Ultra Petroleum announced 2nd Quarter 2009 financials
by Pinedale Online!
August 4, 2009
Ultra Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: UPL) released their 2nd Quarter 2009 operating and financial results on Tuesday, August 4th. The report says Ultra "continued to deliver strong financial and operating performance for the second quarter of 2009."
Highlights for the quarter include:
- Record natural gas and crude oil production of 44.5 Bcfe, an increase of 30 percent from second quarter 2008
- Operating cash flow(1) of $168.5 million
- Earnings of $78.3 million, or $0.51 per diluted share – adjusted
- Per unit all-in costs of $2.43 per Mcfe, down 29 percent from the same period in 2008
- Superior returns in second quarter (adjusted): 73 percent cash flow margin, 34 percent
Wyoming comments:
From the report: "The average IP for an Ultra-operated well substantially increased from 2008 as the company gained year-round access to development areas in a larger part of the Pinedale field where the wells are more productive, leading to larger average per-well reserve estimates. Year-round access to these development areas was granted in the September 2008 Record of Decision (ROD) from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The company expects that over the next decade, a majority of the wells will be drilled in these areas of the field."
"Since the ROD was issued in September 2008, Ultra has been able to move and keep rigs in areas previously not accessible year-round. This has resulted in fewer rig moves, leading to more efficient operations while drilling in the better parts of Pinedale. One of our best wells this year is the Riverside 4B1-11D which had an IP rate of 15,621 Mcf per day and is located in a development area where all of our rigs are currently located," stated Michael D. Watford, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.
The company continues to collect and analyze data from five-acre pilot areas. During the second quarter, Ultra completed five wells as part of this pilot program. The five wells are exceeding pre-drill expectations with an average IP of over 9,300 Mcf per day and an average EUR of 4.6 Bcfe per well location.
During the second quarter ended June 30, 2009, Ultra Petroleum drilled and cased to total depth 53 wells, including outside operated. For the first six months of 2009, the company drilled and cased 132 wells.
"The second quarter 2009 average drilling days for Ultra-operated wells as measured by spud to total depth (TD) was 21 days. Largely as a result of pad drilling and a decrease in cost of services, well costs are also lower. In the second quarter of 2009, well costs decreased to $5.25 million, as compared to $5.7 million in the second quarter of 2008. Our costs are decreasing while our average well size is increasing and our five-acre pilot wells are performing positively," Watford said.
Click here for a PDF of the company press release: ULTRA PETROLEUM ANNOUNCES SECOND QUARTER 2009 FINANCIAL AND OPERATING RESULTS
(PDF)
Click here for Ultra Petroleum second quarter earnings conference call transcript (August 4, 2009, SeekingAlpha.com)
Ultra Petroleum: www.ultrapetroleum.com
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