Vitesse Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTS) Q1 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

Jimmy Henderson: Yes, definitely. Obviously, hedging is a key component of our dividend decision making and protecting the cash flows, so that we can continue to make these investments going forward. So, yes, you’ll definitely see volumes added to 2025 as we move forward. We have a couple of things working against us, obviously, the backwardation of the market. So we got to be patient and kind of let that wave move forward. At the same time, we’re only allowed to hedge a certain percentage under our credit agreement. So as we move forward in time, we are able to continue to fill that bucket. So, we’ve tried to methodically push ahead on hedging. And these acquisitions as they come online, add to that PDP level, so that we can enter into transactions to support those. So, we always try to have a little bit of room versus our limits, so that we can support acquisitions as we do them, but somewhat limited do that, but we can push it as far as we can.

Jeff Grampp: Understood. Appreciate those comments. Thanks, guys.

Operator: Thank you. Our next questions come from the line of Jeff Robertson with Water Tower Research. Please proceed with your questions.

Jeff Robertson: Thank you. Good morning. Bob or Brian. A question on Luminis. Are you able to adapt that system as you see consolidation in the basin and assets change hands from one operator to another to help you identify acquisition opportunities to target?

Bob Gerrity: Absolutely, Jeff. Luminis gets more vibrant every day. Everybody has a relationship to Luminis. And some, we’re developing some AI capacity. Everybody does AI or we can do it with Luminis as well. And it’s amazing the amount of information you can get when you’ve got over 15,000 wells loaded into your system. So, we do rely on Luminis. Everybody enjoys it. And it just, we call it democratize. Is that everybody in the organization, whether they’re revenue clerk, whether they’re a landman, engineer, or in the finance department, learns from Luminis every day. And it’s a great question. We’re thrilled with it. We had an hour and a half meeting yesterday about other developments that we’re looking forward to with Luminis. So it’s an important part of our company, and it gets better and develops every day.

Jeff Robertson: Does the ability to understand not only your asset base, but what’s going on in the basin and where opportunities lie, does that factor into the decision to raise the dividend? In the context of understanding what the Tesla’s Runway is?

Brian Cree: Yes, I’d say that the dividend decision is an output, I guess, from what goes into Luminis. So, Luminis, certainly, as Bob spoke, allows us to analyze these opportunities and make smart investments, which of course, drives the ability to increase the dividend. So kind of an indirect output to that, but certainly is supportive.

Jeff Robertson: Thank you.

Operator: Thank you. Our next question is come from the line of Donovan Schafer with Northland Capital Markets. Please proceed with your questions.

Donovan Schafer: Hey, guys. Thanks for taking the questions. So, my first question is just if we can get an update on kind of the original, deeper, denser expanded thesis that I know you guys had when you created this company to kind of repeat what had been done before in the DJ basin. But also, if we can connect, I guess, maybe answer that sort of separately, if it’s a separate thing or, if the opportunity presents itself, does this tie in with the $40 million CapEx increase? Are there things you can point to where some of these specific opportunities themselves tied to either tighter infill drilling or maybe with a three-mile lateral? It allows you to step out a little bit further. I know you guys are probably not taking risks on totally virgin step out, but maybe infill drilling wells that have been de-risked because of more recent successful step outs or things along those lines.

Just anything, just the general update, and then if it actually is in any way sort of highlighted or demonstrated with these opportunities.

Bob Gerrity: Yes. Hi, Donovan. This is Bob. The deeper, denser, cheaper, better, expanded concept that we had was really just about the field over the course of time, becoming more economic. We saw that in the DJ, and we were seeing it in hyperspeed in the Bakken. It just seems that every well that’s being drilled is more economic than its offset well, simply because technology improves every day. And so this is really when we look at the Bakken, we look at the Bakken through the lens of technology, and it’s amazing what has happened out in the field. Of course, technology, unless it’s at a cost efficient basis, it’s meaningless. And the costs in the field have certainly stabilized, if not gone down a little bit. But you’re right, the field has expanded, and we’re getting Tier 1 economics on a map that not that many years ago was considered Tier 3. So, we love the position we have in the Bakken. It does get better every day, and we’re excited to find out what’s next.

Donovan Schafer: Okay, great. And then, as another question. So, I know I’m kind of putting Jimmy on the spot here, so well, or I may, I should almost, in a perfect situation, I’d have him leave the room or something, but he joined [indiscernible] it’s a bit odd, but he joined a few quarters back, and I did make a point of going through, like, sort of his LinkedIn profile and his, bio from other companies he’s been involved in. And Jim’s experience, not to toot his horn, but it was very relevant, and I thought it was quite impressive. And particularly, there was a strong focus in the Bakken and also sort of the Rockies more generally, probably pretty thick Rolodex [ph] there as well. And so I’m just kind of curious if we can get an update like, I think when Jimmy first joined, I thought, maybe this means there’s going to be some amazing, incredible package or something that gets put together and, deals only, you don’t do deals for their own sake.

Right? So instead, we’ve gotten this sort of acceleration of these near-term drilling development program opportunities. And so I’m just kind of curious, as Jimmy been an important part of, like, making the decision of, okay, we’re going to focus a bit there instead of. Yes, like, kind of maybe what John White was hinting at with, like, large acreage accumulations, like kind of gaming it out and, like working that Rolodex and getting the higher working interest. Just anything, Jimmy, you could speak to it, but I’d also just be more interested broadly from the other guys, a sense of the role and how that ties in?