Excelerate Energy, Inc.

Hello and welcome to the Accelerate Energy First Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. My name is Lauren and I will be coordinating your call today. If you would like to ask a question during the presentation, you may do so by pressing star followed by one on your telephone keypad. I will now hand you over to your host, Craig Hicks, Vice President, Investor Relations and ESG to begin. Please go ahead.

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining Accelerate Energy's first quarter 2023 financial results call. Participating on the call today are Stephen Kobos, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dana Armstrong, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and Daniel Bustos, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. Our first quarter 2023 results press release and presentation released yesterday afternoon and can be found on our website at ir.accelerateenergy.com. I would like to remind everyone that we will be making forward-looking statements on this call that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, and we make no obligation to update or revise them. Today's remarks will also refer to certain non-GAAP financial measures. We have provided a reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures at the back of the presentation. Now, I'd like to turn the call over to Stephen Kobos, Chief Executive Officer of Accelerate Energy.

Thanks, Craig, and thank you all for joining us this morning. On today's call, I will focus my remarks on our first quarter financial results the current state of the global LNG market, and progress on our commercial opportunities. Dana will then walk through the details of our quarterly financial performance before we open up the call to your questions. Accelerate Energy delivered solid financial and operational results in the first quarter. These were in line with our expectations. As we approach the midpoint of the year, we remain focused on executing our strategic objectives and we are well positioned to pursue new commercial opportunities. Over the last 12 months, the increased demand for FSRUs and LNG supply has continued to influence discussions on energy policy in both Europe and the Global South. As a leading provider of integrated LNG solutions, We are proud of the pivotal role Accelerate Energy is playing in strengthening energy security for countries around the world while supporting their transition to a clean energy future. We look forward to continuing our efforts as we scale our portfolio of strategic assets and expand into new and existing markets around the globe. With that, let's turn to our results and the highlights for the first quarter. Accelerate delivered another solid financial performance during the first quarter. We reported 31 million of net income and 80 million of adjusted EBITDA. This strong start to the year is a positive step toward achieving our financial guidance that we shared with you in March. On the commercial front, our time charter with the Federal Republic of Germany for the FSRU Excelsior commenced in late February. We remain committed to supporting the German government as it procures alternative gas sources and works to advance its development of renewable energy. In April, we took advantage of the opportunity to suspend temporarily our charter with the German government. This was so we could deploy the FSRU Excelsior to provide regasification services at the Bahia Blanca terminal during the Argentine winter. As expected, regasification services at Bahia Blanca began earlier this month. Other notable highlights include the closing of our amended and restated 600 million senior secured credit facility in March and the purchase of the FSRU Sequoia in April. Dana will provide more insights on this transaction in just a few moments. Lastly, on May 9th, the Accelerate Board of Directors declared another two and a half cent dividend per share, reaffirming our commitment to returning capital to shareholders. Next, I'll share some perspectives on the current state of the global LNG market. In Europe, the demand for FSRUs is being driven by countries that prioritize energy security and preparation for the upcoming winter. However, milder than expected winter has resulted in European natural gas inventories remaining at levels above historical averages. Current inventories are approximately 60% full compared to an average of approximately 45% over the last eight years. As Europe prepares for the 23-24 winter season, the European Commission is targeting storage levels to be at approximately 90% capacity by November 1st of this year. Additionally, the market has seen benchmark LNG prices decline when compared to the highs of 2022. These lower LNG prices have enabled countries like Argentina, Bangladesh, and other Asian Pacific countries to resume spot purchases in the first quarter of this year. Although the macro drivers vary between regions, we expect to see healthy global demand for LNG in the second half of 2023. Accelerate is committed to helping countries in both Europe and the global south access LNG supply necessary to meet their evolving energy needs. This continues to be the case in Bangladesh, where just last week we were awarded our second LNG cargo this year. We are also continuing to advance negotiations with Petro Bangla for a planned PIRO project. This includes discussions on the term sheet and a long-term SPA. And as we mentioned on our last call, we continue to advance financing options and evaluate potential equity partners. Across our global footprint, we continue to see the environmental and social impact of our operations. Accelerates LNG deliveries displaced diesel, fuel oil, and coal, resulting in cost savings and reduced emissions. Our FSRUs in Bangladesh deliver approximately 20% of the country's total gas supply. Since we introduced LNG to Bangladesh in 2018, the government has had increased confidence to move forward and cancel plans for numerous coal-fired power plants. And in Brazil, our operations serve as a reliable backstop to the country's energy system for which intermittent renewable energy contributes approximately 85%. The flexibility and reliability of LNG in these countries allow businesses from large industrial users to small and medium sized enterprises to thrive and grow their operations. These are just a few examples of the tangible impact we are making in countries around the world. We look forward to sharing more details on our efforts in our upcoming sustainability report, which will be published later this year. In closing, as a global energy company, Xcelerate is focused on enhancing energy security and accelerating the transition to a clean energy future. Our strategic priorities remain operating a profitable and growing fleet of FSRUs, growing our existing regasification business, expanding our downstream gas sales customer base in existing markets, leveraging our global presence to enter new markets, and managing a diversified portfolio of LNG supply. Now I'll turn the call over to Dana to walk through our first quarter financial results.