Note 11 - Related Party Transactions

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2023

Notes to Financial Statements

Related Party Transactions Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE 11. Related Party Transactions

Underwritten Equity Offering. In connection with the Company’s underwritten equity offering in July 2023, certain of the Company’s existing stockholders, John Paul DeJoria Family Trust and Jack Hightower, the Company’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and entities and individuals associated with them, purchased an aggregate of approximately 10 million shares of Common Stock in the offering at the public offering price per share. In connection therewith, the Underwriter received a reduced underwriting discount on such shares purchased by these person or entities compared with other shares sold to the public in the offering.

Water Treatment. In September 2021, the Company entered into a contract with Pilot Exploration, Inc., (“Pilot”), whose President and CEO was an outside director of the Company, to deploy Pilot’s proprietary water treatment technology in the Company’s Flat Top area to treat up to 25,000 barrels of produced water per day that can be reused in the Company’s completion operations or sold to third parties for their completion operations. This contract was set to expire on March 1, 2022; however, it was extended to October 1, 2022 based on the early results of the project. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company paid $2.0 million to Pilot for such services.

In May 2022, the Company entered into an agreement with Pilot to utilize Pilot’s proprietary water treatment technology in the Company’s Flat Top area to treat produced water such that it can be reused in the Company’s completion operations or sold to third parties for their completion operations. During the one-year term of the agreement, beginning on October 1, 2022, the Company agreed to a minimum volume commitment of 29.2 million barrels of produced water while maintaining the ability to bank excess produced water processed each month toward the minimum volume commitment. During the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company paid $1.5 million and $1.6 million, respectively, to Pilot for such services. In April 2023, the Company terminated the contract with Pilot in exchange for $6.5 million that was charged to other expense in the accompanying consolidated financial statements during the nine months ended September 30, 2023.