Welcome to the Paratus Energy Q3 2025 earnings call. There will be a question-and-answer session after the presentation, and you can submit your questions by using the button on the bottom of the player. I will now hand you over to your host.
Good day, everyone. Welcome to this third quarter 2025 results presentation for Paratus Energy Services Limited. My name is Robert Jensen, and I am the CEO of Paratus. Joining me on the call today is Baton Haxhimehmedi, our CFO. Before we begin today's presentation, I would like to remind all participants that some of the statements on this call may involve forward-looking statements. Forward-looking information involves risks and uncertainties by nature that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in such statements. I therefore refer you to our latest public filings. Paratus delivered another strong performance for the third quarter of 2025. We reported better-than-expected revenues due to higher average day rates and increased operating days at Seagems, and recognition of previously unrecognized revenue at Fontis. Both of our operating entities maintained strong operational performance with a fleet technical utilization of 99% for the quarter.
Revenues for the group were $127 million, compared with $107 million in the second quarter. As mentioned, the increase is primarily driven by $12 million of variable revenue previously unrecognized in Mexico, as well as higher average day rates and reduced off-hire days for our Seagems fleet. On the back of this, adjusted EBITDA came in at $78 million versus $57 million in Q2. Even when excluding the previously unrecognized revenue at Fontis, EBITDA was $66 million, which is a substantial improvement from the second quarter. Net income for the quarter was $46 million, significantly up from $5.6 million in Q2. In September, we divested our entire 24% stake in Archer through a secondary share placement. We have been a supportive shareholder in Archer since the inception of Paratus.
However, as there were no natural synergies between Paratus's two operating companies and Archer, we believe the sale aligns well with a strategy to simplify the group structure. A book gain of $13 million was recognized from the sale, and the sale increased our liquidity profile by $30 million, following approximately $18 million of the proceeds used for mandatory debt redemption and accrued interest expenses. In line with our policy of targeting stable cash distribution to shareholders, the board of directors has declared a dividend of $0.22 per share for Q3. This is our sixth consecutive dividend at the level consistent with every quarterly distribution since our IPO last year. Considering today's announced dividend, we will have returned almost $250 million to shareholders since we started our distribution last year, equivalent to roughly 36% of our current market cap.
This reflects our continued dedication to maintaining a disciplined capital return policy that delivers value to our shareholders over time. We ended Q3 with a cash balance of $144 million and net debt of $659 million. The quarter-on-quarter increase in net debt primarily reflects Seagems securing $60 million in additional CapEx funding during Q3. We currently have no plans to draw more debt in Seagems for CapEx funding, as the required CapEx spending for the new Petrobras contracts has been completed. Receivables in Mexico increased to $293 million, up from $232 million in the prior quarter, as no significant payments were received during Q3. However, in October and November, Fontis has received a total of $96 million from its client in Mexico. We have now collected $309 million year-to-date from the client. This represents 1.5 times the annual revenue for Fontis.
Recent collections and ongoing support from the Mexican government reinforce our confidence in an improving operating environment in the country. However, as we have consistently stated, the timing of future payments may fluctuate in Mexico, and the company will therefore continue to plan its cash management accordingly. It is also very encouraging to see that we continue to convert previously unrecognized invoices to revenue through constructive discussions with our client. As always, we remain committed to the full recovery of any outstanding receivables consistent with historical practice. Now, let's move over to the quarterly review for each of our two operating entities. We continue with our joint venture, Seagems. Please note that all numbers referred to on this slide are on a 100% basis, of which we own 50%. Seagems had another strong quarter with revenues of $145 million, compared to $125 million in the second quarter.
The sequential increase was primarily driven by higher average day rates, with the Ônix beginning its new contract in August, as well as reduced off-hire days relative to the second quarter. In the second quarter, three vessels underwent acceptance testing prior to commencement of their new Petrobras contracts. All of our vessels have now started their new three-year contracts with Petrobras. EBITDA for the quarter was $90 million, up from $81 million in the second quarter. Operating expenses came in at $43 million, up from $31 million in Q2, while G&A was slightly down at $6 million, compared to $7 million in the previous quarter. Technical utilization for the quarter was a solid 98.5% versus 97.9% in Q2. Please also remember that Q2 OpEx was positively impacted by reimbursement of an insurance claim, as well as reversal of certain accounting provisions.
The average contractual day rate increased substantially to $272,000 per day from $255,000 in the second quarter, reflecting again the start of the new contract for Ônix. The contractual backlog for Seagems stood at $1.5 billion at the end of the quarter. During the first nine months of 2025, the JV provided cash contributions of approximately $182 million to its shareholders, of which Paratus received $91 million. As mentioned previously, during the third quarter, Seagems secured $60 million in additional CapEx financing from local Brazilian banks. Amortization is scheduled to start in 2026 and will run over three years. Finally, subsequent to the third quarter, Seagems reached another great milestone, being awarded Petrobras's best supplier in flexible pipeline installation for the second consecutive year and the fourth time in eight years.
As a proud shareholder, we are pleased to see Petrobras once again recognize Seagems' excellence and innovation in offshore operations. Moving over to Fontis Energy, our wholly owned drilling business reported Q3 revenues of $55 million and an adjusted EBITDA of $35 million. This compares favorably to $44 million and $18 million, respectively, in the second quarter. The increase was primarily driven by booking of $12 million of previously unrecognized revenue for the Titania. Operating expenses were $20 million for the quarter, down from $26 million in Q2, which was inflated by the demobilization of the Titania. G&A was $500,000, slightly up from $400,000 in the previous quarter. Technical utilization remained strong, also for Fontis, at 99.7% compared to 99.2% in Q2. Average day rates remained at $116,000 per day, consistent with the previous quarter.
Fontis's backlog at the end of the third quarter stood at $56 million, down from $98 million at the end of Q2. As mentioned previously, the receivable balance increased to $293 million at quarter-end from $232 million in Q2. As also previously mentioned, the company has received substantial payments in the past two months and is expecting a more normalized operating environment going forward. Looking at the fleet, with the exception of Titania, all of the rigs are currently working and contracted into Q1 2026. Although we do not have any concrete updates to provide today on the contract situation in Mexico, Fontis is currently in commercial discussion with the client regarding potential renewals. We expect to share more information regarding the outcome of these discussions soon.
As previously stated, we remain confident in the long-term demand for our assets in Mexico if the client is to achieve its targeted production levels. More broadly speaking, even though through the recent market slowdown, premium jack-up utilization has held above 90%. The renewed activity we are now seeing in Saudi Arabia is an encouraging sign and should add positive momentum to the overall industry sentiment. As a result, we are also seeing more prospects for work outside of Mexico for our fleet. In parallel, we are continuing to evaluate strategic options for our jack-up business. In recent months, we have been approached with several unsolicited indications of interest regarding Fontis and its assets. We are assessing these as part of our ongoing effort to determine the most value-accretive path forward for Paratus and our stakeholders.
With that, I will leave the word over to Baton to walk you through the financial results.
Thank you, Robert. Let's start with a review of our Q3 results compared to Q2, the prior quarter. Net income after tax came in at $46 million, which was up sharply from $5.6 million in Q2. As shown in the top right graph on this slide, there are a few key reasons for it. First, revenues were up by 20%, or $21 million, from $107 million in Q2 to $127 million in Q3, while EBITDA rose 38% to $78 million. That came from two main reasons. Seagems generated $73 million in revenue, a $10 million increase from Q2, mainly from higher day rates and more operational days. In Q2, three vessels were still in acceptance testing for the new Petrobras contracts, and by August, the final vessel, Ônix, as mentioned by Robert, started operations under its new contract. In Mexico, we had a strong quarter.
EBITDA rose from $18 million in Q2 to $35 million in Q3. That's up by $17 million. This came from strong rig operations, continued cost discipline, and also helped by the $12 million in revenue we hadn't recognized earlier for Titania due to prudent accounting rules. That is similar to what we have seen last year when we booked and collected $25 million of previously unrecognized revenue. The company continues to work hard to realize all contractual revenues we believe we are entitled to. Since we took over the operations from the previous owner, we have booked $37 million of previously unbooked revenues. $25 million of this was booked in 2024 and paid to us as well during Q1 this year.
Finally, we booked $30 million of gain from the sale of our Archer shares in September, which explains the significant decrease in net financial expenses and other line in the P&L. This quarter once again shows the strength of our operations and how well our teams are executing with strong financial results to show for it. Now, stepping back and looking at the first nine months of 2025 compared to the same period last year. During the first nine months of 2025, we report a net income after tax of $55 million, which is up from $29 million in 2024. As shown in the lower right graph here, there are several key drivers behind this increase in profit.
First, total revenues were down slightly by about $6 million, mainly due to lower revenues at Fontis, which was primarily because Titania has been off contract and warm-stacked since Q1, late Q1, and lower day rates for the other four rigs. That impact was partly offset by the $12 million of additional revenues that was booked in Q3. That decline was almost entirely offset by strong revenue growth in Seagems, where revenues increased by 26%, or $39 million from last year, primarily driven by significantly improved day rates from rolling into new Petrobras contracts, as well as fewer off-hire days compared to last year. Operating costs were also $6 million lower year on year, reflecting reduced personnel and other costs at Fontis.
Remember that last year, the results included transaction costs related to the company's IPO and the issuance of the 2029 bonds, which are not present this year. Finally, financial expenses and other items were $22 million lower compared to last year, mainly due to the $30 million gain from the Archer sale, as mentioned, and the absence of a $35 million non-cash accounting charge related to the partial redemption of the 2026 notes recorded last year. This was partly offset by the inclusion of an upfront fee related to the receivables monetization agreement in Q1 this year to collect the $209 million of receivables. To summarize year-on-year results, the year-to-date results came strong despite having one idle rig since Q1. Now, moving on to page six, let me walk you through the main drivers of our cash flow this quarter.
At the Paratus consolidated level, we closed the Q3 with a cash balance of $118 million, which was up from $70 million at the end of Q2 2025. The main factors behind these movements were, first, we saw our working capital build-up in Mexico, as we had no significant collections from our client during the quarter in Mexico. However, this will reverse in Q4, as we have already collected in total $96 million during October and November this year, as disclosed in the report. Second, we spent about $2 million in CapEx related to Fontis, which was down from $4 million in Q2. We received cash distribution from Seagems of $58 million in Q3, which was significantly higher than in Q2 when we received $16 million. A second dividend from Archer of $1.3 million before the sale of the shares.
In addition, as Robert mentioned, we had cash proceeds of $48 million from the sale of Archer's stake in Q3. Net interest payments came to $4 million, which was much lower than the $28 million of interest paid in Q2. That is since that quarter reflected the semi-annual coupon on our 2029 bonds. Finally, we paid cash dividend of $36 million related to the Q2 2025 dividends. After these movements, we ended the quarter with $118 million in cash at the Paratus level. On top of that, our Paratus share of cash in the Seagems joint venture was $26 million, bringing the group cash position to $144 million at the end of Q3. This leaves us with a solid liquidity position going into Q4, and together with the recent collection from Mexico, that provides us with flexibility for both operations and capital allocations.
Turning to page seven, let's look at our capital structure and selected balance sheet items. As just mentioned, we closed the quarter with a balance of $144 million and a net debt of $659 million, resulting in a net leverage ratio of 2.6x EBITDA, which was unchanged from Q2. Our accounts receivable balance in Mexico increased to $293 million from Q2, which was driven by the revenues booked this quarter and the $12 million additional revenue booked in Q3 as well. Pro forma for the October-November collections of $96 million, the receivables balance would just be below $200 million. We remain, of course, actively engaged with the client to collect outstanding receivables, but as before, we continue to plan on the basis that delays may persist in the near to medium term.
That said, as Robert mentioned earlier, the recent collections and the ongoing government support initiatives give us great confidence that the payment cycle is beginning to normalize. With respect to the debt maturity next year relating to the 2026 notes, we continue to evaluate our options holistically and strategically, and we will communicate the plan for this well in advance of the maturity in July next year. Finally, after Q3, the company repurchased $17.6 million in principal amount of its 2026 notes, pursuant to a tender offer which was completed after this quarter. With that, I will hand over the word back to Robert.
Thank you, Baton. Before we hand over to Q&A, we would also want to provide a little bit of financial guidance, an update to what we issued earlier this year. Based on the results delivered in the first nine months, we are now happy to report that we expect 2025 revenue and EBITDA to exceed our previous guidance. We have therefore lifted our 2025 revenue guidance to between $445 million- $455 million, up from our previous guidance of $420 million- $450 million. We now expect EBITDA to come in between $250 million- $260 million, up from the initial range of $220 million- $240 million. For 2025, CapEx is expected to come in at the very low end of our guided range. With that, let's open up for Q&A.
Ladies and gentlemen, we will now take your questions. Just as a reminder, you can submit your questions by using the button on the bottom of the player.
Yep. Let's start with the first questions. What are your CapEx? Sorry. Any incoming from Petrobras as part of their attempts to cut costs or CapEx that might suggest Seagems contracts may be renegotiated?
Let's just make it very clear. Our contracts with Petrobras are not open for renegotiation. Any changes to the terms will need to be by mutual consent. We have also seen the reports in the market that Petrobras may look to reduce costs for 2026. The company, being Seagems, has not yet been approached. We expect there may be a discussion, but as I said, there is no obligation for us to accept anything. Peers or some peers have sort of committed to some type of blended extent on older contracts. The new Petrobras contracts are not open for that type of discussions. I think based on where we stand today with all our vessels on the new contracts, there is little that we can see that will be offered to us.
Obviously, we have a very good relationship with the client and will obviously entertain discussions, but I just want to stress that it needs to be by mutual consent. If there's a benefit to us in discussing the contracts, we will certainly entertain it.
When you say you seek strategic alternatives for the jack-up rigs, does this also include a complete fleet sale, M&A, and/or consolidation?
I think obviously we cannot sit on a call like this and discuss openly what options we are looking at. We provided some indications that there are ongoing discussions that we wanted the market to be aware of. We have said all along that we would like to develop Fontis as the structure today is probably subscale and too concentrated on one jurisdiction and client. We remain positive to consolidation in the industry and believe there is room for Fontis to play a part in that. For our part, I mean, we could remain involved in the space. We could be part of something larger. There's also an argument to be made that maybe we should look at further streamlining our portfolio of assets as we did when we disposed of our Archer shareholding.
We are evaluating various strategic alternatives, and we will see what is the best for all stakeholders of Paratus in the long run. I think that's all the commentary we can provide at this stage.
There's a question about contracts in Mexico. Do you expect the levels seen in recent contract extensions in Mexico around $130,000 per day? Is it representative for what you can achieve for your two larger jack-ups?
We're not going to speculate on day rate levels on a public conference call. We've said Fontis is in commercial discussion with its clients. We hope to conclude on this in the near term, and then we'll communicate that to the market. I think it's important to remember that Fontis, during the rough patch in late 2024 and into early 2025, was able to keep all of its rigs working. We're obviously also very focused on ensuring that we maintain good enough protection in our contracts in the event something like that were to happen again. There's more to a contract than just a day rate. We will update the market when we have something more concrete to say about the current ongoing commercial discussions.
Robert, when do you expect to conclude the review of the Fontis fleet offers?
As I said, we're currently reviewing. We've had several indications of interest in recent months. We are taking our time to review and see what is the best outcome for the company. I think hopefully we will be able to conclude something in the next, let's say, months. Obviously, we have the 2026 notes up for renewal or for refinancing in July next year. We know there's going to be more questions on this call relating to that as well. I think there's a holistic thinking around here. We need to review our strategic alternatives, decide on how we best position the company for the future, and then we will obviously cascade that into the refinancing or as we move into 2026.
There's a question around the collection that we have received recently. How is the process of receiving funds from Pemex through the government-established fund working? Is there any discount applied, or are all jack-ups eligible to use the system?
I can only speak on behalf of what we are seeing through Fontis. The payment is made by that government-established fund. We receive revenue or payments as it would have been through Pemex. There are no discounts involved. Other than receiving money from a different counterpart, it is as if we were receiving money from Pemex.
Given the lack of activity in terms of M&A investment activity since the IPO and beyond the Archer divestment, should shareholders still consider Paratus an investment company? If so, can you elaborate more on that?
Yeah. I mean, we still view ourselves as an industrial holding company. I think what we've said since we went public, we obviously inherited the assets that we had at the time of the IPO. We reviewed our holding in Archer and decided it was, as I said earlier on the call, there were no natural synergies across Archer and our two other operating entities. We still own Fontis and our stake in the joint venture. So I would still consider us a joint venture, a holding company, given that we have two different assets. As I said, we are reviewing opportunities for Fontis. I wouldn't say that if we end up disposing partly or wholly of that investment, I wouldn't say that it disqualifies us as a holding company by any means.
I think we are obviously looking at all times at how can we maximize the long-term value for our shareholders. If we decide one way or another, I do not think that really changes the dynamics of us being an investment company. Speculating what happens further out in time, I think let's just focus on what we have in front of us right now with the potential opportunities for Fontis, and then we will obviously come back and communicate to the market any strategy that may or may not have changed when we get into 2026.
Regarding the future, is there a price level on the actual commodity that, if reached, would begin to give you concerns on jeopardizing your 2026 and '27 expectations? Related to you folks, have any hedges in place if the commodity price declines to some extremely low level, such as the 2020 period?
We do not have any hedges in place, but obviously we are hedged in some way, particularly through the joint venture where we obviously have all vessels on long-term contracts. Our contract language is very strong and protective. No cancellation for convenience. Near-term fluctuations on commodity prices should not impact that company. When you look at Fontis, obviously we mentioned it before, and you can see that it's been discussed on the call. We have rigs rolling next year. I think the good thing about working for an astrological company, we see that their demand is more resilient than what we typically see from independents. Ultimately, I think we are in commercial discussions now, so we do not want to talk too much about our expectations going into 2026 or certainly not beyond that.
What are your CapEx expectations across Fontis and Seagems Q4? Does your guidance imply little to no spend in Q4? How much have you deferred to 2026?
In a capital-intensive business, there's also always some deferrals from one year to the next, but I think the level of CapEx being deferred from one year to the next is not out of the ordinary here or it wasn't last year. Within the CapEx guidance that we have disclosed to the market previously for both Fontis and the Seagems joint venture, that still holds. As for Q4, I think when you look at our guidance for $45 million in total, bear in mind that the year-to-date CapEx numbers that are presented for Seagems are on a 100% basis. When we provide CapEx guidance, that's on a 50% ownership basis. The number that you see on the slides need to be or need to account for that. You need to account for that.
There's a question again about Seagems. What Petrobras fields are the Seagems PLSVs primarily working at?
It's hard to say that they're on one field all the time. The way Petrobras handles its PLSV portfolio is that they have obviously a pool of vessels. We are one of the three suppliers into that pool, and the vessels will work on several fields throughout their contracts. I don't think we need or should go into the specific details of which fields they're working on at any point in time. I think if that's even disclosed, I think that's something you will need to look for at Petrobras documentations or presentations.
The remaining questions seem to be more like housekeeping questions and detailed. For the persons involved, you can rather contact me for answers, so I will respond to those separately.
Just to add to that, I think there were some questions about OpEx and CapEx assumptions. I think if you just look at our investor presentations, we have disclosed more or less everything required for modeling CapEx and OpEx, and those numbers still hold. I would just refer you to those assumptions.