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Three Months Ended September 30, 2004 Compared to Three Months Ended September 30, 2003 Revenues. Our natural gas and NGL revenues are associated with our acquisition of Spectrum on July 16, 2004. These revenues reflect two and one half months of operations in the current year period and as a result, we expect these revenues will increase in the fourth quarter of 2004. Our transportation and compression revenues are associated with our Appalachia operations. These revenue increased to $4.7 million in the three months ended September 30, 2004 from $4.2 million in the three months ended September 30, 2003. The increase of $502,000 (12%) resulted from an increase in the average transportation rate paid to us ($526,000) partially offset by a decrease in the volumes of natural gas we transported ($24,000). Our average daily throughput volumes in Appalachia were 54,337 mcf in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to 54,609 mcf in the three months ended September 30, 2003, a decrease of 272 mcf. During the three months and twelve months ended September 30, 2004, we added 72 and 337 new wells to our system, respectively. Although production volumes have been added from new wells, overall production for the three months ended September 30, 2004 has declined due to the following factors. Of the above well connections, Atlas America drilled and connected 61 wells during the twelve months ended September 30, 2004 in an area of operation that produces predominately oil. In addition, the decrease in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to the prior year period includes a decrease resulting from normal recurring adjustments of estimated accruals. Our average transportation rate in Appalachia was $.93 per mcf in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $.83 per mcf in the three months ended September 30, 2003, an increase of $.10 per mcf (12%). In the third quarter of 2004, natural gas prices were higher than those of the prior year period. Since our transportation rates are generally at fixed percentages of the sales price of the natural gas we transport, the higher prices resulted in an increase in our average transportation rate. Costs and Expenses. Our natural gas and NGLs and plant operating expenses are associated with our acquisition of Spectrum on July 16, 2004. These costs reflect two and one half months of operations in the current year period and as a result, we expect they will increase in the fourth quarter of 2004. Our transportation and compression expenses in Appalachia decreased to $564,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $607,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2003, a decrease of $43,000 (7%). Our average cost per mcf for transportation and compression was $.11 in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $.12 in the three months ended September 30, 2003. This decrease primarily resulted from a decrease in compressor lease payments as a result of our decision to purchase the majority of the compressors we had previously leased. Our general and administrative expenses increased to $1.7 million in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $435,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2003, an increase of $1.3 million. This increase includes $484,000 of general and administrative expenses associated with Spectrum which we acquired on July 16, 2004. In addition, allocations of compensation and benefits from Atlas America and its affiliates increased $197,000 during the current year period due to an increase in management time spent on our acquisition and public offering. Additionally, the expensing of phantom units issued under the our Long-Term Incentive Plan and the related distributions on those units increased general and administrative expense by $346,700. In accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, the fair value of phantom units is amortized over the vesting period of these units and the related distributions are recognized in expense as declared. The remainder of the increase for the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to the prior year period was the result of higher professional fees primarily associated with the implementation of Sarbannes-Oxley.
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Our depreciation and amortization expense increased to $1.0 in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $438,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2003, an increase of $584,000. This increase resulted from our acquisition of Spectrum. We anticipate that our depreciation will increase in the remainder of 2004. Our interest expense increased to $1.1 million in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $50,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2003. This resulted from increased borrowings in the three months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to the same period in 2003. In July 2004, we borrowed $100.0 million to partially fund our acquisition of Spectrum. Subsequently in July 2004, we repaid $40.0 million of these borrowings upon the completion of our public offering. Our interest expense in the three months ended September 30, 2003 consisted of commitment fees on amounts not drawn on our credit facility and amortization of our debt issuance costs. Our terminated acquisition costs are related to the acquisition of Alaska Pipeline Company, which was purportedly terminated in July 2004. These costs consist primarily of legal and professional fees. In September 2003, we entered into an agreement with SEMCO to purchase all of the stock of Alaska Pipeline Company. In order to complete the acquisition, we needed the approval of the Regulatory Commission of Alaska. The Regulatory Commission initially approved the transaction, but on June 4, 2004 it vacated its order of approval based upon a motion for clarification or reconsideration filed by SEMCO. On July 1, 2004, SEMCO sent us a notice purporting to terminate the transaction. We believe SEMCO caused the delay in closing the transaction and breached its obligations under the acquisition agreement. We are currently pursuing our remedies under the acquisition agreement. In connection with the acquisition, subsequent termination and current legal action, we incurred $3.0 million of costs, which are shown as terminated acquisition costs on our income statement. Nine Months Ended September 30, 2004 Compared to Nine Months Ended September 30, 2003 Revenues. Our natural gas and NGL revenues are associated with our acquisition of Spectrum on July 16, 2004. Our transportation and compression revenues increased to $13.3 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 from $11.8 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2003. The increase of $1.5 million (13%) resulted from an increase in the average transportation fee paid to us ($1.6 million) partially offset by a decrease in the volumes of natural gas we transported ($52,400). Our average daily throughput volumes in Appalachia were 52,745 mcf in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to 53,146 mcf in the nine months ended September 30, 2003, a decrease of 401 mcf (1%). During the nine months and twelve months ended September 30, 2004, we added 264 and 337 new wells to our system, respectively. Although production volumes have been added from new wells, overall production for the nine months ended September 30, 2004 has declined due to the following factors. Of the above well connections, Atlas America drilled and connected 61 wells during the twelve months ended September 30, 2004 in an area of operation that produces predominately oil. The decrease in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to the prior year period also includes a decrease resulting from normal recurring adjustments of estimated accruals. In addition, in February 2004, a third party producer that had been connected to our Fayette County, Pennsylvania system constructed it own gathering system, resulting in a loss in throughput volumes.
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Our average transportation rate in Appalachia was $.92 per mcf in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $.81 per mcf in the nine months ended September 30, 2003, an increase of $.11 per mcf (14%). During the nine months ended September 30, 2004, natural gas prices increased over the prior year period. Since our transportation rates are generally at fixed percentages of the sales price of the natural gas we transport, the higher prices resulted in an increase in our average transportation rate. Costs and Expenses. Our natural gas and liquids and plant operating expenses are associated with our acquisition of Spectrum on July 16, 2004. Our transportation and compression expenses in Appalachia decreased to $1.7 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $1.8 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2003, a decrease of $122,000 (7%). Our average cost per mcf for transportation and compression was $.13 in both the nine months ended September 30, 2004 and September 30, 2003. Our general and administrative expenses increased to $2.9 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $1.3 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2003, an increase of $1.6 million. This increase includes $484,000 of general and administrative expenses associated with Spectrum which we acquired on July 16, 2004. In addition, allocations of compensation and benefits from Atlas America and its affiliates increased $221,000 due to an increase in management time spent on our acquisition and public offerings. Additionally, the expensing of phantom units issued under the our Long-Term Incentive Plan and the related distributions on those units increased general and administrative expense by $419,000. Also, an increase of $268,000 resulted from costs associated with the implementation of Sarbannes-Oxley and the preparation and filing of two tax returns for 2003. The filing of two tax returns was a result of our general partner’s percentage interest in us being reduced below 50% as a result of our offering of common units in May 2003, requiring a change in our tax year-end from September 30th to December 31st which necessitated the filing of an additional short year tax return. This expense is non-recurring. Our depreciation and amortization expense increased to $2.1 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $1.3 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2003, an increase of $866,000. This increase resulted from the acquisition of Spectrum ($613,000), and our increased asset base associated with pipeline extensions and the upgrade of compressors and compressor stations. We anticipate that our depreciation will increase in the remainder of 2004 as a result of both these factors. Our interest expense increased to $1.2 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to $212,000 in the nine months ended September 30, 2003. This increase of $990,000 resulted from increased borrowings in the nine months ended September 30, 2004 as compared to the same period in 2003. In July 2004, we borrowed $100.0 million to partially fund our acquisition of Spectrum. Subsequently, in July 2004, we repaid $40.0 million of these borrowings upon the completion of our public offering. Our interest expense in the nine months ended September 30, 2003 consisted of fees on our outstanding borrowings, commitment fees on amounts not drawn on our credit facility and amortization of our debt issuance costs.
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Our terminated acquisition costs are related to the acquisition of Alaska Pipeline Company, which was purportedly terminated in July 2004. These costs consist primarily of legal and professional fees. In September 2003, we entered into an agreement with SEMCO to purchase all of the stock of Alaska Pipeline Company. In order to complete the acquisition, we needed the approval of the Regulatory Commission of Alaska. The Regulatory Commission initially approved the transaction, but on June 4, 2004 it vacated its order of approval based upon a motion for clarification or reconsideration filed by SEMCO. On July 1, 2004, SEMCO sent us a notice purporting to terminate the transaction. We believe SEMCO caused the delay in closing the transaction and breached its obligations under the acquisition agreement. We are currently pursuing our remedies under the acquisition agreement. In connection with the acquisition, subsequent termination and current legal action, we incurred $3.0 million of costs, which are shown as terminated acquisition costs on our income statement. Liquidity and Capital Resources Our primary cash requirements, in addition to normal operating expenses, are for debt service, maintenance capital expenditures, expansion capital expenditures and quarterly distributions to our unitholders and general partner. In addition to cash generated from operations, we have the ability to meet our cash requirements, (other than distributions to our unitholders and general partner) through borrowings under our credit facility. In general, we expect to fund: |