Frontera Energy Corporation

Good morning. My name is Sergio, and I'll be your conference facilitator today. Welcome to Frontera Energy's third quarter 2025 operating and financial results conference call. All lines are currently on mute to prevent any background noise. I would like to remind you that this conference call is being recorded today and is also available through an audio webcast on the company's website. Following the speaker's remarks, there will be time for questions. Analysts and investors are reminded that any additional questions can be directed to Frontera following today's call at ir.fronterraenergy.ca. This call contains forward-looking statements, information within the meaning of applicable Canadian security laws, relating to activities, events, or developments the company believes or expects will or may occur in the future. Forward-looking information reflects the current expectations, assumptions, and beliefs of the company based on information currently available to it. Although the company believes the assumptions are reasonable, forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance. Forward-looking information is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking information. The company's MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2025, and the company's Annual information from dated March 10, 2025, and other documents it files from time to time with securities regulatory authorities describe the risk, uncertainties, material assumptions, and other factors that could influence actual results. Any forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and the company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking information, except as required by law. I will now turn the call over to Mr. Gabriel de Alba, chairman of the board of Frontera Energy. Mr. de Alba.

Thank you, Sergio, and good morning, everyone. Welcome to Frontera's third quarter 2025 operating and financial results conference call. Joining me on the call are Orlando Cabrales, Frontera's CEO, and Rene Burgos, Frontera's CFO. Also available to answer questions at the end of the call We have Alejandra Bonilla, General Counsel, Renata Campanaro, VP Marketing, Logistics, and Business Sustainability, Iván Arevalo, VP Reservoir, Reserves, and Operations, and Andrés Armiento, VP of Corporate Sustainability and People. Thank you for joining us. During the quarter, the company generated $86.6 million in operating EBITDA from continuing operations. generated adjusted infrastructure EBITDA of $30.4 million and $115 million in cash provided by operating activities, extended its crude oil hedges through the first half of 2026, and ended the quarter with a strong balance sheet, including $172.1 million of total cash. The company also declared quarterly dividends of Canadian 0.0625 cents per share, or approximately 3.1 million in aggregate, and has bought 385,200 shares through its non-course issue bid program year-to-date. Over the past 12 months, Frontera has distributed more than 112 million to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases, including 66.5 million paid to shareholders in the third quarter via substantial issuer bid, reducing its shares outstanding by 14% since the end of 2024. Additionally, the company successfully repurchased over $80 million of its senior unsecured notes due to 2028, reducing the balance outstanding to $314 million, demonstrating a strong commitment to returning capital to all stakeholders. In addition, Frontera is pleased to announce it has been approved to trade on the OTCQX best market that increases the company's visibility in the United States and reinforces Frontera's commitment to strong financial disclosure and corporate governance practices. Trading in the OTCQX enhances the company's access to a broader U.S. investor base, including the U.S. retail market, offering shareholders improved liquidity and supporting long-term value creation. Trading began today under the ticker symbol FECTF. Notably, OTC market activity has represented over 30% of FEC's total share trading over the past five years, highlighting the relevance of the U.S. market to Frontera's investor community. Access to this highest tier of the U.S. OTC market further strengthens Frontera's ability to reach a broader investor base and enhance long-term value creation. In regards to Guyana, the government of Guyana, through its council, communicated its willingness to participate in a final, without prejudice, meeting with Frontera and its partner, CJX Energy, to discuss the matters in dispute. The government proposed November 25, or December 2, 2026, as possible dates for this meeting. While expressly reserving all rights, the joint venture remains open to engaging in good faith discussions with the government. I'd like now to turn the call over to Orlando Caballeros, Frontera's CEO, and René Burgos, Frontera's CFO, who will share their views on our third quarter results. Orlando?

Thank you, Gabriel. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us for today's call.

Let me open my remarks by underscoring the strategic significance significance of Frontera's decision to pursue the spin-off of the Colombian infrastructure business. Frontera has consistently drawn interest from investors and strategic parties who recognize the unique strengths and value propositions present in the upstream oil and gas and infrastructure businesses. While the upstream oil and gas and infrastructure businesses complement each other. Each has its own operational profiles, life cycles, and appeals to different investor groups. As part of Frontera's commitment to unlock shareholder value and enable future consolidation opportunities, the company has announced its intention to spin off its Colombian infrastructure business. The separation will create two focus independent companies, Frontera EMP and Frontera Infrastructure. Frontera considers the strategic separation an opportunity to surface value that is not currently reflected in Frontera's market capitalization. The separation will allow Frontera's distinct businesses to explore independent organic and inorganic opportunities and deliver superior returns for shareholders. The separation is expected to be completed during the first half of 2026 and will be subject to shareholder approval. Third quarter financial and operating results reflect the actions taken by our team to create value for stakeholders, maintain financial and operational flexibility, and safeguard our strong balance sheet. Despite the price volatility, we are staying focused on what we can control. Continuous operational improvements and cost efficiencies aiming to become a stronger and more resilient company. During the quarter, our production costs decreased by 5% compared to the previous quarter, mainly driven by the adoption of new field production technologies, ongoing optimization efforts, cost reduction in O&M contracts, and digital process implementation. On the transportation side, costs have decreased by 1%, quarter over quarter, resulting from optimized transportation routes and pipeline agreements, including the expiry of our long-term take-home-paid agreement for sensor P135. These improvements were partially offset by increasing energy costs as we process higher liquid volumes during the quarter. We have also simplified our corporate structure during the third quarter through a targeted reorganizational initiative that will improve organizational and operational efficiencies, generating between $10 and $15 million in expected savings in overhead going forward. I would like to thank our employees for their efforts and commitment to address the challenges during this year. In our Colombian operations, we have seen our production decrease by 2% this quarter, mainly due to adverse weather conditions, as well as related operational and logistical challenges, which have since been resolved. The 2025 rainy season has proven to be among the most severe in the past decade, with rainfall significantly exceeding historical averages. With this in mind, we have revised slightly our 2025 annual Columbia production guidance to a range of 39,000 to 39,500 BOE per day. For the nine months ending September 30th, Frontera averaged 39,240 BOE per day of production, a 3% increase from the same period of 2024. We have also revised our 2025 capital expenditures guidance, reducing the higher end by around $25 million to reflect the discipline approach to capital spending and ability to identify ongoing operational efficiencies. On the exploration side, the high-impact Guaco 1 well at the Bin 1 block was spotted, targeting natural gas and condensate, with drilling expected to be completed by the end of the year. This well has the potential to significantly increase the company's natural gas reserves including potentially providing much-needed supply to the Colombian market in the short to middle term, and helping to de-risk nearby continuing prospects. The company continues to make significant progress within its infrastructure business, which includes interest in ODL and Porto Aie, where together with its partner, Gasco, Porto Aie has reached final investment decision on the planned LPG project. The initial phase is scheduled for completion in the first half of 2026, aiming to address supply constraints in Colombia's domestic LPG market. The LPG project is expected to generate between $10 and $15 million in yearly project EBITDA once it reaches its target capacity. We continue to see positive momentum in where ODL saw a strong quarter-over-quarter volumes and EBITDA growth, led by an increase in production associated with Ecopetrol's Cañosur block. In Puerto Bahia, the ports operating EBITDA remain steady quarter-over-quarter. despite lower liquids throughput volumes associated with our traders' exit from the country. The financial impact of the reduced liquids throughput volumes, however, was upset entirely by an increase in activity from our general cargo operations, which saw a strong growth in container volumes that exceeded 3,600 20-foot equivalent units in October. During the nine months ending September, 11,454 TEUs were handled at the Porto Barrient, representing a step-forward increase compared to 306 TEUs handled during the same period in 2024. capturing volumes and supporting the growth opportunities in this market. Finally, in Sahara, the water management volumes are rising steadily, averaging about $157,000 per day this quarter, with a peak of $203,000 per day.

I would now like to turn the call over to René Burgos, Fronteras CFO. Thank you, and good morning, everyone. Thank you, as always, for your interest and support of the company. I'd like to take a moment to highlight a few key financial aspects of our results.

For the third quarter, the company recorded net income from continuing operations of $28.2 million, or 38 cents per share. Operating EBITDA from continuing operations for the quarter was approximately $86.6 million, compared to $73.5 million in the prior quarter. Although the pricing environment remained subdued, we have seen favorable Columbia crude oil differentials. We also had higher sales volume through the quarter and saw a decrease on the production and disposition costs, highlighting our operational discipline. Turning to our key operational performance indicators, during the quarter, we saw average rent sales prices at $68.17. Demand for our heavy crude barrels remained strong in the third quarter. We saw also average bus credit differentials on export sales remaining under $2 at $1.82 for the quarter compared to $1.69 in the third quarter. Our purchase crude net margin associated with our dilution and transportation programs was $2.70, lower than the $3.65 for the prior quarter, as a result of improvement in our deal and purchasing strategy. Reviewing our operating costs, our production, energy, and transportation costs per barrel for the fourth quarter totaled $25.74. This compares to $25.45 for the prior quarter. The increase in quarter-over-quarter operating costs was related to our energy costs resulting from higher fuel consumption from higher production liquid volumes at our facilities. In our infrastructure business, adjusted infrastructure EBITDA for the quarter was $30.4 million. This compares to $20.1 million in the prior quarter. The quarter-over-quarter increase was mainly a result of higher revenues from the ODL business due to higher volumes transported to the pipeline. As of September 30th, 2025, the company reported a total cash position of $172.1 million, including $158.6 million of unreserved cash and cash equivalents. In the quarter, the company invested $50.9 million in capital expenditures, drilling 16 wells in the Kepa and 56 blocks, paying $66.5 million to shareholders to a substantial issuer bid. receiving $14.7 million in insurance compensation from the seven-year block and $18.5 million in cash dividends from the ODL investment. Turning now to risk management, our current risk management strategy supports our operations and planning. Pantera uses derivative instruments to manage exposure to oil prices and flexible utilities. On the oil side, the company has centered infrastructure hedges, successfully securing up to 40% hedging ratio until June 2026. Our strategy has ceiling between 63 and 65 break, but it gets a drop in all prices through the spread at a price drop of $55. Quintero has also covered 20% of the company's expected Peso exposure until the end of 2025, which lowers that over 4,200 Peso level. These changes provide the company with cash visibility and help mitigate impacts on future fluctuations while allowing us to deliver on our targets. I'd like to provide more details on our infrastructure business standoff. The separation will create two independent companies with clear strategic priorities. Frontera EMP, a pure plate upstream oil and gas exploration and production company. Over the last 12 months, Frontera EMP generated standalone operating EBITDA of $336 million. With approximately $220 in net debt, Frontera EMP has a net leverage of 0.7 times. Frontera Infrastructure, comprised by our interest in ODL and Puerto Vallarta, will emerge as a leading energy infrastructure business, leveraging robust cash flows from ODL and aiming to invest in near-term strategic projects at Puerto Vallarta to deliver a growing and long-term revenue stream. Over the last 12 months, Frontera Infrastructure generated infrastructure-adjusted EBITDA of $117 million and infrastructure-distributable cash flows of $75 million. which is comprised of Puerto Vallecas Operating Unidad, plus all the dividends and distributions received. With approximately $154 million in net debt, Frontier Infrastructure has a net leverage against infrastructure distributable cash flows of two times. For additional information, please refer to our press release issued today, including a description of our non-IFRS measures described here. Before moving on, I'd like to highlight again that this quarter Frontier qualified to trade on the OTCQX, best market. This upgrade includes access for a broader U.S. investor base, including the U.S. retail market, and provides shareholders with a more convenient trading optionality alongside our primary TSX listed. OTCQX is the highest tier of the U.S. OTC market and aligns well with our TSX disclosure and governance standards. The platform offers U.S. investors real-time little-to-quotes and streamlined access to our disclosures at OTCMarkets.com, improved transparency and visibility for current and prospective shareholders. The enhanced trading structure should also support tighter bid-offer spreads and more efficient execution as U.S. investors transact to the brokers they already use, while providing greater visibility into meaningful U.S.-based ownership positions. The U.S. market has already been an important source of activity for Frontera, with more than 30% of its original volume over the past five years trading on the OTC platform. The OTC QS qualification builds on the success of demand and provides a cost-effective way to broaden participation, increase visibility, and strengthen long-term engagement with our shareholder base. As always, please feel free to reach out to us at ir.fronterraenergy.ca if you have any questions. I would like now to turn the call back to Orlando. Before I conclude today's call, I would like to highlight that the company continues to advance towards its 2028 sustainability goals, as well as on the 2025 plan, with progress made on almost every goal during the third quarter. On the sustainability front, in the third quarter of 2025, local suppliers accounted for 11.5% of total purchases, reflecting the ongoing commitment to local supported economic development. Additionally, we maintain a strong performance in health and safety indicators, achieving a total recordable incident rate of 0.57 and also attaining a water reuse rate of 36% within our operational activities. In addition, Frontera achieved the level of excellence certified by Great Place Tool. I would like to congratulate Mr. Ivan Arevado, who is assuming responsibility for reservoir and reserves, and Mr. Andres Armiento, who transitioned to VP of corporate sustainability and people. These adjustments are aligned with Frontera's vision to enhance synergies, optimize processes, and ensure a comprehensive approach to managing all aspects of our operations. With that, I would like to conclude by saying thank you to Adriana and Rene for the comments, and thank you everyone for attending our call.

I will now turn the call back to our operator.

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin the question and answer session. Should you have a question, please press the star followed by the number one on your touch-tone phone. You will hear a prompt that your hand has been raised. Should you wish to decline from the polling process, Please press the star followed by the number two. If you are using a speakerphone, please lift the handset before pressing any keys.

One moment please for your first question. Your first question comes from Anne Mill from Bank of America.

Please go ahead.

Okay. Thank you very much for the call today and thank you for all the information on the proposed spinoff. I had a couple questions on that front. Will these two new companies have completely independent management teams, which I assume they will? And at what point, I guess we'll be right afterwards, you will continue to provide financial information on the E&P section, like you're doing the segment as you're doing right now? And then the second question is, on the E&P segment, could you give us at least some basic trends of what you're expecting from I know you probably can't give guidance, but maybe you have some general comments. Thank you very much.

Let me start with the last one. We are working on the 2026 plan. We are expecting to announce that early next year. So that is the first thing. The second thing is that details around the separation of the two businesses will be provided in due time. But yes, you can expect that the management teams are going to be different as two separate companies. And the other one. And the last one, and I think you should expect to continue to see the level of disclosure that we have. I think it's quite transparent to distinguish between one and the other. But we would appreciate any questions that anybody has so we can continue to improve our transparency. But yes, you should continue

Thank you very much. Thank you.

Your next question comes from Tom Glanca from Gramercy. Please go ahead.

Good morning. Can you confirm, it looks like in the press release, the capitalization of the two companies will essentially follow the existing capitalization, Frontera debt goes to Frontera. and infrastructure goes to infrastructure. And is there any additional leveraging anticipated as part of this transaction?

Okay, I think that's a terrific question, Tom. Thank you for joining the conference call. I think that pressure relief tries to make it as clear as possible. Today, our $530 million worth of deductions are going to be divided into the appropriate lines. As you may recall, most of our debt sits into two unique transactions, one being the FPI loan, which covers our infrastructure assets, and the other being the Frontera Senior Loans, which are effectively part of the E&P business. So that should fall in that path. As to any incremental leverage and any additional details, like Orlando said, this will be provided in due time. I think what you can add to this is our plan is to have this completed before the end of the first half of 2026.

Okay. And then you show the debt service and infrastructure being about $56 million a year. I'm assuming most of that is amortization because the interest burden should be much lower, like, I don't know, $25 million, $30 million, something like that, correct? Correct.

Look, if you look at our embeddedness, our debt is around 10%, 10.5% for the SPI transaction. And you've got to also remember that we have turbo amortization. So even when we do capture, when we have cash from the dividends generated, all those dividends go to pay. So the best way to think about it, the best way to think about it is that we keep cash. That cash from the ODL transactions are going to very quickly amortize. So, yes, to your point, local, we started the year, we started around 220 in May when we closed the transaction, right? Now we're close to 202, and today we're seeing it only over around 30-something million dollars. So, you should expect a very quick leveraging. By the end of the year, in December, with the cash flow sweep, we should see FDI get around 175 to 180 million dollars of debt.

Okay. Thank you. And then just last question on the guidance changes. It looks like there's some production changes and you have some cost savings, but it looks like you're keeping your EBITDA guidance at the 270 to 315 at the lower Brent level, correct?

That is correct, yes. We are keeping the EBITDA guidance. Great. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Your next question comes from Oriana Cobalt from Balance Capital. Please go ahead.

Hi. Good afternoon. Thanks for taking my question. I have a doubt in terms of the LPG and the associated gas deployment that would be needed. So if you could share any additional color on timings and commissioning for the project and And since when should we expect to see this incremental ABBA generation? Thank you.

Can you repeat the question? Let me try to repeat it. I think you said LPG project, and you want to know the timing and when we're going to see the ABBA generation. Is that what you said?

Yeah, sorry. Can you hear me better now?

Yeah, that's better. That's better.

Okay. Okay, perfect. Thanks. So, yes, in essence, I just want to understand better the dynamics of this LPG project. How would be the natural gas deployment associated? And just out of curiosity, if this means that you'd be interested in perhaps pursuing any potential increase in natural gas and drilling more in that sense, that would be helpful to understand things.

I think on the LPG, on the LPG project, we are working on fast tracking the project via our first phase, what we call our first phase, which is our chip to track mechanism that we put online in the first half of 2016. And this phase is to ensure we meet the market demand for LPG right now in the country prior to the construction of a permanent onshore refrigeration unit. That is expected to be online in 18 months, 2027, sometime 2027. When we announced this project, We are expecting an EBITDA range between $10 and $50 million when we reach the maximum capacity of the project. That means when we build the refrigeration unit in 18 months. But that's for the project. That is for the project.

That is for the JV, yes. Okay, perfect. That's helpful. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Your next question comes from Isabella Pacheco from Bank of America. Please go ahead.

Hi. Thank you for taking my questions. So my questions on infrastructure were already answered, so I'll go to another front. After the Guyana impairment and your Ecuador exit, what are your plans to replace reserves? Are there any near-term drilling campaigns in Colombia that could materially impact 2026 production?

I mean, we are permanently looking at our portfolio, and when there are opportunities to sell, to buy, we will see those opportunities. So we are permanently looking at the market, and if there are opportunities that make sense either to buy or to sell, we will look for that. So that is something that we do constantly. If I could just... Sorry, and one last thing is that the dream of Guapo, the Guapo well, is that it's a high-impact well, it's an exploration well, and that could bring additional reserves to the company going forward. And as you know, the gas market is needing that additional supply, so there is an opportunity there.

Okay, perfect. Thank you. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, as a reminder, if you wish to ask a question, simply press star 1.

There are no further questions at this time.

Please proceed.