Strategic transformation delivers material free cash flow in 2021; Company to further reduce debt

SPRING, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Southwestern Energy Company (NYSE: SWN) today announced financial and operating results for the fourth quarter and full year 2020 and issued 2021 guidance.

“In 2020, Southwestern Energy delivered on its commitments, exceeding expectations on all key metrics while navigating the uncertainties of a global pandemic and the associated challenging commodity price and operating environments. We have positioned the Company to deliver material free cash flow going forward through an enduring conviction to our returns-driven strategy. We delivered strong results across all of our strategic pillars, including an accretive acquisition, a meaningfully lower cost structure and an increased underlying asset value,” said Bill Way, Southwestern Energy President and Chief Executive Officer.

“Southwestern Energy has entered 2021 with greater scale and resilience, prepared to capture increasing value from more than one trillion cubic feet equivalent of expected annual production flowing into diverse and key markets. The free cash flow we expect to deliver this year will be used to reduce debt as we progress towards our goal of sustainable 2 times leverage. Consistent with our disciplined approach, any further improvement in cash flow from higher commodity prices will accelerate the delivery of that objective,” Way continued.

2020 Highlights

• Completed acquisition of Montage Resources, delivering over $30 million in G&A synergies, while maintaining balance sheet strength through associated capital market transactions;
• Delivered $55 million of free cash flow in the fourth quarter;
• Realized $90 million in additional expense reductions including a 33% decrease in G&A to $0.12 per Mcfe;
• Reported total production of 880 Bcfe; 3.05 Bcfe per day pro forma fourth quarter net production rate;
• Invested capital of $899 million and delivered 100 wells to sales;
• Generated $362 million of realized hedge gains, including $76 million from basis;
• Repurchased $107 million of senior notes for $72 million, a 33% discount;
• Enhanced liquidity with borrowing base increased to $2.0 billion following acquisition;
• Reduced well costs, averaged $637 per lateral foot in the second half of 2020; annual reduction of 19% to $670 per lateral foot with an average lateral length of 12,154 feet;
• Lowered Proved Developed F&D costs by 25% to $0.40 per Mcfe through well cost reductions and increased well productivity;
• Realized 26% of WTI on full year NGL prices, above the high end of guidance, and 36% of WTI in the fourth quarter, both associated with strengthening market fundamentals and NGL marketing optimization;
• Reported proved reserves of 12.0 Tcfe, including 1.4 Tcfe of positive performance revisions and 741 Bcfe of reserve additions, partially mitigating the impact of backward-looking SEC prices;
• Released our 7^th annual corporate responsibility report; key environmental highlights included top quartile GHG and methane intensity among AXPC peers; and
• Recorded the fifth consecutive year of freshwater neutrality; have now replaced over 14 billion gallons of freshwater in communities where we work and live.

2021 Guidance

The Company’s 2021 guidance is underpinned by the four pillars of its shareholder returns driven strategy: creating sustainable value, protecting financial strength, increasing scale and progressing best-in-class execution. The 2021 plan prioritizes free cash flow generation, disciplined investment at maintenance levels and debt reduction. Highlights are presented below; full guidance is available in the attachments to this press release.

• Guidance based on $2.77 per Mcf NYMEX Henry Hub and $50 per barrel WTI; expect to deliver free cash flow of over $275 million, which is expected to be utilized for debt reduction;
• Prices of $3.00 per Mcfe NYMEX Henry Hub and $58 per barrel WTI would increase free cash flow estimate to more than $375 million and results in achieving targeted leverage ratio of 2.0x;
• Capital investment of $850 to $925 million; expect 3.05 Bcfe per day average fourth quarter 2021 net production, flat with fourth quarter 2020;
• Estimate 75 to 90 wells to sales including 12 to 15 in dry gas Ohio Utica; approximately 50% of total capital investment in dry gas and 50% in liquids-rich acreage;
• Continued focus on costs, expect G&A per Mcfe to decrease 20%;
• Expected to reduce well costs another 10% to an average of approximately $600 per lateral foot for all wells to sales inclusive of Ohio Utica; expect average lateral length of 14,000 feet;
• Hedges in place for approximately 85%, 60% and 95% of expected natural gas, natural gas liquids and oil production, respectively; approximately 80% of natural gas hedges allow for participation in upside from improving prices;
• Protecting 75% of natural gas basis through physical and financial basis hedges and out of basin transportation portfolio; expect financial basis hedge gain of $0.07 to $0.09 per Mcf; and
• Continued commitment to corporate responsibility, investing in human capital and our communities, and developing energy responsibly with a focus on reduced air emissions and water conservation, including maintaining top quartile performance in the industry for GHG and methane intensity.

2020 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results

1. Capital investments on the cash flow statement include decreases of $5 million and $18 million for the three months ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively, and a decrease of $3 million and an increase of $34 million for the year ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively, relating to the change in accrued expenditures between periods.

Fourth Quarter 2020 Financial Results

For the quarter ended December 31, 2020, Southwestern Energy recorded a net loss of $92 million, or ($0.14) per diluted share, including $335 million of non-cash impairments and a $134 million non-cash gain on unsettled mark to market derivatives. This compares to net income of $110 million, or $0.20 per diluted share in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Adjusted net income (non-GAAP), which excludes non-cash items noted above and other one-time charges, was $119 million or $0.18 per diluted share in 2020 and $99 million or $0.18 per share for the same period in 2019. The increase was primarily related to increased production volumes and a decrease in average unit operating costs, partially offset by wider natural gas basis differentials. For the fourth quarter of 2020, adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) was $276 million, net cash provided by operating activities was $121 million and net cash flow (non-GAAP) was $249 million, resulting in $55 million in free cash flow.

As indicated in the table below, fourth quarter 2020 weighted average realized price, including $0.37 per Mcfe of transportation expenses, was $1.93 per Mcfe before the impact of derivatives, down 9% compared to $2.12 per Mcfe in 2019. The decrease was primarily due to widened basis differentials in the Appalachia basin. Fourth quarter weighted average realized price before transportation expense was $2.30 per Mcfe.

The Company realized $52 million in cash-settled derivative gains during the fourth quarter of 2020, a $0.21 per Mcfe uplift. Included in the fourth quarter settled derivative gains is a $47 million gain related to natural gas basis hedges, which protected the Company from widening basis differentials.

Full Year 2020 Financial Results

The Company recorded a net loss of $3.1 billion, or ($5.42) per share, for the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to net income of $891 million, or $1.65 per share in 2019. In 2020, the Company recorded non-cash impairments of $2.8 billion and $138 million of non-cash loss on unsettled derivatives, and had an $818 million change in its deferred tax provision. Excluding these non-cash and other one-time items, adjusted net income for 2020 was $221 million, or $0.38 per share, compared to $328 million, or $0.61 per share, in 2019. The decrease in adjusted net income compared to prior year was primarily the result of a decrease in commodity prices, partially offset by a $182 million increase in settled derivatives impact, increased production volumes and decreased G&A and depreciation, depletion and amortization expense. In 2020, Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) was $742 million, net cash provided by operating activities was $528 million and net cash flow (non-GAAP) was $662 million.

For the full year 2020, weighted average realized price, including $0.37 per Mcfe of transportation expense, was $1.53 per Mcfe before the impact of derivatives, a 30% decrease compared to $2.18 per Mcfe in 2019, due to decreased prices across all commodities. In 2020, the weighted average realized price before transportation expenses was $1.90 per Mcfe.

Cash-settled derivative gains totaled $362 million in 2020, a $0.41 per Mcfe uplift, bringing the weighted average realized price including the impact of derivatives to $1.94 per Mcfe in 2020, compared to $2.42 per Mcfe in 2019.

As of December 31, 2020, Southwestern Energy had total debt of $3.15 billion and a cash balance of $13 million. At the end of 2020, the Company had $700 million of borrowings under its $2.0 billion revolving credit facility with $233 million in outstanding letters of credit.

1. Based on last day monthly futures settlement prices.
2. This discount includes a basis differential, a heating content adjustment, physical basis sales, third-party transportation charges and fuel charges, and excludes financial basis derivatives.

Operational Review

Total production for the quarter ended December 31, 2020 was 257 Bcfe, comprised of 81% natural gas, 16% NGLs and 3% oil. Included in the fourth quarter 2020 results was 49 days of production from the acquired Montage Resources properties. Production totaled 880 Bcfe for the year ended December 31, 2020.

Capital investments in the fourth quarter of 2020 were $194 million, bringing full year capital investment to $899 million. The Company brought 100 wells to sales, drilled 98 wells and completed 96 wells during the year.

1. Excludes $38 million and $41 million in Montage acquisition-related expenses and $4 million and $16 million in restructuring charges for the three months and year ended December 31, 2020, respectively. Excludes $1 million of legal settlement charges for the year ended December 31, 2020.
2. Excludes restructuring charges of $2 million and $11 million and legal settlement charges of $3 million and $6 million for the three months and year ended December 31, 2019, respectively. Excludes a $6 million residual value guarantee short-fall payment to the previous lessor of our headquarters building for the year ended December 31, 2019.

Southwest Appalachia – In the fourth quarter, total production was 132 Bcfe, with liquids production of 91 MBbls per day, including 49 days of production from properties previously owned by Montage Resources. The Company drilled 10 wells, completed 11 wells and placed 16 wells to sales, excluding four wells placed to sales that were drilled and completed by Montage Resources. The average lateral length of wells to sales was 15,477 feet, and included five wells in the rich area and 11 wells in the super rich area. All five of the rich wells were online for at least 30 days and had an average 30-day rate of 23.2 MMcfe per day, while only six of the super rich wells were online for at least 30 days and had an average 30-day rate of 9.8 MMcfe per day, including 72% liquids.

In 2020, Southwest Appalachia’s total production was 407 Bcfe, including 85 MBbls per day of liquids. The Company drilled 49 wells, completed 52 wells and placed 55 wells to sales during 2020, with 14 drilled uncompleted wells as of December 31, 2020.

Northeast Appalachia – In the fourth quarter, total production was 125 Bcf. There were four wells drilled, seven wells completed and 11 wells placed to sales in the quarter with an average lateral length of 14,667 feet. Of the 11 wells to sales, eight wells were online for at least 30 days and had an average 30-day rate of 15.6 MMcf per day.

Production for the year was 473 Bcf in Northeast Appalachia. The Company drilled 49 wells, completed 44 wells and brought 45 wells to sales during 2020, with 10 drilled uncompleted wells at year-end.

1. Excludes 4 wells placed to sales during the fourth quarter of 2020 that were drilled and completed by Montage Resources.

2020 Proved Reserves

The Company reported total proved reserves of 12.0 Tcfe at year-end 2020, compared to 12.7 Tcfe in 2019. Reserves consisted of 76% natural gas and 24% liquids. During 2020, the Company reported 1.4 Tcfe of positive performance revisions related to increased well performance and lower operating costs, 741 Bcfe of reserve additions, and also acquired 2.4 Tcfe of reserves related to the acquisition of Montage Resources. The Company incurred 4.4 Tcfe of downward price revisions related to significantly reduced trailing 12-month SEC prices on all commodities.

Lower SEC prices, which were $1.98 per Mcf NYMEX Henry Hub, $39.57 per Bbl WTI and $10.27 per Bbl NGLs, resulted in a PV-10 of $1.85 billion. Using 2021 strip prices as of January 4, 2021, which were $2.70 per Mcf NYMEX Henry Hub, $47.67 per Bbl WTI and $11.82 per Bbl NGLs, the PV-10 of the reported year-end 2020 reserves would increase to $5.85 billion, without consideration of any PV-10 increase from the expected higher reserve volumes at those prices.

1. Other includes properties outside of the Appalachian Basin.

The Company’s 2020 proved developed finding and development (PD F&D) costs decreased 25% from the prior year to $0.40 per Mcfe, when excluding the impact of capitalized interest and portions of capitalized G&A costs in accordance with the full cost method of accounting.

Note: Amounts may not add due to rounding

1. Adjusting for the impacts of the full cost accounting method for comparability.
2. Includes increased reserve estimates of 144 Bcfe in the Appalachian Basin associated with productivity enhancements for newly developed PUD locations.

Conference Call

Southwestern Energy will host a conference call and webcast on Friday, February 26, 2021 at 9:30 a.m. Central to discuss fourth quarter and fiscal year 2020 results. To participate, dial US toll-free 877-883-0383, or international 412-902-6506 and enter access code 3652399. The conference call will webcast live at www.swn.com.

To listen to a replay of the call, dial 877-344-7529, International 412-317-0088, or Canada Toll Free 855-669-9658. Enter replay access code 10152130. The replay will be available until March 26, 2021.

Due to the inclement weather last week, the Company plans to file its Annual Report on Form 10-K on March 1, 2021.

About Southwestern Energy

Southwestern Energy Company is an independent energy company engaged in natural gas, natural gas liquids and oil exploration, development, production and marketing. For additional information, visit our website www.swn.com.

Forward Looking Statement

Certain statements and information herein may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “intend,” “foresee,” “should,” “would,” “could,” “attempt,” “appears,” “forecast,” “outlook,” “estimate,” “project,” “potential,” “may,” “will,” “are likely,” “guidance,” “goal,” “model,” “target,” “budget” and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which are generally not historical in nature. Statements may be forward looking even in the absence of these particular words. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the financial position, business strategy, production, reserve growth and other plans and objectives for our future operations, and generation of free cash flow. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effect on us. The forward-looking statements contained in this document are largely based on our expectations for the future, which reflect certain estimates and assumptions made by our management. These estimates and assumptions reflect our best judgment based on currently known market conditions, operating trends, and other factors. Although we believe such estimates and assumptions to be reasonable, they are inherently uncertain and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that are beyond our control. As such, management’s assumptions about future events may prove to be inaccurate. For a more detailed description of the risks and uncertainties involved, see “Risk Factors” in our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other SEC filings. We do not intend to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events, changes in circumstances, or otherwise. These cautionary statements qualify all forward-looking statements attributable to us, or persons acting on our behalf. Management cautions you that the forward looking statements contained herein are not guarantees of future performance, and we cannot assure you that such statements will be realized or that the events and circumstances they describe will occur.

Investor Contact
Brittany Raiford
Director, Investor Relations
(832) 796-7906
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Bernadette Butler
Investor Relations Advisor
(832) 796-6079
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