Vitesse Energy (NYSE:VTS) President and CEO Jamie Benard outlined the company’s non-operated energy investment model, capital-allocation priorities and approach to maintaining its shareholder dividend during a presentation at an EnerCom event.
Benard, who became president and CEO in May, said Denver-based Vitesse owns operated and predominantly non-operated interests in more than 7,800 wells managed by 30 operators across three basins. The company’s portfolio is concentrated in the Williston Basin, with additional exposure to the DJ and Powder River basins.
Dividend and balance-sheet priorities
Benard described Vitesse’s strategy through four steps: own, acquire, convert and return. The company owns interests in existing wells, acquires additional interests that meet its return criteria, converts those investments into production and free cash flow, and returns capital to shareholders, with the dividend taking priority.
At the midpoint of its 2026 production guidance, Vitesse expects to produce 16,750 barrels of oil equivalent per day, with oil accounting for 61% of production, Benard said. The company’s annualized dividend is $1.75 per share.
The company uses hedges to provide visibility into the cash flows supporting its dividend rather than to make directional commodity-price bets, according to Benard. Its hedge book extends through 2029. Vitesse also targets leverage of one times or less, though it could exceed that level for a compelling acquisition if it has what Benard called a “clear and credible path” back below the target.
Vitesse’s capital-allocation framework prioritizes the dividend, followed by accretive acquisitions, a conservative balance sheet and other high-return opportunities. Potential uses of capital include participating in wells on existing acreage, purchasing near-term development interests, acquiring larger producing properties and reducing debt.
Benard said share repurchases are not currently a designated use within the company’s capital-allocation waterfall because Vitesse sees substantial reinvestment opportunities across its organic inventory, near-term development acquisitions and larger producing-property deals.
Acquisition flexibility and non-operated portfolio
Vitesse’s average working interest across its 7,800-well portfolio is 3.5%, providing broad diversification across its assets and operators. In the Williston Basin, where the company has its largest presence, 17 of 31 active rigs, or 54%, were operating on Vitesse acreage at the time of the presentation, Benard said.
The company evaluates participation in each proposed well based on economics at prevailing strip prices. Since spinning out in 2023, Vitesse has consented to 93% of proposed wells, according to Benard.
Vitesse can deploy capital through several avenues, including participating in proposed wells, acquiring individual wellbore interests, buying producing properties with undeveloped inventory, and partnering with operators or purchasing carved-out interests from their development programs.
Since its founding in 2013, Vitesse has completed more than 175 acquisitions representing about $800 million in value. Five acquisitions ranged from $35 million to $194 million and accounted for approximately $642 million of the total. The other 170 transactions totaled roughly $158 million, or just under $1 million per acquisition, Benard said.
The company also has an operated position following its 2025 acquisition of Lucero. Vitesse now operates approximately 60 wells in the McKenzie-Dunn area of the Williston Basin.
Longer laterals and operating scale
Benard said longer horizontal laterals have become an important contributor to capital efficiency. Since 2022, the average lateral length for wells in which Vitesse participates has increased 38%. Nearly 70% of the company’s 2026 participating wells are expected to have lateral lengths of three miles or more.
Vitesse’s data indicate that median drilling and completion costs per foot decline by about 25% when comparing two-mile and four-mile laterals. Benard said longer laterals also may help reduce the company’s overall proved developed producing decline rate as they make up a larger share of its production base, potentially reducing reinvestment needs and preserving more free cash flow.
The company underwrites investments using hedgeable strip prices, well-level production and cost data, internal-rate-of-return and return-on-investment measures, payout periods, and risk-adjusted return thresholds. For larger property deals, it also evaluates net asset value per share and discounted cash flow, Benard said.
Its proprietary Luminis platform consolidates accounting, land, finance, engineering and operations data, including production, authorization-for-expenditure costs, actual costs and lifting expenses. Benard said the system enables Vitesse to evaluate wells individually and integrate assets without expanding its workforce at the same pace as its portfolio.
Vitesse has 35 employees managing roughly 7,800 wells, or about 225 wells per employee. Since 2022, production has increased while general and administrative expense per BOE has declined, Benard said.
“We absolutely intend to grow,” Benard said, while emphasizing that growth must create value, meet return thresholds and support the company’s dividend and balance-sheet objectives.
About Vitesse Energy (NYSE:VTS)
Vitesse Energy (NYSE: VTS) is an independent exploration and production company primarily focused on onshore oil and gas assets in the United States. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, the company identifies, acquires and develops low-decline, shallow to intermediate depth vertical wells, targeting predictable production profiles and stable cash flows. Vitesse leverages a lean operational model to optimize well performance and reduce unit operating costs across its asset base.
The company’s core operations are concentrated in the Arkoma Basin of eastern Oklahoma and the Ark-La-Tex region, where it holds acreage positions in multiple formations.
