About Mikell Pigott
In a September 2023 interview, Vital Energy President and CEO Jason Pigott discussed the company's rebrand from Laro Petroleum to Vital Energy, which became effective that day. Pigott stated that the company had "really transformed" over the previous three and a half years under his leadership, including acquiring more acreage and drilling higher-quality wells. He said the rebrand was chosen because "what we do is vital to the world" and that the company is focused on providing energy "in the most sustainable way possible."
Pigott also highlighted operational improvements, noting that the company had embraced technology such as digital transformation and artificial intelligence. He said the company announced production that was 1,500 barrels per day higher than the higher end of its anticipated range, which he described as "a reflection of everything coming together." Strategically, Pigott said the company's priorities include increasing shareholder value, using free cash flow to pay down debt or repurchase shares, and pursuing acquisitions to create greater scale, stating that "you've got to be a larger scale in size to have a larger impact."
Source: AI-verified profile updated from Mikell Pigott's recent appearances.
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Transcript (10 segments)
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Judy Shaw0:00
I'm Judy Shaw for NYC Floor Talk joining me today is Jason Pigott. He is the president and CEO of Vital Energy. Jason, wonderful to have you here. Thanks for joining me today.
M
Mikell Pigott0:10
Thank you for having us today. It's a very exciting day.
J
Judy Shaw0:13
It is a very exciting day. So you have your rebrand which is effective today. You went from Laro Petroleum to Vital Energy. Tell me why the decision to rebrand.
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Mikell Pigott0:23
We've really transformed the company over the last three and a half years when I started as CEO. We've acquired more acreage, the wells we drill are higher quality than they were before, and we also really want to think about what we do as an industry and a company and what is our purpose. What we decided on is this rebrand to Vital Energy because what we do is vital to the world, and we're really focused on how do we energize human potential. Everything you do in your life, your phone, your computers, your house, all require energy, and so we want to provide that energy in the most sustainable way possible. This rebrand really reflects this change and pivot for us as the company.
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Judy Shaw1:01
All right, now based on the information you released last night, it looks like operations are hitting on all cylinders. So can you tell me about that?
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Mikell Pigott1:09
Yeah, so as part of what we're doing, we've embraced technology. We're using things like the digital transformation and artificial intelligence to impact our operations. This morning we announced that we were 1,500 barrels a day higher than anticipated, higher than the higher end of what we anticipated. I think it's really a reflection of everything coming together. Using technology, we've hired new people that are just knocking it out of the park. Our field is aligned with where we're going as a company, so all these things have really started to come together during this quarter.
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Judy Shaw1:43
All right, now what are your key drivers for 2023? What are you focused on strategically?
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Mikell Pigott1:47
The real things for us are to increase shareholder value. A lot of what we've done from where we were to where we are today, we were outspending our cash flow to today we're providing a lot of free cash flow. We're focused on using that to either pay down our debt or repurchase shares. So those are two of our big priorities. As I mentioned earlier, we've transformed the company by doing acquisitions and buying higher quality assets, so that's still a priority for us as well, to have a bigger company. When you talk about being Vital Energy, you've got to be a larger scale in size to have a larger impact, so that's a big driver for us this year as well, creating that scale.
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Judy Shaw2:28
All right, well sounds like an exciting 2023 for Vital. Congratulations on the rebrand and thank you for joining me today.
M
Mikell Pigott2:34
Well thank you for having us.
