San Juan Basin Royalty Trust Declares No Cash Distribution for October 2024 and Announces Production Costs in Excess of Proceeds

Rhea-AI Summary

San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (NYSE: SJT) announced no cash distribution for October 2024 due to excess production costs and low natural gas pricing. Hilcorp reported $3,594,338 total revenue and $7,227,419 production costs for August 2024. Excess production costs of $15,150,449 gross will be charged to the next month's distribution. The Trust's administrative expenses were $87,522, partially covered by $4,959 interest income. Gas volumes totaled 1,922,538 Mcf with an average price of $1.79 per Mcf. The Trustee utilized $82,564 from cash reserves, leaving a balance of $1,017,135. The Trust plans to replenish and increase cash reserves to $2.0 million before future distributions.

Positive

• Interest income of $4,959 partially covered Trust administrative expenses
• Gas volumes increased from 1,891,889 Mcf in July to 1,922,538 Mcf in August 2024

Negative

• No cash distribution for October 2024 due to excess production costs
• Total revenue ($3,594,338) significantly lower than production costs ($7,227,419)
• Excess production costs of $15,150,449 gross to be charged to next month's distribution
• Average gas price decreased from $1.94 per Mcf in June to $1.79 per Mcf in August 2024
• Cash reserves decreased from $1.8 million in April to $1,017,135 in October 2024
• No future distributions until Trust liabilities are paid and cash reserves replenished

Insights

Financial Analyst

This news is significantly negative for San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (SJT) and its unitholders. The Trust has declared no cash distribution for October 2024 due to excess production costs, primarily driven by high lease operating expenses and capital expenditures from Hilcorp's 2024 capital project plan.

Key points:

• Total revenue: $3,594,338
• Production costs: $7,227,419
• Excess production costs: $15,150,449 gross ($11,362,837 net to Trust)
• Average gas price: $1.79 per Mcf, down from $1.94 in June

The Trust's cash reserves have decreased to $1,017,135, down from $1.8 million in April. This financial situation suggests ongoing challenges for SJT, potentially impacting future distributions until production costs decrease or natural gas prices improve significantly.

Energy Market Analyst

The current situation for SJT reflects broader challenges in the natural gas market. With average gas prices at $1.79 per Mcf in August, down from $1.94 in June, we're seeing the impact of persistently low natural gas prices. This price environment, combined with Hilcorp's aggressive capital expenditure plan, is creating a perfect storm for the Trust.

The production increase (1,922,538 Mcf in August vs 1,891,889 Mcf in July) isn't sufficient to offset the lower prices and higher costs. Investors should watch for:

• Natural gas price trends
• Hilcorp's future capital expenditure plans
• Potential operational efficiencies to reduce lease operating expenses

The Trust's ability to resume distributions will largely depend on these factors improving in the coming months.

DALLAS, Oct. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Argent Trust Company, as the trustee (the "Trustee") of the San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (the "Trust") (NYSE: SJT), today reported that it will not declare a monthly cash distribution to the holders of its Units of beneficial interest (the "Unit Holders") due to excess production costs for the Trust's subject interests ("Subject Interests") during the production month of August 2024, as well as continued low natural gas pricing. Excess production costs occur when production costs and capital expenditures exceed the gross proceeds for a certain period. Excess production costs for this reporting period are due primarily to significant lease operating expenses and capital expenditures associated with Hilcorp San Juan L.P.'s ("Hilcorp") 2024 capital project plan.

Hilcorp reported $3,594,338 of total revenue from the Subject Interests for the production month of August 2024, consisting of $3,442,328 of gas revenues and $152,010 of oil revenues. For the Subject Interests, Hilcorp reported $7,227,419 of production costs (excluding excess production costs) for the production month of August 2024, consisting of $2,408,163 of lease operating expenses, $463,668 of severance taxes, and $4,355,588 of capital costs.

Hilcorp will charge the excess production costs of approximately $15,150,449 gross ($11,362,837 net to the Trust) to the next month's distribution. No cash distributions will be made by the Trust until future net proceeds are sufficient to pay Trust liabilities and replenish cash reserves. This month's Trust administrative expenses totaled $87,522. The decrease in administrative expenses was attributable to differences in timing of the receipt and payment of certain expenses by the Trust. Interest income received by the Trust in the amount of $4,959 will be applied to cover a portion of this month's Trust administrative expenses, with cash reserves utilized to pay the remaining administrative expenses.

Based upon information provided to the Trust by Hilcorp, gas volumes for the subject interests for August 2024 totaled 1,922,538 Mcf (2,136,153 MMBtu), as compared to 1,891,889 Mcf (2,102,099 MMBtu) for July 2024. Dividing gas revenues by production volume yielded an average gas price for August 2024 of $1.79 per Mcf ($1.61 per MMBtu), as compared to an average gas price for June 2024 of $1.94 per Mcf ($1.75 per MMBtu).

Pursuant to the Amended and Restated Royalty Trust Indenture, dated December 12, 2007 (as amended on February 15, 2024, by the First Amendment to the Amended and Restated Royalty Trust Indenture), the Trustee is authorized to retain, in its sole discretion, a cash reserve for payment of Trust liabilities that are contingent or uncertain or otherwise not currently due and payable. To cover Trust expenses during any period of revenue shortfall, which has resulted and may continue to result from lower commodity prices and increased capital expenditures and lease operating expenses under Hilcorp's 2024 capital project plan for the Subject Interests, the Trustee increased the cash reserves in March and April of 2024, such that total cash reserves were $1.8 million as of April 30, 2024. Interest income and cash reserves were utilized to pay Trust administrative expenses each month from May through September of 2024. This month, cash reserves in the amount of $82,564 will be utilized to cover the balance of Trust administrative expenses which will bring the balance of cash reserves maintained by the Trustee to $1,017,135. Prior to any future distributions to Unit Holders, the Trustee plans to replenish the cash reserves and continue to increase the cash reserves to $2.0 million.

Production from the Subject Interests continues to be gathered, processed, and sold under market sensitive and customary agreements, as recommended for approval by the Trust's Consultant. The Trustee continues to engage with Hilcorp regarding its ongoing accounting and reporting to the Trust, and the Trust's third-party compliance auditors continue to audit payments made by Hilcorp to the Trust, inclusive of sales revenues, production costs, capital expenditures, adjustments, actualizations, and recoupments. The Trust's auditing process has also included detailed analysis of Hilcorp's pricing and rates charged. As previously disclosed in the Trust's filings, these revenues and costs (along with all costs) are the subject of the Trust's ongoing comprehensive audit process by the Trust's professional consultants and outside counsel to analyze compliance with all the underlying operative Trust agreements and evaluate potential remedies in the event there is suspected non-compliance.

Forward Looking Statements. Except for historical information contained in this news release, the statements in this news release are forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words such as "estimates," "anticipates," "could," "plan," or other words that convey the uncertainty of future events or outcomes. Forward-looking statements and the business prospects of San Juan Basin Royalty Trust are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results in future periods to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, certain information provided to the Trust by Hilcorp, volatility of oil and gas prices, governmental regulation or action, litigation, and uncertainties about estimates of reserves. These and other risks are described in the Trust's reports and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contact:	San Juan Basin Royalty Trust
	Argent Trust Company, Trustee
	Nancy Willis, Director of Royalty Trust Services
	Toll-free: (855) 588-7839 or (866) 809-4553
	Fax: (214) 559-7010
	Website: www.sjbrt.com
	Email: trustee@sjbrt.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/san-juan-basin-royalty-trust-declares-no-cash-distribution-for-october-2024-and-announces-production-costs-in-excess-of-proceeds-302281319.html

SOURCE San Juan Basin Royalty Trust

FAQ

Why is San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (SJT) not declaring a cash distribution for October 2024?

SJT is not declaring a cash distribution for October 2024 due to excess production costs for the Trust's subject interests during August 2024 and continued low natural gas pricing.

What were the total revenues and production costs reported by Hilcorp for SJT's subject interests in August 2024?

Hilcorp reported total revenues of $3,594,338 and production costs of $7,227,419 for SJT's subject interests in August 2024.

How much are the excess production costs for SJT in August 2024?

The excess production costs for SJT in August 2024 are approximately $15,150,449 gross ($11,362,837 net to the Trust).

What was the average gas price for SJT's subject interests in August 2024?

The average gas price for SJT's subject interests in August 2024 was $1.79 per Mcf ($1.61 per MMBtu).

What is the current balance of cash reserves maintained by SJT's Trustee?

The current balance of cash reserves maintained by SJT's Trustee is $1,017,135 after utilizing $82,564 to cover Trust administrative expenses.