Skip to main content

Operations

Crew’s operations are focused primarily in the Montney in Northeast British Columbia (“NEBC”), where we continue to execute on our strategy:

  • Develop our world-class Montney resource, which offers scale and repeatability
  • Control costs and generate high capital efficiencies
  • Maintain operatorship and high working interest
  • Conduct all of our activities responsibly with respect for the environment and the communities in which we operate and reside

Crew’s capital has primarily been focused on continued Montney development of our liquids rich natural gas area at Septimus / West Septimus (“Greater Septimus”), and our light oil weighted asset at Tower, BC. This development focus is designed to provide a platform for long term, profitable corporate growth, and further delineate Crew’s NEBC Montney resource. We will also be well positioned to begin the next phase of infrastructure construction required to support continued production growth from our Montney lands.

The Montney:

A World-Class Resource Play With Excellent Market Access

The Montney resource play is a very large, siltstone gas reservoir that is situated in the northeast corner of the province of British Columbia in western Canada and ranks among the top natural gas basins in the world.

>1000 ft thick

Montney formation that is predictable in size and thickness
World-Class Montney Resource Play
Westcoast Energy Pipeline
Alliance Pipeline (to Chicago)
TC Energy Pipeline System

Montney Operations

Our Montney area assets include Septimus / West Septimus, Tower, Groundbirch, Attachie, Oak/Flatrock and Portage and are situated in northeast British Columbia. Our operations include liquids rich natural gas and light oil production from the siltstone Montney formation.  At up to 300 metres thick, the Montney is developed with long-reach horizontal wells, completed with water-based fracture stimulations.

Crew holds a large, contiguous land base of over 264,000 net acres (>225,000 net undeveloped acres) in the Montney with condensate, light oil, liquids-rich natural gas & dry gas, and only 19% of our Upper Montney lands and less than 1% of our Lower Montney lands have been assigned reserves to the end of 2020.

264,600

net acres of Montney land held by Crew

>2,200

identified Montney drilling locations

19%

of land in Upper Montney, and <1% in Lower Montney have reserves booked
Reserves

2022 Reserves Highlights

The following is a summary of the independent reserve evaluation for the year ended December 31, 2022 as prepared by Sproule Associates Ltd. Please see Crew’s reserves press release issued on February 9, 2023 for further details.

Highlights of our PDP, 1P and 2P reserves from the Sproule Report are provided below. All finding, development and acquisition (“FD&A”) costs and finding and development (“F&D”) costs below include changes in future development capital (“FDC”) unless otherwise noted.

Crew’s two-year plan concluded at the end of 2022, and the successful execution of this plan is demonstrated by our year-end 2022 reserves. The updated reserves reflect strong additions to Proved Developed Producing (“PDP”) reserves along with meaningful increases in production levels, adjusted funds flow1 (“AFF”) and free AFF2 which were directed to debt repayment, resulting in significantly improved leverage metrics exiting 2022.

Crew’s 2022 reserves evaluation reflects the addition of 18.7 million boe of PDP reserves to total 88.6 million boe, representing an 8% increase year-over-year and a 27% increase when including the replacement of 2022 production volumes of 12.1 million boe. Crew also materially increased the before tax net present value discounted at 10% (“NPV10”) of our year-end 2022 PDP reserves by 46% to $985 million. The Company’s Q4/22 average production increased to 32,893 boe per day3, above guidance of 30,000 to 32,000 boe per day and an increase of 13% over the 29,142 boe per day3 in Q4/21, while reducing net debt1 by 63% over year-end 2021 to $150 million at year-end 20224.

Significant PDP Additions

Crew added 18.7 million boe of PDP reserves in 2022 to total 88.6 million boe, marking a record high for the Company and a 32% increase since commencing the two-year plan in January 2021. The additions were achieved with PDP F&D costs5,6 of $9.28 per boe and PDP FD&A costs5,6 of $2.34 per boe in 2022, resulting in recycle ratios5,6 of 3.5 and 14.0 times, respectively.

Materially Higher Before Tax NPV

Crew’s before tax NPV10 for year-end 2022 PDP reserves increased 46% to $985 million ($5.33 debt adjusted per share including $150 million of year-end net debt1,4, and before any value attributed to undeveloped reserves) compared to 2021 due to improved pricing and higher production. 1P and 2P before tax NPV10 increased 46% and 36% to $1.9 billion ($11.17 debt adjusted per share) and $3.0 billion ($18.19 debt adjusted per share) compared to year-end 2021, respectively, largely due to improved pricing, extensions on recent drilling, and enhanced capital efficiencies in the undeveloped reserve categories primarily as a result of increased well lengths.

1P and 2P Increased

Crew’s 1P and 2P reserves increased year-over-year to 210.9 mmboe and 374.0 mmboe, respectively, after taking into account the divestiture of Crew’s Attachie property in Q3/22. Throughout Crew’s two-year plan, the Company delineated new areas at Groundbirch South and Septimus North, and commenced new development in existing areas of Greater Septimus in the Upper Montney ‘C’ zone to position for additional development in the future. These new areas position Crew for longer term 1P and 2P reserve growth as additional facility capacity is established.

Excellent Recycle Ratios5,6,7 on 1P and 2P FD&A Costs

1P and 2P FD&A5,6 costs in 2022 were $8.45 per boe and $3.85 per boe, respectively, generating recycle ratios of 3.9 times for 1P FD&A5,6 and 8.5 times for 2P FD&A5,6. These results were boosted by the successful divestiture of Crew’s Attachie property which yielded gross proceeds of $130 million and, as of the Company’s year-end 2021 reserves report, included associated 1P and 2P reserves of 4.7 mmboe and 34.2 mmboe, respectively, as well as FDC of $25.7 million and $182.9 million, respectively.

1P and 2P F&D5,6 Costs

Crew’s 2022 1P and 2P F&D costs5,6 were $13.97 per boe and $15.35 per boe, respectively. These results are largely attributable to our successful capital program execution in 2022, notwithstanding the substantial inflation in goods and services experienced during the year.

Debt Adjusted Per Share Reserves Growth

Year-over-year PDP, 1P and 2P growth per share on a debt adjusted basis was 32%, 25% and 13%, respectively8

Growth in the Proved Developed Producing Category
  1. Capital management measure that does not have any standardized meaning as prescribed by International Financial Reporting Standards, and therefore, may not be comparable with the calculations of similar measures for other entities. See “Advisories – Non-IFRS and Other Financial Measures” contained within this webpage.
  2. Non-IFRS financial measure or ratio that does not have any standardized meaning as prescribed by International Financial Reporting Standards, and therefore, may not be comparable with calculations of similar measures or ratios for other entities. See “Advisories – Non-IFRS and Other Financial Measures” contained within this webpage and in our most recently filed MD&A, available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
  3. See table in the Advisories for production breakdown by product type as defined in NI 51-101.
  4. All 2022 financial amounts are unaudited. See “Advisories – Unaudited Financial Information”.
  5. “Finding, Development and Acquisitions costs” or “FD&A costs”, “Finding and Development costs” or “F&D costs”, “Reserves Replacement”, “Operating Netback” and “recycle ratio” do not have standardized meanings. See “Capital Program Efficiency” and “Advisories – Information Regarding Disclosure on Oil and Gas Reserves, and Operational Information”.
  6. The 2022 change in Future Development Capital (FDC) used in the calculation of Crew’s 1P and 2P F&D and FD&A costs does not include approximately $154 million (undiscounted) in the 1P case and $181 million (undiscounted) in the 2P case of maintenance capital that was reclassified as a capital expense in the December 31, 2021, Sproule Report and maintained the same classification in the December 31, 2022 Sproule Report.
  7. Estimated operating netback per boe in Q4 2022, used in the above calculations, averaged $32.64 per boe (unaudited). See ‘Advisories – Unaudited Financial Information’ and ‘Advisories – Information Regarding Disclosure on Oil and Gas Reserves and Operational Information’.
  8. Debt adjusted values are based on a 2022 year-end debt of $149.5 million using a year-end share price of $5.65 as at December 31, 2022. All 2022 financial amounts are unaudited. See “Advisories – Unaudited Financial Information”.

Crew’s full NI 51-101 Reserves Disclosure for year ended December 31, 2022 will be available within our 2022 Annual Information Form (and also available on SEDAR).