, 20 turn-in-lines, is this just a timing issue with the calendar year? Are you looking to kind of build more of a little bit of a backlog of DUCs for steady-state operations? Trying to understand how we should think about Delaware, the pace of activity there over the next couple of years. Thank you.

我只是想了解特拉華州的活動，40 個馬鈴薯，20 個上交線，這只是日曆年的時間問題嗎？您是否希望為穩態操作建立更多積壓的 DUC？試著了解我們應該如何看待德拉瓦州，以及未來幾年在那裡的活動節奏。謝謝。

Yeah, this is Kyle again. So I think you're right. It's just ultimately the completion crews lagged as the drilling rigs. And so when you look at the back half of '24, you have almost 100% of our drilling activity is allocated to the Delaware Basin.

是的，這又是凱爾。所以我認為你是對的。只是最後完井人員落後於鑽孔機。因此，當您查看 24 年後半段時，您會發現我們幾乎 100% 的鑽探活動都分配給了特拉華盆地。

But then ultimately, as you move into '25, you'll be bringing those wells online and you'll see a heavy allocation of completions of activity there in the Delaware side. So I think you hit it on the head that it's ultimately just the lag of the completion crews and the turn-in lines following those drilling rates.

但最終，當你進入 25 年時，你將把這些油井上線，你會看到特拉華州一側完成了大量活動。所以我認為你擊中了我的要害，這最終只是完井人員的滯後以及遵循這些鑽井速度的交接線。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Paul Diamond, Citi.

保羅戴蒙德，花旗銀行。

Thank you. Good morning, all, and thanks for taking my call. Just a quick question on your hedging structure. As you guys progress more towards your debt targets that increase in scale, how do you anticipate that evolving over time? Are you guys hold at a kind of currently high level or is that something you expect to trail down and I guess in what timeframe?

謝謝。大家早安，感謝您接聽我的電話。只是一個關於您的對沖結構的簡單問題。隨著你們朝著規模擴大的債務目標取得更大進展，你們預計隨著時間的推移，這種情況會如何發展？你們目前的水平是否保持在較高水平，或者你們預計該水平會下降，我猜在什麼時間範圍內？

Paul, good question. I don't think that our hedging strategy will be too much different than the past. We see '25 moving up into that $75 range. I think we would continue to layer on some additional hedges there. If you were to model our company at $75 flat versus the strip, those outcomes are very different. At $75, we pay down debt more quickly. We improve the economics of our capital investments.

保羅，好問題。我認為我們的對沖策略不會與過去有太大不同。我們預計 25 年將上升至 75 美元的範圍。我認為我們將繼續在那裡採取一些額外的對沖措施。如果你以 75 美元的平價和帶鋼的價格對我們公司進行建模，結果會非常不同。如果是 75 美元，我們可以更快還清債務。我們提高資本投資的經濟效益。

So I think you would see us as $75 creeps into '25, starting to put on some hedges, we tend to be 75%-ish hedged out a year in the future. So we're in good shape for right now and we can kind of watch prices. But for us, we think of $75 and higher, this company is very different than we are today and we would start to put some of those on. You see that we've got some already in place for 1Q '25 -- first half of '25 already. So that's a good number for us that, again, accelerates our return of cash to shareholder program and improves economics of our wealth.

所以我認為你會看到我們隨著 75 美元的價格慢慢進入 25 年，開始進行一些對沖，我們傾向於在未來一年對沖 75% 左右。所以我們目前狀況良好，可以觀察價格。但對我們來說，我們認為 75 美元或更高，這家公司與我們今天的公司非常不同，我們會開始投入其中一些。您會看到，我們已經為 25 年第一季（25 年上半年）做好了一些準備。因此，這對我們來說是一個很好的數字，它再次加速了我們向股東返還現金的計劃，並改善了我們財富的經濟性。

Understood. Thank you. And then just a quick follow-up on -- so in guidance, you guys talked about 1.7 crews through the year, and a lot of that seems to turn on that optionality in Q4. I guess just kind of digging into that a little bit.

明白了。謝謝。然後快速跟進——所以在指導中，你們談到了全年 1.7 名工作人員，其中許多似乎在第四季度開啟了這種選擇。我想只是稍微深入研究一下。

What do you guys see as really driving that decision. Is it purely on just timing and cadence or could there -- could well outperformance really drive that to be held back and just how do you guys think about the ultimate decision on that cadence?

你們認為真正推動這項決定的是什麼？這純粹是時間和節奏的問題，還是可能——出色的表現真的會阻礙這一進程，你們如何看待關於節奏的最終決定？

Yeah, this is the activity level we've had in place for a while. A lot of that is driven by, again, a desire to use free cash flow to pay down debt. What I would say is it also is one of the reasons we put bands on the capital range, we prefer to have operations steady, but it is February and we've got a lot of time left in the year.

是的，這就是我們一段時間以來的活動水平。這很大程度上是由利用自由現金流來償還債務的願望所驅動的。我想說的是，這也是我們將資本範圍設定為區間的原因之一，我們希望營運穩定，但現在是二月，一年中我們還有很多時間。

So if you see outperformance on production or higher prices or we continue to reduce capital to fund that program, those are all factors that would play into us maybe keeping that second crew going for the final quarter of the year, but we're just kind of -- it's early in the year and we'll kind of give updates as the year progresses.

因此，如果你看到產量表現出色或價格上漲，或者我們繼續減少為該計劃提供資金的資金，這些因素都會對我們產生影響，也許會讓第二批工作人員在今年最後一個季度繼續工作，但我們只是友善現在是今年年初，我們將隨著時間的推移提供更新。

Understood. Thanks for your time. I'll leave it there.

明白了。謝謝你的時間。我會把它留在那裡。

Gregg Brody, Bank of America.

格雷格·布羅迪，美國銀行。

Good morning, guys. Just two questions for you. The first one, could you talk a little bit about operating costs? That sort of LOE have been trending up as you gave quarterly guidance for 1Q. Should we expect that to stay around there or should we expect that to change in any direction?

早上好傢伙。只想問你兩個問題。第一，您能談談營運成本嗎？當您為第一季提供季度指引時，這種 LOE 一直呈上升趨勢。我們應該期望這種情況繼續存在，還是應該期望它朝任何方向改變？

Good morning, Greg, this is Katie. We expect right now that LOE in Q1 to stay roughly flat to where we exited the year. I think that's a fair representation of the first half of the year. Overall, as we bring on some of these new wells in Q2 and Q3, we see a lot of water volume coming on. The high productivity and outperformance is bringing high water volumes and then disposal costs with it. So expect that our operating costs to be fairly flat here through the beginning of the year with where we are today.

早安，格雷格，這是凱蒂。我們目前預計第一季的 LOE 將與今年退出時的水平大致相當。我認為這是今年上半年的合理代表。總的來說，當我們在第二季和第三季打一些新井時，我們看到大量的水量出現。高生產率和卓越性能帶來了高水量和隨之而來的處理成本。因此，預計我們的營運成本到今年年初將與今天持平。

And then so that implies that the additional water implies in the second half, it will be a little higher?

那麼這意味著下半年的額外水量會更高一點嗎？

I think we'll be fairly flat to where we are today through Q2, Q3.

我認為到第二季、第三季我們將與今天的水平相當持平。

Got it. And then after that, potentially trending down or is it -- how should we think about that?

知道了。然後在那之後，可能會出現下降趨勢，或者是——我們應該如何看待這個問題？

Sure. So I think we have opportunity as we're continuing to onboard and optimize these assets. I think we found some really good cost savings already from where we were in mid 2023 on the newly closed Delaware assets. I think we would expect to stay relatively flat for the full year '24 average and are continuing to try to work those costs down as we get assets fully onboarded.

當然。因此，我認為我們有機會繼續加入和優化這些資產。我認為，與 2023 年中期新關閉的特拉華州資產相比，我們已經發現了一些非常好的成本節省。我認為我們預計 24 年全年的平均水平將保持相對平穩，並且隨著我們的資產全面投入使用，我們將繼續努力降低這些成本。

Great. And you've made some comments about paying down debt, and that's the focus right now. And obviously, M&A is still part of the equation. When does -- I know I'm the debt guy asking this, but I'm curious, when do you think about returning cash to shareholders in terms of dividends or buybacks? How does that fit into how you're thinking about things this year?

偉大的。您已經就償還債務發表了一些評論，這就是現在的焦點。顯然，併購仍然是其中的一部分。我知道我是問這個問題的債務人，但我很好奇，你什麼時候考慮以股息或回購的形式向股東返還現金？這與你今年對事情的看法有何關係？

Yeah, this is Bryan. I think we've been pretty consistent in how we've messaged in the past. So I don't think we're really going to change here. We would like to see our [drilling] net debt to EBITDA, not on a forward-looking get below one times. And we have a good line of sight of that happening later this year and towards the end of the year.

是的，這是布萊恩。我認為我們過去傳達訊息的方式非常一致。所以我認為我們不會真的改變這裡。我們希望看到我們的 [鑽探] EBITDA 淨債務，而不是前瞻性地低於一倍。我們很清楚今年稍後和年底會發生這種情況。

And I think we'll have a serious discussion about a dividend policy what that would look like at that point that it will be important to see what the commodity price environment is looking forward. We want to be very careful about putting a policy in place that can be sustained through cycles. So we're watching what others are doing, the successes and maybe some of the not so successes. And when we get to the point below that one times leverage, we will put something in place that's very well thought out.

我認為我們將認真討論股利政策，屆時，了解未來商品價格環境將非常重要。我們希望非常謹慎地制定一項可以在各個週期中持續的政策。因此，我們正在觀察其他人在做什麼、取得了成功，也許還有一些不太成功的事情。當我們達到低於一倍槓桿的水平時，我們將採取一些經過深思熟慮的措施。

Then what about just splitting the share buyback program, utilize then --?

那麼，將股票回購計畫分開，然後利用怎麼樣？——？

The share buyback program obviously is more flexible than a dividend policy. So when we get below one times with the free cash flow generation, that's definitely something we would look at.

股票回購計畫顯然比股利政策更有彈性。因此，當我們的自由現金流量低於一倍時，我們肯定會關注這一點。

All right, guys. Thank you for the time.

好吧，夥計們。謝謝你的時間。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Derrick Whitfield, Stifel.

德瑞克·惠特菲爾德，斯蒂菲爾。

Thanks. Good morning all, and congrats on a solid year-end update.

謝謝。大家早安，祝賀年終更新。

Thanks, Derrick.

謝謝，德里克。

For my first question, I wanted to lean in on the inventory additions in the Midland Basin. Based on your subsurface work, would it be safe to assume these locations are competitive with underwritten inventory and could be developed without material depletion concerns?

對於我的第一個問題，我想了解米德蘭盆地的庫存增加。根據您的地下工作，是否可以安全地假設這些地點與承保庫存具有競爭力，並且可以在不擔心材料消耗的情況下進行開發？

Yeah, Derrick, this is Kyle. So yes, I think you're right that it is competitive with our core underwritten inventory kind of in the fixed dollar breakeven range. When you look at the vertical separation there across the Lower Spraberry, Wolfcamp A and Wolfcamp B, you've got about 350 feet between the Lower Spraberry and the Wolfcamp A and then another 350 feet between A and the Upper B target that we developed.

是的，德瑞克，這是凱爾。所以，是的，我認為你是對的，它與我們在固定美元損益平衡範圍內的核心承保庫存具有競爭力。當您查看 Lower Spraberry、Wolfcamp A 和 Wolfcamp B 之間的垂直間距時，您會發現 Lower Spraberry 和 Wolfcamp A 之間大約有 350 英尺，A 和我們開發的 Upper B 目標之間還有 350 英尺。

The other thing that we do is we always go in and wine rack that development. And ultimately, what we've seen is that helps prevent vertical interference that can occur. And so that's a part of our development strategy as well.

我們做的另一件事是我們總是進去並酒架這種開發。最終，我們看到這有助於防止可能發生的垂直幹擾。這也是我們發展策略的一部分。

And we are -- we've underwritten these locations coming out, come out of that today, and then we're putting our dollars to work in that area this year and we're going to do a co-development of the Lower Spraberry A and the B there.

我們 - 我們已經承保了這些地點，今天就出來了，然後今年我們將在該地區投入資金，我們將共同開發下斯普拉伯里A和B在那裡。

Terrific. And either for you or Katie. I mean, it's clear you guys are coming out of the gate really strong in the Delaware. Could you speak to what in your view is driving well performance versus the historical results and the composition of the units you're bringing online by interval? And I'm really speaking to more of the recent turn-in lines just we have a good baseline comparison.

了不起。要嘛是為了你，要嘛是為了凱蒂。我的意思是，很明顯，你們在德拉瓦州的表現非常強勁。您能否談談您認為與歷史結果相比，推動良好業績的因素以及您按時間間隔上線的設備的組成？我真的是在談論最近的更多上交線，只是我們有一個很好的基線比較。

Yeah, so we are -- as we've taken over these assets, some of these wells we've completed. They were drilled by previous operators and we've completed them. Others, we've drilled and completed. And so ultimately, I think there's two things that are contributing to the stellar well performance that we've seen.

是的，我們確實如此——因為我們已經接管了這些資產，我們已經完成了其中一些油井。它們是由以前的操作員鑽孔的，我們已經完成了。其他的，我們已經鑽探並完成了。因此，最終，我認為有兩件事促成了我們所看到的出色的油井性能。

One is our frac design. We put a high intensity, tight cluster spacing higher, proppant loading, completion design on these wells and we think that that certainly contributes. But we also pair that with a spacing design, a well spacing design that we think is optimal for the area.

一是我們的壓裂設計。我們對這些井進行了高強度、更緊密的簇間距、支撐劑裝載和完井設計，我們認為這肯定有所貢獻。但我們也將其與間距設計相結合，我們認為這種井間距設計對該地區來說是最佳的。

What we've seen over time is that operators have over drill, they're kind of too tightly spaced wells, and you've seen a lot of operators moving to a wider spacing solution. Fortunately, we underwrote a four well per section solution from the very beginning, and I think you can see that the well results that we're seeing are supportive of that as being the right path.

隨著時間的推移，我們看到運營商過度鑽探，井間距太窄，您已經看到許多運營商轉向更寬間距的解決方案。幸運的是，我們從一開始就承保了每部分四口井的解決方案，我認為您可以看到，我們看到的井結果支持這是正確的道路。

Terrific. One last, if I could, maybe for Jason. Wanted to ask if you could speak to the A&D environment and the Permian at present. The recent flurry of deals we are seeing are signing an increasing amount of value to inventory, but how do you guys look at the market and the opportunities that are ahead of you?

了不起。最後，如果可以的話，也許是為了傑森。想問一下您是否可以談談目前的 A&D 環境和二疊紀。我們最近看到的一系列交易正在簽署越來越多的庫存價值，但是你們如何看待市場和擺在你們面前的機會呢？

Yeah. As I mentioned that we will -- we're continuing to evaluate if there are things on the market today. There's things that are coming again. You've got your Diamondbacks and Oxys that have announced they would potentially do divestitures. So we're watching some of those come, like waiting for those to come to the market as well. I think we're just going to continue to be very selective.

是的。正如我所提到的，我們將繼續評估當今市場上是否有產品。有些事情又要來了。你的 Diamondbacks 和 Oxys 已經宣布他們可能會進行資產剝離。所以我們正在觀察其中一些的到來，就像等待它們進入市場一樣。我認為我們將繼續非常有選擇性。

And again, inventory, that would be part of these. Again, we will need to jump ahead of the inventory we've added today and the things we expect to add later in the year. So we're just going to be, again, much more elective.

再說一次，庫存，這將是其中的一部分。同樣，我們需要超越今天添加的庫存以及我們預計在今年稍後添加的庫存。因此，我們將再次變得更加選擇性。

Again, you are seeing large companies getting together, and we're one of the few mid-cap remaining that's out there trying to buy and aggregate these assets. So there's less competition for us in some of these areas. So I think that's also exciting for us because when the competition's high, you just get that up to a higher level.

同樣，你會看到大公司聚集在一起，而我們是剩下的少數試圖購買和聚合這些資產的中型公司之一。因此，我們在某些​​領域的競爭較少。所以我認為這對我們來說也是令人興奮的，因為當競爭激烈時，你就會將其提升到更高的水平。

So I think everything is, again, happening in the macro environment is actually good for Vital Energy. But again, we've proven here that we can add, again, 185 wells at a very low cost just because of our technical work. And this wouldn't have been possible to add these wells today if we hadn't done the work we did in 2023. So I think we're just, again, in a great shape.

因此，我認為宏觀環境中發生的一切實際上對 Vital Energy 有利。但我們再次證明，僅僅因為我們的技術工作，我們就可以以非常低的成本再增加 185 口井。如果我們沒有完成 2023 年所做的工作，今天就不可能增加這些井。所以我認為我們再次處於良好狀態。

Bryan and his team done a good job of having our balance sheet in a position that if we want to do something, we can. But it's not that -- we don't have to do anything in 2023 because we've again got new stuff coming on and ahead of us. So we're excited about where we sit today.

布萊恩和他的團隊做得很好，我們的資產負債表處於這樣的位置：如果我們想做某件事，我們就可以做到。但事實並非如此——我們不必在 2023 年做任何事情，因為我們又面臨新的事情。所以我們對今天的位置感到很興奮。

Terrific. Great update, and thanks for your time.

了不起。很棒的更新，感謝您的寶貴時間。

There are no further questions at this time. Mr. Hagood, I turn the call back over to you.

目前沒有其他問題。哈古德先生，我把電話轉給你。

Thank you for your interest in Vital Energy. And this concludes today's call. Have a great morning.

感謝您對活力能源的關注。今天的電話會議到此結束。祝你有個美好的早晨。

This concludes today's conference call. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開連線。