Baytex Energy Corp (BTEGF) Q1 2022 Earnings Conference Call April 29, 2022 11:00 AM ET

Company Participants

Brian Ector - VP, Capital Markets

Edward LaFehr - President, CEO & Director

Rodney Gray - EVP & CFO

Conference Call Participants

Patrick O'Rourke - ATB Capital Markets

Eric Nuttall - Ninepoint Partners

Joshua Young - Bison Interests

Jeremy McCrea - Raymond James

Operator

Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to the Baytex Energy Corp. First Quarter 2022 Financial and Operating Results Conference Call. [Operator Instructions].

I would now like to turn the conference over to Brian Ector, Vice President, Capital Markets. Please go ahead.

Brian Ector

Thank you, Shareese. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for joining us to discuss our first quarter 2022 financial and operating results. Today, I am joined by Ed LaFehr, our President and Chief Executive Officer; Rod Gray, our Executive VP and Chief Financial Officer; and Chad Lundberg, our Chief Operating and Sustainability Officer.

While listening, please keep in mind that some of our remarks will contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. I refer you to the advisories regarding forward-looking statements, oil and gas information and non-GAAP financial and capital management measures in yesterday's press release. All dollar amounts referenced in our remarks today are in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise specified. And with that, I would now like to turn the call over to Ed.

Edward LaFehr

Thanks, Brian, and good morning, everyone. I'd like to welcome everybody to our first quarter 2022 conference call. During the first quarter, we remained focused on capital discipline, generating free cash flow and reducing debt. We delivered strong operating and financial results with production of almost 81,000 BOEs per day, free cash flow of $121 million and a 10% reduction in our net debt to $1.28 billion. I'm very pleased to announce that given the strength of our balance sheet and consistent with our desire to offer direct shareholder returns, the Board of Directors has approved the filing of a normal course issuer bid application with the Toronto Stock Exchange for a share buyback program of up to 56 million common shares, representing 10% of our public float.

We expect to commence the buyback program in May, which is consistent with the shareholder return framework we discussed last quarter. These are exciting times for Baytex. In addition to the share buyback announcement, we have a number of positive developments to share with you today. First is the success of our Clearwater development at Peavine, second is our increased 2022 guidance, and third is the update we've made to our 5-year plan.