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| MARPS > SEC Filings for MARPS > Form 10-Q on 12-May-2009 | All Recent SEC Filings |
12-May-2009
Quarterly Report
franchise or "margin" tax. The Trust does not believe that it is subject to the
franchise tax because at least 90% of its income is from passive sources. Please
see Marine's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2008
for further information. MPC is a taxable entity and pays state and Federal
taxes on its income. However, MPC's income specifically excludes 98% of oil and
natural gas royalties collected by MPC, which are retained by and delivered to
the Trust in respect of the Trust's net profits interest.
The Leases
Marine relies on public records for information regarding drilling
operations. The public records available up to the date of this report indicate
that there were fourteen new well completions made during the nine months ended
March 31, 2009 on leases in which Marine has an interest. Public records also
indicate that there were four wells in the process of being drilled and three
permits for wells to be drilled in the future.
Marine holds an overriding royalty interest equal to three-fourths of 1% of
the value at the well of any oil, natural gas, or other minerals produced and
sold from 58 leases covering 209,376 gross acres located in the Gulf of Mexico.
Marine's overriding royalty interest applies only to existing leases and does
not apply to any new leases that Chevron or Elf may acquire. The Trust also owns
a 32.6% interest in Tidelands. Tidelands has an overriding royalty interest in
five leases covering 22,948 gross acres located in the Gulf of Mexico. As a
result of this ownership, the Trust receives periodic distributions from
Tidelands.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
In accordance with SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 12:E, Financial
Statements of Royalty Trusts, Marine uses the modified cash basis method of
accounting. Under this accounting method, royalty income is recorded when
received, and distributions to unitholders are recorded when declared by the
Trustee of the Trust. Expenses of Marine (which include accounting, legal, and
other professional fees, trustees' fees and out-of-pocket expenses) are recorded
on an accrual basis. Marine also reports distributable income instead of net
income under the modified cash basis method of accounting. Cash reserves are
permitted to be established by the Trustee for certain contingencies that would
not be recorded under GAAP.
Marine did not have any changes in critical accounting policies or in
significant accounting estimates during the nine months ended March 31, 2009.
Please see Marine's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
June 30, 2008 for a detailed discussion of critical accounting policies.
General
During the nine months ended March 31, 2009, Marine realized 60% of its
royalty income from the sale of oil and 40% from the sale of natural gas,
excluding its interest in Tidelands. Royalty income consists of oil and natural
gas royalties received from producers.
Marine's royalty income is derived from the oil and natural gas production
activities of unrelated parties. Marine's royalty income fluctuates from period
to period based upon factors beyond Marine's control, including, without
limitation, the number of productive wells drilled and maintained on leases
subject to Marine's interest, the level of production over time from such wells
and the prices at which the oil and natural gas from such wells are sold.
Important aspects of Marine's operations are conducted by third parties.
Marine's royalty income is dependent on the operations of the working interest
owners of the leases on which Marine has an overriding royalty interest. The oil
and natural gas companies that lease tracts subject to Marine's interests are
responsible for the production and sale of oil and natural gas and the
calculation of royalty payments to Marine. The only obligation of the working
interest owners to Marine is to make monthly overriding royalty payments of
Marine's interest in the oil and natural gas sold. Marine's distributions are
processed and paid by American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC as the agent
for Marine.
The volume of oil and natural gas produced and its selling price are primary
factors in the calculation of overriding royalty payments. Production is
affected by the declining capability of the producing wells, the number
of new wells drilled and the number of existing wells re-worked and placed back
in production. Production from existing wells is anticipated to decrease in the
future due to normal well depletion. Marine has no input with the operators
regarding future drilling or re-working operations which could impact the oil
and natural gas production on the leases on which Marine has an overriding
royalty interest.
Hurricanes Gustav and Ike
In September 2008, Hurricanes Gustav and Ike hit the Gulf Coast, which
generally caused (i) a disruption of oil and natural gas production, (ii) damage
to offshore production platforms and (iii) damage to onshore oil and natural gas
pipeline facilities.
Because Marine is not the operator of the leases on which it has an
overriding royalty interest, Marine has received limited information regarding
the effects of the hurricanes on production. However, based on the limited
information that Marine has received from operators and from data from the
Minerals Management Service records and publications, Marine believes that all
significant leases in which Marine has an interest that experienced a disruption
in production, with the exception of Ship Shoal Block 154, were back on
production during the first quarter of 2009. Production volumes may be slow to
reach and may not reach the volumes realized before damage was caused by the
hurricanes. Production is expected to commence on Ship Shoal Block 154 when its
pipeline is able to take delivery of the oil produced on the lease; however,
Marine does not have information regarding when the pipeline will be able to
take delivery. The Minerals Management Service is a division of the U.S.
government.
In general, Marine receives royalties two months after oil production and
three months after natural gas production. The distribution to be paid in
June 2009 will generally be based on production in November and December of 2008
and January and February of 2009. At this time, Marine is unable to predict the
extent to which this distribution will be affected by the damage caused by the
hurricanes.
To Marine's knowledge, there were no platforms destroyed on the leases on
which Tidelands has an overriding royalty interest, and Marine has been advised
that the wells on these leases were generally only shut-in for a short period of
time. The revenue received from Marine's equity interest in Tidelands accounted
for approximately 67% of the distribution per unit paid in March 2009.
Summary of Operating Results
Distributable income for the nine months ended March 31, 2009 decreased
approximately 26% to $1.61 per unit as compared to $2.17 per unit for the
comparable period in 2008. For the nine months ended March 31, 2009, oil
production decreased 13,896 barrels and natural gas production decreased 84,534
thousand cubic feet (mcf) from the levels realized in the comparable period in
2008. For the nine months ended March 31, 2009, the average price realized for a
barrel of oil increased $39.20 over the price realized in the comparable period
in 2008 and the average price realized for an mcf of natural gas increased $2.23
over the price realized in the comparable period in 2008.
Distributions to unitholders amounted to $1.96 per unit for the nine months
ended March 31, 2009, a decrease of $0.22 per unit from the distributions for
the comparable period in 2008.
The following table presents the net production quantities of oil and natural
gas and distributable income and distributions per unit for the last five
quarters.
Net Production
Quantities(1)
Natural Distributable Distribution
Quarter Ended Oil (bbls) Gas (mcf) Income Per Unit Per Unit
March 31, 2008 9,458 58,251 $ 0.71 $ 0.65
June 30, 2008 9,049 57,014 $ 0.77 $ 0.75
September 30, 2008 6,972 41,078 $ 0.83 $ 0.77
December 31, 2008 3,573 28,385 $ 0.49 $ 0.89
March 31, 2009 2,130 28,473 $ 0.30 $ 0.30
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(1) Excludes the Trust's interest in Tidelands.
Results of Operations-Three Months Ended March 31, 2009 and 2008
Distributable income decreased 59% to $590,283 for the three months ended
March 31, 2009 from $1,423,529 realized for the comparable three months in 2008.
Marine believes that royalties were down for the three months ended March 31,
2009 due to the disruption in production caused by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
Excluding the Trust's interest in Tidelands, oil and gas production (barrels
of oil equivalent) in the three months ended March 31, 2009 decreased 64% from
the volumes realized in the quarter ended March 31, 2008, with a 77% decrease in
the production of oil and a 51% decrease in the production of natural gas.
Income from oil royalties, excluding the Trust's interest in Tidelands, for
the three months ended March 31, 2009 decreased 84% to $115,968 from $739,839
realized for the comparable three months in 2008. There was a 77% decrease in
production and a 30% decrease in the price realized.
Income from natural gas royalties, excluding the Trust's interest in
Tidelands, for the three months ended March 31, 2009 decreased 65% to $170,806
from $486,069 for the comparable three months in 2008. There was a 51% decrease
in production and a 28% decrease in the price realized.
Income from the Trust's interest in Tidelands increased approximately 37% for
the three months ended March 31, 2009 as compared to the comparable three months
of 2008. A natural gas well was completed in July 2008, resulting in increased
production for the three months ended March 31, 2009.
The following table presents the quantities of oil and natural gas sold and
the average price realized from current operations for the three months ended
March 31, 2009, and those realized in the comparable three months in 2008,
excluding the Trust's interest in Tidelands.
Three Months Ended March 31,
2009 2008
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) % Change
Oil
Barrels sold 2,130 9,458 (77 )%
Average price $ 54.45 $ 78.22 (30 )%
Natural gas
Mcf sold 28,473 58,251 (51 )%
Average price $ 6.00 $ 8.34 (28 )%
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General and administrative expenses decreased to $100,788 in the three months
ended March 31, 2009 from $106,299 in the prior year period, primarily due to
decreased professional fees and expenses.
Results of Operations-Nine Months Ended March 31, 2009 and 2008
Distributable income decreased 26% to $3,224,961 for the nine months ended
March 31, 2009 from $4,330,113 realized for the comparable nine months in 2008.
Marine believes that royalties were down for the nine months ended March 31,
2009 due to the disruption in production caused by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
Excluding the Trust's interest in Tidelands, oil and gas production (barrels
of oil equivalent) in the nine months ended March 31, 2009 decreased 49% from
the volumes realized in the comparable nine months in 2008, with a 52% decrease
in the production of oil and a 46% decrease in the production of natural gas.
Income from oil royalties, excluding the Trust's interest in Tidelands, for
the nine months ended March 31, 2009 decreased 29% to $1,501,668 from $2,106,373
realized for the comparable nine months in 2008. There was a 52% decrease in
production and a 49% increase in the price realized.
Income from natural gas royalties, excluding the Trust's interest in
Tidelands, for the nine months ended March 31, 2009 decreased 31% to $986,354
from $1,429,860 for the comparable nine months in 2008. There was a 46% decrease
in production and a 28% increase in the price realized.
Income from the Trust's interest in Tidelands increased approximately 3% for
the nine months ended March 31, 2009 as compared to the comparable nine months
of 2008, primarily due to increased natural gas production and a small increase
in the average price of natural gas. The production of oil and the average price
of oil were down for the nine months ended March 31, 2009.
The following table presents the quantities of oil and natural gas sold and
the average price realized from current operations for the nine months ended
March 31, 2009, and those realized in the comparable nine months in 2008,
excluding the Trust's interest in Tidelands.
Nine Months Ended March 31,
2009 2008
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) % Change
Oil
Barrels sold 12,675 26,571 (52 )%
Average price $ 118.47 $ 79.27 49 %
Natural gas
Mcf sold 97,936 182,470 (46 )%
Average price $ 10.07 $ 7.84 28 %
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General and administrative expenses increased to $303,930 in the nine months
ended March 31, 2009 from $249,392 in the prior year period, primarily due to
increased professional fees and expenses related to the accounting change
discussed in Marine's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
June 30, 2008.
Forward-Looking Statements
The statements discussed in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q regarding
Marine's future financial performance and results, and other statements that are
not historical facts, are forward-looking statements as defined in Section 27A
of the Securities Act of 1933. This report uses the words "may," "expect,"
"anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "continue," "intend," "plan," "budget," or
other similar words to identify forward-looking statements. You should read
statements that contain these words carefully because they discuss future
expectations, contain projections of Marine's financial condition, and/or state
other "forward-looking" information. Actual results may differ from expected
results because of: reductions in price or demand for oil and natural gas, which
might then lead to decreased production; reductions in production due to the
depletion of existing wells or disruptions in service, which may be caused by
storm damage to production facilities, blowouts or other production accidents,
or geological changes such as cratering of productive formations; and the
expiration or release of leases subject to Marine's interests. Additional risks
are set forth in Marine's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended
December 31, 2008. Events may occur in the future that Marine is unable to
accurately predict or over which it has no control. If one or more of these
uncertainties materialize, or if underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual
outcomes may vary materially from those forward-looking statements included in
this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Website
Marine has an Internet website and has made available its Annual Reports on
Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and
amendments to such reports, filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or
15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, at
www.marps-marinepetroleumtrust.com. Each of these reports will be posted on this
website as soon as reasonably practicable after such report is electronically
filed with or furnished to the SEC.
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