US-listed floating regasification specialist Excelerate Energy turned around its second-quarter earnings on the back of higher charter rates on FSRUs on charters to utilities in Finland and Argentina.
Excelerate reported a second-quarter net income of $29.6m, reversing a net loss of $4m for the same three months of 2022.
The company said this was primarily due to higher rates on charters in Finland and Argentina, a contract extension at a higher rate in the United Arab Emirates, and lower operating lease expense following its purchase of the 173,467-cbm FSRU Excelerate Sequoia (built 2020).
It added that the improved figures also benefited from the early ending of the 138,120-cbm FSRU Excellence (built 2005) finance lease as part of the vessel’s acquisition in 2022.
But Excelerate’s revenue for the three months fell to $432.4m from $622.9m in the second quarter of 2022.
During the three months to the end of June, Excelerate said it won contracts to sell four spot LNG cargoes into Bangladesh, two of which were delivered in the second quarter and the others to follow this year.
The company said its 138,000-cbm FSRU Excelsior (built 2005) also started supplying seasonal regasification services at the Bahia Blanca GasPort in Argentina in May. The vessel is scheduled to return to its charter in Germany in the third quarter.
Steven Kobos, president and chief executive of Excelerate, described the results as “strong”.
“With global markets continuing to emphasise the need for energy security, the value of our services has never been greater,” he said.
“We remain committed to building a company that is known for generating predictable earnings and cash flows while providing opportunistic upside from LNG and gas sales. We are confident this balanced approach is the right strategy to drive growth.”
Excelerate narrowed its full-year 2023 guidance range, detailing that it expects adjusted Ebitda to range between $325m and $335m.
The company said maintenance capital expenditure for 2023 is expected to be between $20m and $30m.
