2022 Highlights 

• Delivered full-year net cash from operating activities of $4.9 billion, adjusted EBITDAX of $6.8 billion and $2.5 billion of free cash flow (FCF); 
• Returned $1.6 billion of FCF to shareholders and exceeded 60% capital return to shareholders commitment; 
• Repurchased 36.2 million shares of common stock; doubled the annual base dividend;
• Eliminated $1.4 billion, or more than 20%, of outstanding bond debt;
• Increased drilling and completion activity in the U.S. and Egypt to a pace that returns the company to moderate and sustainable production growth;
• Advanced appraisal programs on Block 58 offshore Suriname at Sapakara and Krabdagu with three successful flow tests; announced first oil discovery on Block 53 at Baja; and
• Achieved primary emissions goal of reducing upstream routine flaring by more than 40% in Egypt.

2023 Outlook and Objectives

• Reiterating upstream capital budget of $2.0 to $2.1 billion; 
• Expecting adjusted barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) growth of 4 to 5%, and oil growth of more than 10%; 
• Substantial upside FCF potential from Cheniere gas sales contract commencing in third-quarter 2023;
• Committed to returning at least 60% of FCF to shareholders and strengthening the balance sheet; and
• Continuing to appraise and explore Block 58 offshore Suriname.

HOUSTON, Feb. 22, 2023 – APA Corporation (Nasdaq: APA) today announced its financial and operational results for the fourth-quarter and full-year 2022. 

During the fourth-quarter 2022, APA reported net income attributable to common stock of $443 million, or $1.38 per share on a fully diluted basis. When adjusted for certain items that impact the comparability of results, APA’s fourth-quarter earnings totaled $476 million or $1.48 on a diluted share basis. Reported fourth-quarter production was 414,000 BOE per day; adjusted production, which excludes Egypt noncontrolling interest and tax barrels, was 334,000 BOE per day. Net cash provided by operating activities in the fourth quarter was $1.4 billion, and adjusted EBITDAX was $1.5 billion. 

For the full-year 2022, APA reported net income of $3.67 billion, or $11.02 per diluted common share. On an adjusted basis, APA’s 2022 earnings totaled $2.56 billion or $7.68 per diluted common share. Reported full-year production was 396,000 BOE per day; adjusted production, which excludes Egypt noncontrolling interest and tax barrels, was 318,000 BOE per day. Net cash provided by operating activities was $4.94 billion, and adjusted EBITDAX was $6.84 billion. 

“APA ended the year with strong performance in each of our operational areas,” said John J. Christmann IV, APA’s CEO and president. “In the U.S., we exceeded fourth-quarter production guidance, and in Egypt, we continue to make good progress improving rig efficiencies and growing quarterly oil production. Volumes in the North Sea returned to the mid-40 thousand BOE per day level as facilities' uptime improved from prior quarters. In Suriname, during 2022, we established more than 800 million barrels of combined estimated oil resource-in place, following three successful flow tests at Sapakara and Krabdagu. These validate our geologic, geophysical and reservoir models in the upper cretaceous age section of the central portion of Block 58, where we are further appraising Krabdagu with two rigs.”

2023 Capital Budget and Outlook

In 2023, APA plans to invest $2.0 to $2.1 billion in upstream oil and gas capital, which is consistent with the preliminary guidance provided in the third-quarter 2022. This capital investment level is expected to result in year-over-year adjusted BOE growth of 4 to 5%, underpinned by a more than 10% increase in oil volumes.

“APA’s diversified portfolio provides us the optionality to allocate capital to areas that generate the highest returns and to opportunistically respond to changes in oil and gas prices,” Christmann said. “This year our emphasis will be on higher-margin oil development, and we will continue to drive improvements in safety, operational execution, and cost management, while prioritizing initiatives that reduce our carbon intensity and help protect the environment.”

Year-End 2022 Proved Reserves 

Worldwide estimated proved reserves totaled 890 million BOE at year-end 2022, 90% of which were classified as proved developed. During the year, APA added approximately 109 million BOE through field extensions, discoveries, and revisions, and 13 million BOE from the net impact of acquisition and divestiture activity. 

Conference Call

APA will host a conference call to discuss its fourth-quarter and full-year 2022 results at 10 a.m. Central time, Thursday, Feb. 23. The conference call will be webcast from APA’s website at www.apacorp.com and investor.apacorp.com. Following the conference call, a replay will be available for one year on the “Investors” page of the company’s website. 

About APA

APA Corporation owns consolidated subsidiaries that explore for and produce oil and natural gas in the United States, Egypt and the United Kingdom and that explore for oil and natural gas offshore Suriname and the Dominican Republic. APA posts announcements, operational updates, investor information and press releases on its website, www.apacorp.com. Additional details regarding Suriname, ESG performance and other investor-related topics are posted at investor.apacorp.com.

Additional Information

Additional information follows, including reconciliations of adjusted earnings, adjusted EBITDAX, upstream capital investment, net debt, cash flows from operations before changes in operating assets and liabilities and free cash flow (non-GAAP financial measures) to GAAP measures and information regarding adjusted production. APA’s quarterly supplement is available at http://www.apacorp.com/financialdata.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

APA’s financial information includes information prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) as well as non-GAAP financial information. It is management’s intent to provide non-GAAP financial information to enhance understanding of our consolidated financial information as prepared in accordance with GAAP. Adjusted earnings, adjusted EBITDAX, upstream capital investment, net debt, cash flows from operations before changes in operating assets and liabilities and free cash flow are non-GAAP measures. This non-GAAP information should be considered by the reader in addition to, but not instead of, the financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. Each non-GAAP financial measure is presented along with the corresponding GAAP measure so as not to imply that more emphasis should be placed on the non-GAAP measure.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “seeks,” “believes,” “continues,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “goals,” “guidance,” “may,” “might,” “outlook,” “possibly,” “potential,” “projects,” “prospects,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and similar references to future periods, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements about future plans, expectations, and objectives for operations, including statements about our capital plans, drilling plans, production expectations, asset sales, and monetizations. While forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and analyses made by us that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, whether actual results and developments will meet our expectations and predictions depend on a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause our actual results, performance, and financial condition to differ materially from our expectations. See “Risk Factors” in APA Corporation’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, and in APA’s Form 10-K in the year ended December 31, 2022 when filed, and in our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for a discussion of risk factors that affect our business. Any forward-looking statement made in this news release speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. APA and its subsidiaries undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future development or otherwise, except as may be required by law. 

Cautionary Note to Investors

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission permits oil and gas companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only proved, probable, and possible reserves that meet the SEC's definitions for such terms. APA may use certain terms in this news release, such as "resources," "potential resources," "resource potential," "estimated net reserves," "recoverable reserves," and other similar terms that the SEC guidelines strictly prohibit APA from including in filings with the SEC. Such terms do not take into account the certainty of resource recovery, which is contingent on exploration success, technical improvements in drilling access, commerciality, and other factors, and are therefore not indicative of expected future resource recovery and should not be relied upon. Investors are urged to consider carefully the disclosure in APA Corporation’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2021 (and APA’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2022, when filed) available from APA at www.apacorp.com or by writing APA at: 2000 Post Oak Blvd., Suite 100, Houston, TX 77056 (Attn: Corporate Secretary). You can also obtain this report from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330 or from the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.

Contacts

Investor:    (281) 302-2286    Gary Clark
Media:      (713) 296-7276    Alexandra Franceschi            
Website:    www.apacorp.com

Click here for the full release with quarterly financial statements.