0001537058-18-000003.txt : 20180209 0001537058-18-000003.hdr.sgml : 20180209 20180209170945 ACCESSION NUMBER: 0001537058-18-000003 CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE: 8-K PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT: 2 CONFORMED PERIOD OF REPORT: 20180209 ITEM INFORMATION: Results of Operations and Financial Condition ITEM INFORMATION: Financial Statements and Exhibits FILED AS OF DATE: 20180209 DATE AS OF CHANGE: 20180209 FILER: COMPANY DATA: COMPANY CONFORMED NAME: Whiting USA Trust II CENTRAL INDEX KEY: 0001537058 STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION: CRUDE PETROLEUM & NATURAL GAS [1311] IRS NUMBER: 387012326 STATE OF INCORPORATION: DE FISCAL YEAR END: 1231 FILING VALUES: FORM TYPE: 8-K SEC ACT: 1934 Act SEC FILE NUMBER: 001-35459 FILM NUMBER: 18592831 BUSINESS ADDRESS: STREET 1: 919 CONGRESS AVENUE, SUITE 500 CITY: AUSTIN STATE: TX ZIP: 78701 BUSINESS PHONE: 512-236-6599 MAIL ADDRESS: STREET 1: 919 CONGRESS AVENUE, SUITE 500 CITY: AUSTIN STATE: TX ZIP: 78701 8-K 1 whzt-20180209x8k.htm FORM 8-K 8-K

 





























 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K



CURRENT REPORT



Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934



Date of report (Date of earliest event reported): February 9, 2018

WHITING USA TRUST II

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)





 

 

 

 

Delaware

 

001-35459

 

38‑7012326

(State or other jurisdiction of

 

(Commission

 

(I.R.S. Employer

incorporation)

 

File Number)

 

Identification No.)



 

 

 

 

The Bank of New York Mellon

 

 

 

 

Trust Company, N.A., Trustee

 

 

 

 

Global Corporate Trust

 

 

 

 

601 Travis Street,  16th Floor

 

 

 

 

Houston, Texas

 

 

 

77002

(Address of principal executive offices)

 

 

 

(Zip Code)





 

 



(512) 236-6599

 



(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 





 

 



919 Congress Avenue, Suite 500

Austin, Texas 78701

 



(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

 



Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):





 

Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 C.F.R. §230.425)

Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a12 under the Exchange Act (17 C.F.R. §240.14a12)

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 C.F.R. §240.14d2(b))

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 C.F.R. §240.13e4(c))

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter. Emerging Growth Company

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. 






 



ITEM 2.02Results of Operations and Financial Condition.



Attached as Exhibit 99.1 is a press release issued on behalf of the Registrant.  The information furnished is not deemed "filed" for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is not subject to the liabilities of that section and is not deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.



ITEM 9.01.  Financial Statements and Exhibits.





 

 

 

(a)

Financial Statements of Business Acquired. Not applicable.

(b)

Pro Forma Financial Information. Not applicable.

(c)

Shell Company Transactions. Not applicable.

(d)

Exhibits. The exhibit listed in the Exhibit Index below is filed as part of this report.




 



 

 

Exhibit Index

 

 



 

 

Exhibit Number

 

Description



 

 

99.1

 

Press Release dated February 9, 2018.



 

 



 

 



 


 

SIGNATURES



Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.





 

 

 

 



 

Whiting USA Trust II



 

 



By:

The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A.,



 

as Trustee



 

 



By:

/s/ Mike Ulrich



 

Mike Ulrich



 

Vice President

Date: November 6, 2017

 

 

Date: February 9, 2018


EX-99.1 2 whzt-20180209xex99_1.htm PRESS RELEASE OF WHITING USA TRUST II EX-991

Exhibit 99.1



 

WHITING USA TRUST II

The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., as Trustee



 

News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



 



Whiting USA Trust II Announces Trust Quarterly DISTRIBUTION



Houston, Texas, February 9,  2018 –  Whiting USA Trust  II  (OTC Symbol – WHZT) announced today that the Trust will make a distribution to unitholders in the first quarter of 2018, which relates to net profits generated during the fourth quarterly payment period of 2017. Unitholders of record on February 19, 2018 will receive a distribution of $0.171231 per unit, which is payable on or before March 1, 2018 (the “February 2018 distribution”).



As of the date of this press release, 99.9% of the Trust’s total 18,400,000 units outstanding were held by Cede & Co. (The Depository Trust Corporation’s nominee) as the official unitholder of record. The effective record date of February 19, 2018 for this distribution is only applicable to unitholders of record such as Cede & Co., and the ex-date, as set by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc., or FINRA, actually determines which street name holders will be eligible to receive the February 2018 distribution. 



Sales volumes, net profits and selected performance metrics for the quarterly payment period were:





 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

Sales volumes:

 

 

 

 

Oil (Bbl)(1) 

 

 

246,782 

 

Natural gas (Mcf)

 

 

333,921 

 

Total (BOE)(2)

 

 

302,436 

 

Gross proceeds:

 

 

 

 

Oil sales(1)

 

$

12,066,925 

 

Natural gas sales

 

 

1,129,346 

 

Total gross proceeds(2)

 

$

13,196,271 

 

Costs:

 

 

 

 

Lease operating expenses

 

$

7,844,216 

 

Production taxes

 

 

709,059 

 

Development costs

 

 

970,366 

 

Cash settlements on commodity derivatives(3)

 

 

 -

 

Total costs

 

$

9,523,641 

 

Net profits

 

$

3,672,630 

 

Percentage allocable to Trust’s Net Profits Interest

 

 

90 

%

Total cash available for the Trust

 

$

3,305,367 

 

Provision for estimated Trust expenses

 

 

(150,000)

 

Montana state income taxes withheld

 

 

(4,715)

 

Net cash proceeds available for distribution

 

$

3,150,652 

 

Trust units outstanding

 

 

18,400,000 

 

Cash distribution per Trust unit

 

$

0.171231 

 

Selected performance metrics:

 

 

 

 

Crude oil average realized price (per Bbl)(1)

 

$

48.90 

 

Natural gas average realized price (per Mcf)(4)

 

$

3.38 

 

Lease operating expenses (per BOE)

 

$

25.94 

 

Production tax rate (percent of total gross proceeds)

 

 

5.4 

%

__________

(1)

Oil includes natural gas liquids.

(2)

The February 2018 distribution includes production of 21,099 BOE attributable to the first two Keystone South farm-out wells, which production generated gross proceeds of $1.0 million during the fourth quarterly payment period of 2017.

 


 

 

(3)

All costless collar hedge contracts terminated as of December 31, 2014, and no additional hedges are allowed to be placed on Trust assets.  Consequently, there are no further cash settlements on commodity hedges for inclusion in the Trust’s computation of net profits (or net losses, as the case may be), and the Trust has increased exposure to oil and natural gas price volatility.

(4)

The average sales price of natural gas for the gas production months within the distribution period exceeded the average NYMEX gas prices for those same months within the period due to the “liquids-rich” content of a portion of the natural gas volumes produced by the underlying properties.



The Trust’s net profits interest (“NPI”), which is the only asset of the Trust other than cash reserves held for future Trust expenses, represents the right to receive 90% of the net proceeds from Whiting Petroleum Corporation’s interests in certain existing oil and natural gas properties located primarily in the Rocky Mountains, Permian Basin, Gulf Coast and Mid-Continent regions of the United States.



Trust Termination

The Trust will wind up its affairs and terminate shortly after the earlier of (a) the NPI termination date or (b) the sale of the net profits interest. The NPI termination date is the later to occur of (1) December 31, 2021, or (2) the time when 11.79 MMBOE (10.61 MMBOE to the 90% net profits interest) have been produced from the underlying properties and sold, which is estimated to be December 31, 2021 based on the Trust’s year-end 2017 reserve report. After the termination of the Trust, it will pay no further distributions.



The market price of the Trust units will decline to zero at the termination of the Trust, which will occur around or shortly after the termination or sale of the net profits interest. As described in the Trust’s public filings, since the assets of the Trust are depleting assets, a portion of each cash distribution paid on the Trust units, if any, should be considered by investors as a return of capital, with the remainder being considered as a return on investment.



Net Profits Interest Overview

As of December 31, 2017, on a cumulative accrual basis, 7.95 MMBOE (75%) of the Trust’s total 10.61 MMBOE have been produced and sold or divested. Based on the Trust’s reserve report for the underlying properties as of December 31, 2017, the Trust’s 10.61 MMBOE are projected to be produced by December 31, 2021, shortly after which the Trust would terminate. The 2017 year-end reserve report reflects expected annualized production decline rates of approximately 13.3% for oil and 25.9% for gas between 2018 and 2021, which estimates are derived from NYMEX oil and gas prices of $51.34 per Bbl and $2.98 per MMbtu as calculated pursuant to current SEC and FASB guidelines. As of January  31, 2018, the NYMEX oil and gas prices were $64.73 per Bbl and $3.00 per MMBtu, respectively. 



Although oil and gas prices have stabilized since the lows experienced during the 2016 distribution periods, oil and gas prices historically have been volatile and may fluctuate widely in the future.  As a result of the low commodity prices experienced during 2016, the Trust did not have sufficient available funds to make any distributions to unitholders during the first three calendar quarters of 2016, and the NPI generated relatively low distributable income for the fourth quarter of 2016. Additionally, in the current commodity price environment, the Trust’s distributions have increased sensitivity to fluctuations in operating and capital expenditures, as was the case for the third quarterly payment period of 2017 which resulted in a cash distribution of approximately $0.01 per Trust unit. If the NPI generates net losses or limited net proceeds, the net profits interest may not provide sufficient funds to the Trustee to enable it to pay all of the Trust’s administrative expenses.



The Trust is unable to predict future commodity prices. Lower commodity prices are likely to cause a reduction in the amount of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids that is economic to produce from the underlying properties, which may in turn extend the length of time required to produce the Trust’s 10.61 MMBOE. Alternatively, higher commodity prices may potentially result in an increase in the amount of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids that is economic to produce from the underlying properties, however, higher prices could result in increases in costs of materials, services and personnel. Furthermore, cash distributions to unitholders may decline at a faster rate than the rate of production due to industry-specific risks and uncertainties such as (i) oil and gas price declines, (ii) fixed and semi-variable costs not decreasing as fast as production volumes, (iii) expected future development being delayed, reduced or cancelled or (iv) increased operating or capital expenditures for non-operated properties that are outside the control of Whiting or the Trust.



Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including all statements made in this press release other than statements of historical fact.  No assurances can be given that such statements will prove to be correct. The estimated time when the Trust will terminate is based on the Trust’s reserve report of the underlying properties as of December 31, 2017 and is subject to the assumptions contained therein. Additionally, the estimated time when the market price of the Trust units should decline to zero is based on the economic rights of the Trust units. The trading price of the Trust units is

2


 

 

affected by factors outside of the control of the Trust or Whiting, including actions of market participants, among others. Other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include expenses of the Trust, fluctuations in oil and natural gas prices, uncertainty of estimates of oil and natural gas reserves and production, uncertainty as to the timing of any such production, risks inherent in the operation, production and development of oil and gas properties, and future production and development costs.  Statements made in this press release are qualified by the cautionary statements made in this press release. The Trustee does not intend, and assumes no obligation, to update any of the statements included in this press release. 





 

Contact:

Whiting USA Trust II



The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., as Trustee



Mike Ulrich



(512) 236-6599



601 Travis Street, 16th Floor, Houston, TX 77002



http://WhitingWHZ.investorhq.businesswire.com/



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