MPLX LP

Welcome to the MPLX third quarter 2021 earnings call. My name is Ivy and I will be your operator for today's call. At this time, all participants are in a listen only mode. Later, we will conduct a question and answer session. Press star one on your touchtone phone to enter the queue. Please note that this conference is being recorded. I will now turn the conference over to Christina Kazarian. Christina, you may begin.

Good morning and welcome to the MPLX third quarter 2021 earnings conference call. The slides that accompany this call can be found on our website at MPLX.com under the investor tab. Joining me today on the call are Mike Hennigan, chairman and CEO, John Quaid, CFO, and other members of the executive team. We invite you to read the safe harbor statements and non-gap disclaimer on slide two. It's a reminder that we will be making forward-looking statements during the call and during the question and answer session that follows. Actual results may differ materially from what we expect today. Factors that could cause actual results to differ are included there, as well as in our filings with the SEC. With that, I'll turn the call over to Mike.

Thanks, Christina. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining our call. Earlier today, we reported adjusted EBITDA for the quarter of $1.4 billion and total return of capital of $900 million through $745 million of distributions and $155 million of unit repurchases. Looking at our year-to-date results, a number of factors have aligned to allow us to generate very strong cash flow. We have benefited from lower capital spending, strong NGL prices, and proceeds from asset optimization efforts. These tailwinds, along with solid business performance and cost reduction efforts, have combined to result in just over $1 billion of cash flow available for deployment above our current capital spending and distribution requirements. We've returned $465 million of this capital to unit holders through year-to-date unit repurchases. We believe some investors prefer unit repurchases while others prefer cash return. And after several quarters of employing unit repurchases for incremental return of capital, Today, we announced an increased third quarter distribution of $1.34 billion. The increased distribution includes a special distribution amount of about $600 million and a 2.5% increase in the partnership's base distribution amount, reflecting our confidence in the business. Special distribution amount is one way to allow all unit holders to immediately recognize the benefit of our strong cash flow this year. We also believe that distributions can be a more tax-efficient way to return capital to unit holders via unit repurchases, versus unit repurchases, sorry. For 2021, we have now announced a total of $2.8 billion of distributions to unit holders on top of $465 million of unit repurchases. Moving to business updates, we're making progress in our portfolio optimization efforts with our announcement this morning that we are pursuing strategic alternatives for our Alaskan logistics and storage operations, which could include a sale. We also advanced our key growth projects in the Permian related to crude, natural gas, and NGL transportation out of the basin. The Wink to Webster crude pipeline in which MPLX has a 15% ownership interest continues to play segments in the service, and we expect this activity to continue through the remainder of the year. Consistent with our focus on projects with lower return risk, pipeline system has 100% of its contractible capacity committed with long-term minimum volume commitments. Last quarter, we announced the Whistler natural gas pipeline, in which we have a 38% ownership interest, was placed in service, and it will continue to ramp up through 2022. This pipeline will provide approximately 2 billion cubic feet per day of incremental natural gas transport capacity, to the Gulf Coast markets from the Permian Basin. The Whistler pipeline is also backed by long-term, minimum-volume commitments, and we expect volumes to increase throughout 2022. Finally, the NGL takeaway solution, which will provide 125,000 barrels per day of long-haul NGL service from the Permian to Sweeney, Texas, was placed into service in October. We continue to pursue opportunities to grow our base business, including expansion of our integrated natural gas and NGL value chains in certain strategic regions and opportunities in support of MPC's expansion in liquid renewable fuels. We also continue to evaluate a number of other low-carbon energy growth opportunities and are especially focused on those where we can leverage our competitive advantage through technologies that are complementary with our expertise and our asset footprint. For example, MPLX, along with MPC, is among the companies supporting large-scale deployment of carbon capture and storage to help decarbonize industrial facilities in the Houston area. These collective efforts could safely capture and store approximately 50 million metric tons of CO2 per year by 2030 and about 100 million metric tons by 2040. Working with our industrial companies and regulators in this energy-rich region is a critical component of assuring long-term, reliable fuel supplies for a sustainable, energy-diverse future. Overall, we continue to focus on identifying and efficiently executing high-return projects to drive further growth for MPLX, and we expect our growth capital spending to be higher in 22 than 21. Shifting to slide four, last quarter we discussed the publication of our sustainability and climate reports that highlight the environmental, social, and governance aspects of our business. Our focus on leading in sustainable energy positions us to deliver strong results in this space from lowering the carbon intensity of our operations and products to improving energy efficiency and conserving natural resources while using innovative technologies to do it. We believe the targets we are setting and our transparent disclosures on how we plan to achieve these targets position us well for the future. On our website, we have recently published our 2020 Sustainability Highlights. MPLX is focused on our methane reduction target through tangible pathways, such as implementing robust LDAR monitoring programs, replacing gas-driven pneumatic control valves, replacing compressor rod packings, minimizing emissions from pipeline launchers and receivers, and optimizing maintenance venting. In short, we continue to challenge ourselves to lead in sustainable energy by meeting the needs of today while investing in an energy-diverse future that creates shared value for all of our stakeholders. Now let me turn the call over to John to discuss our operational and financial results for the quarter.