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DAWSON GEOPHYSICAL COMPANY

FORM 10-K

For the Year Ended December 31, 2022

DISCLOSURE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Form 10-K that relate to forecasts, estimates or other expectations regarding future events, including without limitation, statements under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Business” regarding technological advancements and our financial position, business strategy, and plans and objectives of our management for future operations, may be deemed to be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). When used in this Form 10-K, words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend” and similar expressions, as they relate to us or our management, identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of our management, as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors. These risks include, but are not limited to, the Company’s status as a controlled public company, which exempts the Company from certain corporate governance requirements; the limited market for the Company’s shares, which could result in the delisting of the Company’s shares from Nasdaq and the Company no longer being required to make filings with the SEC; the impact of general economic, industry, market or political conditions; dependence upon energy industry spending; changes in exploration and production spending by our customers and changes in the level of oil and natural gas exploration and development; the results of operations and financial condition of our customers, particularly during extended periods of low prices for crude oil and natural gas; the volatility of oil and natural gas prices; changes in economic conditions; the severity and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, related economic repercussions and the resulting impact on demand for oil and gas; surplus in the supply of oil and the ability of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, collectively known as OPEC+, to agree on and comply with supply limitations; the duration and magnitude of the unprecedented disruption in the oil and gas industry currently resulting from the impact of the foregoing factors, which is negatively impacting our business; the potential for contract delays; reductions or cancellations of service contracts; limited number of customers; credit risk related to our customers; reduced utilization; high fixed costs of operations and high capital requirements; operational challenges relating to the COVID-19 pandemic and efforts to mitigate the spread of the virus, including logistical challenges, protecting the health and well-being of our employees and remote work arrangements; industry competition; external factors affecting the Company’s crews such as weather interruptions and inability to obtain land access rights of way; whether the Company enters into turnkey or day rate contracts; crew productivity; the availability of capital resources; disruptions in the global economy, including export controls and financial and economic sanctions imposed on certain industry sectors and parties as a result of the developments in Ukraine and related activities, and whether or not a future transaction or other action occurs that causes the Company to be delisted from Nasdaq and no longer be required to make filings with the SEC. The cautionary statements made in this Form 10-K should be read as applying to all related forward-looking statements wherever they appear in this Form 10-K. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by this paragraph. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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nine directors, we could, by resolution of the Board of Directors, stagger the directors’ terms, and our directors could not be removed without approval of holders of 80% of our issued and outstanding shares. These provisions could discourage or impede a tender offer, proxy contest or other similar transaction involving control of us.

In addition, our Board of Directors has the right to issue preferred stock upon such terms and conditions as it deems to be in our best interest. The terms of such preferred stock may adversely impact the dividend and liquidation rights of our common shareholders without the approval of our common shareholders.

We may be subject to liability claims that are not covered by our insurance.

Our business is subject to the general risks inherent in land-based seismic data acquisition activities. Our activities are often conducted in remote areas under dangerous conditions, including the detonation of dynamite. These operations are subject to risk of injury to personnel and damage to equipment. Our crews are mobile, and equipment and personnel are subject to vehicular accidents. These risks could cause us to experience equipment losses, injuries to our personnel, and interruptions in our business.

In addition, we could be subject to personal injury or real property damage claims in the normal operation of our business. Such claims may not be covered under the indemnification provisions contained in our general service agreements to the extent that the damage is due to our negligence or intentional misconduct.

Our general service agreements require us to have specific amounts of insurance. However, we do not carry insurance against certain risks that could cause losses, including business interruption resulting from equipment maintenance or weather delays. Further, there can be no assurance, however, that any insurance obtained by us will be adequate to cover all losses or liabilities or that this insurance will continue to be available or available on terms which are acceptable to us. Liabilities for which we are not insured, or which exceed the policy limits of our applicable insurance, could have a materially adverse effect on us.

We may be held liable for the actions of our subcontractors.

We often work as the general contractor on seismic data acquisition surveys and, consequently, engage a number of subcontractors to perform services and provide products. While we obtain contractual indemnification and insurance covering the acts of these subcontractors and require the subcontractors to obtain insurance for our benefit, we could be held liable for the actions of these subcontractors. In addition, subcontractors may cause injury to our personnel or damage to our property that is not fully covered by insurance.

We operate under hazardous conditions that subject us to risk of damage to property or personnel injuries and may interrupt our business.

Our business is subject to the general risks inherent in land-based seismic data acquisition activities. Our activities are often conducted in remote areas under extreme weather and other dangerous conditions, including the use of dynamite as an energy source. These operations are subject to risk of injury to our personnel and third parties and damage to our equipment and improvements in the areas in which we operate. In addition, our crews often operate in areas where the risk of wildfires is present and may be increased by our activities. Since our crews are mobile, equipment and personnel are subject to vehicular accidents. We use diesel fuel which is classified by the U.S. Department of Transportation as a hazardous material. These risks could cause us to experience equipment losses, injuries to our personnel and interruptions in our business. Delays due to operational disruptions such as equipment losses, personnel injuries and business interruptions could adversely affect our profitability and results of operations.

Loss of our information and computer systems could adversely affect our business.

We are heavily dependent on our information systems and computer-based programs, including our seismic information, electronic data processing and accounting data. If any of such programs or systems were to fail or create erroneous information in our hardware or software network infrastructure, or if we were subject to cyberspace breaches or attacks, possible consequences include our loss of communication links, loss of seismic data and inability to automatically process commercial transactions or engage in similar automated or computerized business activities. Any such consequence could have a material adverse effect on our business.

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Our business could be negatively impacted by security threats, including cyber-security threats and other disruptions.

We face various security threats, including cyber-security threats to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information or to render data or systems unusable, threats to the safety of our employees, threats to the security of our facilities and infrastructure, and threats from terrorist acts. Cyber-security attacks in particular are evolving and include, but are not limited to, malicious software, attempts to gain unauthorized access to data and other electronic security breaches that could lead to disruptions in critical systems, unauthorized release of confidential or otherwise protected information and corruption of data. Although we utilize various procedures and controls to monitor and protect against these threats and to mitigate our exposure to such threats, there can be no assurance that these procedures and controls will be sufficient in preventing security threats from materializing. If any of these events were to materialize, they could lead to losses of sensitive information, critical infrastructure, personnel or capabilities essential to our operations and could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Our business is subject to government regulation, which may adversely affect our future operations.

Our operations are subject to a variety of federal, state, provincial and local laws and regulations, including laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment and archeological sites and those that may result from climate change legislation or executive orders that could negatively impact the exploration and production of oil and gas. Canadian operations have been historically cyclical due to governmental restrictions on seismic acquisition during certain periods. As a result, there is a risk that there will be a significant amount of unused equipment during those periods. We are required to expend financial and managerial resources to comply with such laws and related permit requirements in our operations, and we anticipate that we will continue to be required to do so in the future. Although such expenditures historically have not been material to us, the fact that such laws or regulations change frequently makes it impossible for us to predict the cost or impact of such laws and regulations on our future operations. The adoption of laws and regulations that have the effect of reducing or curtailing exploration and development activities by energy companies could also adversely affect our operations by reducing the demand for our services.

Current and future legislation or regulation relating to climate change could negatively affect the exploration and production of oil and gas and adversely affect demand for our services.

In response to concerns suggesting that emissions of certain gases, commonly referred to as “greenhouse gases” (“GHG”) (including carbon dioxide and methane), may be contributing to global climate change, legislative and regulatory measures to address the concerns are in various phases of discussion or implementation at the national and state levels. Many states, either individually or through multi-state regional initiatives, have already taken legal measures intended to reduce GHG emissions, primarily through the planned development of GHG emission inventories and/or GHG cap and trade programs. Although various climate change legislative measures have periodically been introduced in the U.S. Congress, and there has been a wide-ranging policy debate both in the U.S. and internationally regarding the impact of these gases and possible means for their regulation, it is not possible at this time to predict whether or when Congress may act on climate change legislation. However, future actions that require substantial reductions in carbon emissions could be costly and difficult to implement.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (the “EPA”) has promulgated a series of regulations that require monitoring and reporting of GHG emissions on an annual basis from certain sources, including some in the oil and gas industry. While these rules do not control GHG emission levels from any facilities, they can cause covered facilities to incur monitoring and reporting costs. Moreover, lawsuits have been filed seeking to require individual companies to reduce GHG emissions from their operations. These and other lawsuits relating to GHG emissions may result in decisions by state and federal courts and agencies that could impact our operations.

In addition, the U.S. was actively involved in the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Paris, which led to the creation of the Paris Agreement. In April 2016, the U.S. signed the Paris Agreement, which requires countries to review and “represent a progression” in their nationally determined contributions, which set emissions reduction goals, every five years. In November 2020, the U.S. officially withdrew from the Paris Agreement. However, on January 20, 2021, President Biden signed an “Acceptance on Behalf of the United States of America” that will allow the U.S. to rejoin the Paris Agreement. The acceptance, deposited with the United Nations on January 20, reverses the prior withdrawal. The U.S. officially rejoined the Paris Agreement on February 19, 2021. The Paris Agreement requires countries to review and “represent a progression” in their nationally determined contributions, which set emissions reduction goals, every five years beginning in 2020. As part of rejoining the Paris Agreement, President Biden announced that the U.S. would commit

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to a 50 to 52 percent reduction from 2005 levels of GHG emissions by 2030 and set the goal of reaching net-zero GHG emissions by 2050. In addition, shortly after taking office in January 2021, President Biden issued a series of executive orders designed to address climate change. For example, the Executive Order on “Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis” sought to adopt new regulations and policies to address climate change and suspend, revise, or rescind, prior agency actions that were identified as conflicting with the Biden Administration’s climate policies. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has proposed strict new methane emission regulations for certain oil and gas facilities and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 establishes a charge on methane emissions above certain limits from the same facilities. Additional legislation or regulation by states and regions, the EPA, and/or any international agreements to which the U.S. may become a party that control or limit GHG emissions or otherwise seek to address climate change could adversely affect our operations.

The increasing governmental focus on GHG emissions may result in new environmental laws or regulations that may negatively affect us, our suppliers and our clients. This could cause us to incur additional direct costs in complying with any new environmental regulations, as well as increased indirect costs resulting from our clients, suppliers or both incurring additional compliance costs that get passed on to us. Moreover, passage of climate change legislation, other federal or state legislative or regulatory initiatives, or international agreements that regulate or restrict emissions of GHG may curtail production and demand for fossil fuels such as oil and gas in areas where our clients operate and, thus, adversely affect future demand for our services. Reductions in our revenues or increases in our expenses as a result of climate control initiatives could have adverse effects on our business, financial position, results of operations and cash flows.

In addition, activists concerned about the potential effects of climate change have directed their attention at sources of funding for fossil-fuel energy companies, which has resulted in certain financial institutions, funds and other sources of capital restricting or eliminating their investment in oil and natural gas activities. Ultimately, this could make it more difficult to secure funding for exploration and production activities, which may have an adverse impact on the demand for our services.

New regulation or legislation that limits or prohibits hydraulic fracturing could negatively affect the exploration and production of oil and gas and adversely affect demand for our services.

Hydraulic fracturing is an important and commonly used process in the completion of oil and gas wells. Hydraulic fracturing involves the injection of water, sand and chemical additives under pressure into rock formations to stimulate gas production. Several political and regulatory authorities and governmental bodies have studied hydraulic fracturing and considered potential regulations, and certain environmental and other groups have devoted resources to campaigns aimed at restricting or eradicating hydraulic fracturing.

Due to public concerns raised regarding potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on groundwater quality, legislative and regulatory efforts at the federal level and in some states have been initiated to require or make more stringent the permitting and compliance requirements for hydraulic fracturing operations. Several states have adopted more stringent permitting, public disclosure or well construction legislation and/or regulations. Three states (New York, Maryland and Vermont) have banned the use of high-volume hydraulic fracturing. In addition to state laws, some local municipalities have adopted or are considering adopting land use restrictions, such as city ordinances, that may restrict or prohibit the performance of well drilling in general or hydraulic fracturing in particular. There have also been certain governmental reviews that focus on deep shale and other formation completion and production practices, including hydraulic fracturing.  Governments may continue to study hydraulic fracturing. We cannot predict the outcome of future studies, but based on the results of these studies to date, federal and state legislatures and agencies may seek to further regulate or even ban hydraulic fracturing activities. These regulatory initiatives could each spur further action toward federal and/or state legislation and regulation of hydraulic fracturing activities. Additional regulation could materially reduce our business opportunities and revenues if our customers decrease their levels of activity in response to such regulation.

Some parties also believe that there is a correlation between hydraulic fracturing and other oilfield related activities and the increased occurrence of seismic activity. When caused by human activity, such seismic activity is called induced seismicity. The extent of this correlation, if any, is the subject of studies of both state and federal agencies. In addition, a number of lawsuits have been filed against other industry participants alleging damages and regulatory violations in connection with such activity. These and other ongoing or proposed studies could spur initiatives to further regulate hydraulic fracturing and other aspects of the oil and gas industry. In light of concerns about induced seismicity, some state regulatory agencies have already modified their regulations or issued orders to address induced seismicity.

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The adoption of any future federal, state, foreign, regional or local laws that impact permitting requirements for, result in reporting obligations on, or otherwise limit or ban, the hydraulic fracturing process could make it more difficult to perform hydraulic fracturing. This could reduce demand for our services. Regulation that significantly restricts or prohibits hydraulic fracturing, or that requires hydraulic fracturing operations to meet permitting and financial assurance requirements, adhere to certain construction specifications, fulfill monitoring, reporting, and recordkeeping obligations, and meet plugging and abandonment requirements, could have a material adverse impact on our business. Additionally, legislation that requires the reporting and public disclosure of chemicals used in the fracturing process could make it easier for third parties opposing the hydraulic fracturing process to initiate legal proceedings based on allegations that specific chemicals used in the fracturing process could adversely affect groundwater.

These legislative and regulatory initiatives imposing additional reporting obligations on, or otherwise limiting, the hydraulic fracturing process could make it more difficult or costly to complete natural gas wells. Shale gas cannot be economically produced without extensive fracturing. In the event such legislation is enacted, demand for our seismic acquisition services may be adversely affected.

Item 1B.12. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

Item 2.  PROPERTIES

Our headquarters are located in a 34,570 square foot leased property in Midland, Texas. We have two properties in Midland that we own, including a 61,402 square foot property we use as a field office, equipment and fabrication facility, and maintenance and repair shop, along with a 6,600 square foot property that we use as an inventory field office and storage facility.

We also have additional offices in two other cities in Texas: Houston and Plano. Our Houston sales office is in an 8,161 square foot facility. Our office in Plano, Texas consists of 5,181 square feet of office space.

We lease a 2,630 square foot facility in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma as a sales office.

We lease a 15,020 square foot facility in Calgary, Alberta consisting of office, warehouse and shop space.

We believe that our existing facilities are being appropriately utilized in line with past experience and are well maintained, suitable for their intended use, and adequate to meet our current and future operating requirements.

Item 3.  LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

For a discussion of certain contingencies and legal proceedings affecting the Company, please refer to “Note 16, Commitments and Contingencies” to the Consolidated Financial Statements incorporated by reference herein.

Item 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

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current fact are forward-looking statements that involve risk and uncertainties, such as statements of our plans, business strategy, objectives, expectations and intentions. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Please see “Business,” “Disclosure Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” elsewhere in this Form 10-K.

You should read this discussion in conjunction with the financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this Form 10-K. Unless the context requires otherwise, all references in this Item 7 to the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our” refer to Dawson Geophysical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries.

Overview

We are a leading provider of North American onshore seismic data acquisition services with operations throughout the continental U.S. and Canada. Substantially all of our revenues are derived from the seismic data acquisition services we provide to our clients. Our clients consist of major oil and gas companies, independent oil and gas operators, and providers of multi-client data libraries. Demand for our services depends upon the level of spending by these companies for exploration, production, development and field management activities, which depends, in large part, on oil and natural gas prices. Significant fluctuations in domestic oil and natural gas exploration and development activities related to commodity prices, as we have recently experienced, have affected, and will continue to affect, demand for our services and our results of operations, and such fluctuations continue to be the single most important factor affecting our business and results of operations.

We began the fourth quarter with three small to mid-sized channel count crews operating in the lower 48 in October and dropped to one mid-size crew intermittently in November and a large channel count crew in late December. Project timing was, and continues to be, impacted by delays in securing necessary land access agreements on behalf of our clients. Activity in Canada began earlier than in recent seasons with up to three small channel count crews operating in the back half of the fourth quarter and continuing to operate today.

For the full year, we experienced low utilization rates, particularly during the second and third quarters of 2022 as demand for seismic services remained at historically low levels in North America. Bid activity and client discussions improved in the third and fourth quarter and activity levels improved in the fourth quarter. Visibility continues to improve into 2023 as does project timing related to land access agreements and project readiness.

First quarter 2023 activity in the lower 48 began with a large channel count crew operating on a project that began late in the fourth quarter of 2022. After completion of that project in January, the operation of a mid-size channel count crew began in February. We are currently operating two mid-sized crews, one of which began operations in early March. Based on currently available information and discussion with our clients, we believe we will continue operation of two mid-sized crews into the third quarter of 2023. Client discussions continued to increase early in 2023 and we believe demand for our services is sufficient to maintain one to two mid-sized crews well into the second half of 2023. In Canada, we are currently operating four crews of increased capacity from the fourth quarter of 2022 and anticipate operating all four crews through the remainder of the Canadian season which typically ends in late March or early April.

While our revenues are mainly affected by the level of client demand for our services, our revenues are also affected by the pricing for our services that we negotiate with our clients and the productivity and utilization level of our data acquisition crews. Factors impacting productivity and utilization levels include client demand, commodity prices, whether we enter into turnkey or dayrate contracts with our clients, the number and size of crews, the number of recording channels per crew, crew downtime related to inclement weather, delays in acquiring land access permits, agricultural or hunting activity, holiday schedules, short winter days, crew repositioning and equipment failure. To the extent we experience these factors, our operating results may be affected from quarter to quarter. Consequently, our efforts to negotiate more favorable contract terms in our supplemental service agreements, mitigate permit access delays and improve overall crew productivity may contribute to growth in our revenues.

The majority of our revenues were derived from turnkey contracts for the years ending December 31, 2022 and 2021. While turnkey contracts allow us to capitalize on improved crew productivity, we also bear more risks related to weather and crew downtime. We expect the majority of our contracts to be turnkey as we continue our operations in the mid-continent, western and southwestern regions of the U.S. in which turnkey contracts are more common.

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Over time, we have experienced continued increases in recording channel capacity on a per-crew or project basis and high utilization of cableless and multicomponent equipment. This increase in channel count demand is driven by client needs and is necessary in order to produce higher resolution images, increase crew efficiencies and undertake larger scale projects. In response to project-based channel requirements, we routinely deploy a variable number of channels on a variable number of crews in an effort to maximize asset utilization and meet client needs.

While the markets for oil and natural gas have been very volatile and are likely to continue to be so in the future, and we can make no assurances as to future levels of domestic exploration or commodity prices, we believe opportunities exist for us to enhance our market position by responding to our clients’ continuing desire for higher resolution subsurface images.

Results of Operations

Year Ended December 31, 2022 versus Year Ended December 31, 2021

Operating Revenues. Operating revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $37,480,000 compared to $24,695,000 for the same period of 2021. The increase in revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the same period of 2021 was primarily a result of increased demand for our services.

Operating Expenses. Operating expenses for the year ended December 31, 2022 increased to $37,910,000 compared to $29,016,000 for the same period of 2021. The increase in operating expenses was mainly due to an overall increase in crew production and utilization.

General and Administrative Expenses. General and administrative expenses were 36.8% of revenues in the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to 48.8% of revenues in the same period of 2021 primarily due to the increase in operating revenues discussed above. General and administrative expenses increased to $13,785,000 during the year ended December 31, 2022 from $12,046,000 during the same period of 2021. The primary factors for the increase in general and administrative expenses are related to increases in professional fees and accounting charges in 2022. We anticipate general and administrative charges for 2023 to be similar to those in 2022.

Depreciation Expense. Depreciation for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $9,795,000 compared to $12,863,000 for the same period of 2021. The decrease in depreciation expense is a result of limiting capital expenditures to necessary maintenance capital requirements in recent years. Our depreciation expense is expected to remain flat or decline slightly during 2023 primarily due to limited capital expenditures to maintain our existing asset base.

Our total operating costs for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $61,490,000, representing a 14.0% increase from the corresponding period of 2021. This change was primarily due to the factors described above.

Other Income (Expense). Under the provisions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“the CARES Act”) and its subsequent amendments, we were eligible and, in April 2022, we applied for a refundable employee retention credit subject to program conditions and requirements. We recognize these credits as a gain when all uncertainties have been met and the amounts are realizable in accordance with similar gain contingencies. We recognized $2,966,000 as a gain in other income and $69,000 as interest income on the Consolidated Statement of Operations and Comprehensive Loss for the year ended December 31, 2022 and recognized $3,035,000 as an employee retention credit receivable in the Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2022. Payments were received in January 2023. No additional credits are expected to be received.

Income Taxes. Income tax expense was $107,000 for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to income tax benefit of $26,000 for the same period of 2021. The effective tax expense/benefit rates for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 were approximately -0.5% and 0.1%, respectively. Our effective tax rate decreased compared to the corresponding period from the prior year primarily due to a change in the valuation allowance on a portion of the NOL’s due to an Internal Revenue Code section 382 limitation. Our effective tax rates differ from the statutory federal rate of 21% for certain items such as state and local taxes, valuation allowances, and non-deductible expenses.

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Use of EBITDA (Non-GAAP measure)

We define EBITDA as net income (loss) plus interest expense, interest income, income taxes, and depreciation and amortization expense. Our management uses EBITDA as a supplemental financial measure to assess:

We also understand that such data are used by investors to assess our performance. However, the term EBITDA is not defined under generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), and EBITDA is not a measure of operating income, operating performance or liquidity presented in accordance with GAAP. When assessing our operating performance or liquidity, investors and others should not consider this data in isolation or as a substitute for net income (loss), cash flow from operating activities or other cash flow data calculated in accordance with GAAP. In addition, our EBITDA may not be comparable to EBITDA or similarly titled measures utilized by other companies since such other companies may not calculate EBITDA in the same manner as us. Further, the results presented by EBITDA cannot be achieved without incurring the costs that the measure excludes: interest, taxes, and depreciation and amortization.

The reconciliation of our EBITDA to our net loss and net cash used in operating activities, which are the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, are provided in the following tables (in thousands):

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Liquidity and Capital Resources

Introduction. Our principal sources of cash are amounts earned from the seismic data acquisition services we provide to our clients. Our principal uses of cash are the amounts used to provide these services, including expenses related to our operations and acquiring new equipment. Accordingly, our cash position depends (as do our revenues) on the level of demand for our services. Historically, cash generated from our operations along with cash reserves and borrowings from commercial banks have been sufficient to fund our working capital requirements and, to some extent, our capital expenditures.

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Cash Flows. The following table shows our sources and uses of cash (in thousands) for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021:

Year Ended December 31, 2022 versus Year Ended December 31, 2021

Net cash used in operating activities was $8,961,000 for the year ended December 31, 2022 and $16,050,000 for the same period of 2021. The decrease in cash used in operating activities was primarily due to a decreased net loss combined with an increase in our operating level of deferred revenue offset by increases in contract assets and other prepaid expenses as of December 31, 2022. The gain from employee retention credit is offset by the increase in employee retention credit receivable.

Net cash used in investing activities was $669,000 for the year ended December 31, 2022 and includes cash capital expenditures of $894,000 offset by $225,000 in proceeds from the disposal of assets. Net cash provided by investing activities was $264,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021 and includes $318,000 of proceeds from maturities of short-term investments that were not reinvested and $451,000 in proceeds from the disposal of assets offset by cash capital expenditures of $505,000.

Net cash used in financing activities was $1,567,000 for the year ended December 31, 2022 and includes principal payments of $1,253,000 on our notes and $47,000 on our finance leases and outflows of $301,000 associated with cash settlement of restricted stock units and $79,000 associated with taxes related to stock compensation awards vesting offset by $113,000 received for sale of treasury stock. Net cash provided by financing activities was $95,000 for the year ended December 31, 2021 and includes $787,000 of proceeds from notes payable offset by principal payments of $562,000 on our notes and $55,000 on our finance leases and outflows of $75,000 associated with taxes related to stock compensation awards vesting.

We continually strive to supply our clients with technologically advanced 3-D data acquisition recording services and data processing capabilities. We maintain equipment in and out of service in anticipation of increased future demand for our services.

Capital Resources. Historically, we have primarily relied on cash generated from operations, cash reserves and borrowings from commercial banks to fund our working capital requirements and, to some extent, our capital expenditures. Recently, we have funded some of our capital expenditures through finance leases and equipment term loans. From time to time in the past, we have also funded our capital expenditures and other financing needs through public equity offerings. We believe that our capital resources, including our cash and short-term investments, cash flow from operations, and funds available under our Revolving Credit Facility are sufficient to meet our operational needs.

Dominion Credit Facility. On September 30, 2019, we entered into a Loan and Security Agreement with Dominion Bank, a Texas state bank (“Dominion Bank”). On September 30, 2022, we entered into a Third Loan Modification Agreement (the “Third Modification”) to the Loan and Security Agreement (as amended by (i) that certain Loan Modification Agreement dated as of September 30, 2020, (ii) that certain Second Loan Modification Agreement dated as of September 30, 2021, and (iii) the Third Modification, the “Loan Agreement”) for the purpose of (a) amending and extending the maturity of our line of credit with Dominion Bank by one year and (b) amending the principal amount under the Loan Agreement, (c) amending the interest rate under the Loan Agreement, (d) amending our obligation to maintain a certain tangible net worth and (e) adding our obligation to maintain a minimum liquidity amount. The Loan Agreement provides for a secured revolving credit facility (the “Revolving Credit Facility”) in an amount up to the lesser of (i) $10,000,000 or (ii) a sum equal to (a) 80% of our eligible accounts receivable plus (b) 100% of the amount on deposit with Dominion Bank in our collateral account, including a restricted IntraFi Network Deposit account of $5,000,000 (the “Deposit”). As of December 31, 2022, we have not borrowed any amounts under the Revolving Credit Facility and have

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approximately $9,017,000 available for withdrawal.

Under the Revolving Credit Facility, interest will accrue at an annual rate equal to the lesser of (i) 7.75% and (ii) the greater of (a) the prime rate as published from time to time in The Wall Street Journal or (b) 4.75%. We will pay a commitment fee of 0.10% per annum on the difference of (a) $10,000,000 minus the Deposit minus (b) the daily average usage of the Revolving Credit Facility. The Loan Agreement contains customary covenants for credit facilities of this type, including limitations on disposition of assets. We are also obligated to meet certain financial covenants under the Loan Agreement, including maintaining a tangible net worth of not less than $38,000,000 and, to be tested as of the end of each calendar quarter, unencumbered liquid assets of not less than $5,000,000, and specified ratios with respect to current assets and liabilities and debt to tangible net worth. We received a limited waiver from Dominion Bank with respect to any non-compliance with the tangible net worth covenant for the period ended December 31, 2022. Our obligations under the Loan Agreement are secured by a security interest in the collateral account (including the Deposit) with Dominion Bank and future accounts receivable and related collateral. The maturity date of the Loan Agreement is September 30, 2023.

We do not currently have any notes payable under the Revolving Credit Facility.

Dominion Letters of Credit. As of December 31, 2022, Dominion Bank has issued one letter of credit in the amount of $265,000 to support our workers compensation insurance. The letter of credit is secured by a certificate of deposit with Dominion Bank.

Other Indebtedness. As of December 31, 2022, we have one note payable to a finance company for various insurance premiums totaling $205,000.

In addition, we lease certain seismic recording equipment and vehicles under leases classified as finance leases. Our Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2022 includes finance leases of $277,000.

Contractual Obligations. We believe that our capital resources, including our short-term investments, cash flow from operations, and funds available under our Revolving Credit Facility, will be adequate to meet our current operational needs. We believe that we will be able to finance our 2023 capital expenditures through cash flow from operations, borrowings from commercial lenders, and the funds available under our Revolving Credit Facility. However, our ability to satisfy working capital requirements, meet debt repayment obligations, and fund future capital requirements will depend principally upon our future operating performance, which is subject to the risks inherent in our business, and will also depend on the extent to which the current economic climate adversely affects the ability of our customers, and/or potential customers, to promptly pay amounts owing to us under their service contracts with us.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of December 31, 2022, we had no off-balance sheet arrangements.

Critical Accounting Policies

The preparation of our financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires that certain assumptions and estimates be made that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of our financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Because of the use of assumptions and estimates inherent in the reporting process, actual results could differ from those estimates.

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts. Our allowance for doubtful accounts reflects our current estimate of credit losses expected to be incurred over the life of the financial instrument and is determined based on a number of factors. We prepare our allowance for doubtful accounts receivable based on our review of past-due accounts, our past experience of historical write-offs, our current client base, when customer accounts exceed 90 days past due and specific customer account reviews. While the collectability of outstanding client invoices is continually assessed, the inherent volatility of the energy industry’s business cycle can cause swift and unpredictable changes in the financial stability of our clients. With the adoption of ASU 2016-13 in 2020, we made an accounting policy election to write off accrued interest amounts by reversing interest income. Our allowance for doubtful accounts was $250,000 at December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets. We review long-lived assets for impairment when triggering events occur suggesting deterioration in the assets’ recoverability or fair value. Recognition of an impairment charge is required if future

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expected undiscounted net cash flows are insufficient to recover the carrying value of the assets, and the fair value of the assets is below the carrying value of the assets. Our forecast of future cash flows used to perform impairment analysis includes estimates of future revenues and expenses based on our anticipated future results while considering anticipated future oil and gas prices, which is fundamental in assessing demand for our services. If the carrying amounts of the assets exceed the estimated expected undiscounted future cash flows, we measure the amount of possible impairment by comparing the carrying amount of the asset to its fair value. No impairment charges were recognized for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Leases. We lease certain vehicles, seismic recording equipment, real property and office equipment under lease agreements. We evaluate each lease to determine its appropriate classification as an operating lease or a finance lease for financial reporting purposes. We are the lessee in a lease contract when we obtain the right to control the asset. The majority of our operating leases are non-cancelable operating leases for office, shop and warehouse space in Midland, Plano, Houston, Oklahoma City and Calgary, Alberta.

The assets and liabilities under finance leases are recorded at the lower of the present value of the minimum lease payments or the fair market value of the related assets. Assets under finance leases are amortized using the straight-line method over the initial lease term. Amortization of assets under finance leases is included in depreciation expense.

For operating leases, where readily determinable, we use the implicit interest rate in determining the present value of future minimum lease payments. In the absence of an implicit rate, we use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the lease commencement date. We give consideration to our outstanding debt, as well as publicly available data for instruments with similar characteristics when calculating our incremental borrowing rates. The ROU assets are amortized to operating lease cost over the lease terms on a straight-line basis. We do not recognize leases with an initial term of 12 months or less and we do not separate lease and non-lease components.

Several of our leases include options to renew, with renewal terms that can extend from one to 10 years or more. The exercise of lease renewal options is primarily at our discretion. To measure operating lease recognition, we evaluate our lease agreements to determine if they have economic incentives for renewal or options to purchase. We deem leasehold improvements as one of the few economic incentives that would entice us to renew a lease and all of our leasehold improvements are currently fully amortized.

Revenue Recognition. Our services are provided under cancelable service contracts which usually have an original expected duration of one year or less. These contracts are either turnkey or term agreements. Under both types of agreements, we recognize revenue as the services are performed. Revenue is generally recognized based on square miles of data recorded compared to total square miles anticipated to be recorded on the survey using the total estimated revenue for the service contract. In the case of a cancelled service contract, the client is billed and revenue is recognized for any third party charges and square miles of data recorded up to the date of cancellation.

We also receive reimbursements for certain out-of-pocket expenses under the terms of the service contracts. The amounts billed to clients are included at their gross amount in the total estimated revenue for the service contract.

Clients are billed as permitted by the service contract. Contract assets and contract liabilities are the result of timing differences between revenue recognition, billings and cash collections. If billing occurs prior to the revenue recognition or billing exceeds the revenue recognized, the amount is considered deferred revenue and a contract liability. Conversely, if the revenue recognition exceeds the billing, the excess is considered an unbilled receivable and a contract asset. As services are performed, those contract liabilities and contract assets are recognized as revenue and expense, respectively.

In some instances, third-party permitting, surveying, drilling, helicopter, equipment rental and mobilization costs that directly relate to the contract are utilized to fulfill the contract obligations. These fulfillment costs are capitalized in other current assets and amortized based on the total square miles of data recorded compared to total square miles anticipated to be recorded on the survey using the total estimated fulfillment costs for the service contract.

Estimates for total revenue and total fulfillment cost on any service contract are based on certain qualitative and quantitative judgments supported by underlying facts. Management considers a variety of factors such as whether various components of the performance obligation will be performed internally or externally, cost of third party services, and facts and circumstances unique to the performance obligation in making these estimates.

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Additionally, our policy includes (i) ignoring the financing component when estimating the transaction price for service contracts completed within one year, (ii) excluding sales tax collected from the customer when determining the transaction price, and (iii) expensing incremental costs to obtain a customer contract if the amortization period for those costs would otherwise be one year or less.

Income Taxes. We account for income taxes by recognizing amounts of taxes payable or refundable for the current year, and by using an asset and liability approach in recognizing the amount of deferred tax assets and liabilities for the future tax consequences of events that have been recognized in our financial statements or tax returns. We determine deferred taxes by identifying the types and amounts of existing temporary differences, measuring the total deferred tax asset or liability using the applicable tax rate in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect of a change in tax rates of deferred tax assets and liabilities is recognized in income in the year of an enacted rate change. The deferred tax asset is reduced by a valuation allowance if, based on available evidence, it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. Our methodology for recording income taxes requires judgment regarding assumptions and the use of estimates, including determining our annual effective tax rate and the valuation of deferred tax assets, which can create a variance between actual results and estimates and could have a material impact on our provision or benefit for income taxes. Due to recent operating losses and valuation allowances, we may recognize reduced or no tax benefits on future losses on the Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss. Our effective tax rates differ from the statutory federal rate of 21% for certain items such as state and local taxes, valuation allowances, and non-deductible expenses.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

None.

Item 7A.  QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

We are exposed to certain market risks arising from the use of financial instruments in the ordinary course of business. These risks arise primarily as a result of potential changes to operating concentration of credit risk and changes in interest rates. We have not entered into any hedge arrangements, commodity swap agreements, commodity futures, options or other derivative financial instruments. We also conduct business in Canada, which subjects our results of operations and cash flows to foreign currency exchange rate risk.

Concentration of Credit Risk. Our principal market risks include fluctuations in commodity prices, which affect demand for and pricing of our services, and the risk related to the concentration of our clients in the oil and natural gas industry. Since all of our clients are involved in the oil and natural gas industry, there may be a positive or negative effect on our exposure to credit risk because our clients may be similarly affected by changes in economic and industry conditions. As an example, changes to existing regulations or the adoption of new regulations may unfavorably impact us, our suppliers or our clients. In the normal course of business, we provide credit terms to our clients. Accordingly, we perform ongoing credit evaluations of our clients and maintain allowances for possible losses. Our historical experience supports our allowance for doubtful accounts of $250,000 at December 31, 2022. This does not necessarily indicate that it would be adequate to cover a payment default by one large or several smaller clients.

We generally provide services to certain key clients that account for a significant percentage of our accounts receivable at any given time. Our key clients vary over time. We extend credit to various companies in the oil and natural gas industry, including our key clients, for the acquisition of seismic data, which results in a concentration of credit risk. This concentration of credit risk may be affected by changes in the economic or other conditions of our key clients and may accordingly impact our overall credit risk. If any of these significant clients were to terminate their contracts or fail to contract for our services in the future because they are acquired, alter their exploration or development strategy, or for any other reason, our results of operations could be affected. Because of the nature of our contracts and clients’ projects, our largest clients can change from year to year, and the largest clients in any year may not be indicative of the largest clients in any subsequent year. During the twelve months ended December 31, 2022, our three largest clients accounted for approximately 35% of revenue. The remaining balance of our revenue derived from varied clients and none represented more than 10% of revenue.

Interest Rate Risk. From time to time, we are exposed to the impact of interest rate changes on the outstanding indebtedness under our Loan Agreement.

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We generally have cash in the bank which exceeds federally insured limits. Historically, we have not experienced any losses in such accounts; however, volatility in financial markets may impact our credit risk on cash and short-term investments. At December 31, 2022, cash, restricted cash and short term investments totaled $19,179,000.

For further information, see “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors.”

Item 8.  FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

The information required by this item appears on pages F-1 through F-21 hereof and are incorporated herein by reference.

Item 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

None.

Item 9A.  CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Management’s Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

We carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our principal executive, financial and accounting officers, of the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures pursuant to Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based upon that evaluation, our President and Chief Executive Officer, and our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Secretary, and Treasurer concluded that, as of December 31, 2022, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective, in all material respects, with regard to the recording, processing, summarizing and reporting, within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, for information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act. Our disclosure controls and procedures include controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our President and Chief Executive Officer, and our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Secretary, and Treasurer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Our internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP. Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. Under the supervision and with the participation of management, including our President and Chief Executive Officer, and Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Secretary, and Treasurer, we evaluated the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022 using the criteria set forth in Internal Control — Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework). Based on this evaluation, we have concluded that, as of December 31, 2022, our internal control over financial reporting was effective. Our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022 has not been audited by RSM US LLP, the independent registered public accounting firm who audited our financial statements as this audit is not required because the company qualifies for smaller reporting company filing status.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There have not been any changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act) during the quarter ended December 31, 2022 that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect our internal control over financial reporting.