Free Cash Flow, Capital Expenditures and Liquidity
Free cash flow (defined as net cash provided by operating activities less investment in property, plant and equipment) after asset disposals was positive $16 million in the fourth quarter of 2023, including a working capital source of $4 million and capital expenditures of $7 million.
Capital expenditures in the fourth quarter of 2023 were approximately $7 million, down over 50% from the third quarter of 2023, and were primarily related to manufacturing of top fill systems. Capital expenditures for full year 2023 were $64 million and Solaris expects full year 2024 capital expenditures to be less than $15 million, an approximately 75% year over year reduction.
As of December 31, 2023, Solaris had $6 million of cash on the balance sheet. Solaris reduced net borrowings on the credit facility by $7 million and ended the fourth quarter of 2023 with $30 million in borrowings outstanding and $47 million of liquidity. Net debt (defined as total debt outstanding less cash) at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023 declined to $24 million compared to $34 million at the end of the third quarter of 2023.
Fourth Quarter 2023 Financial Review
Net income was $7 million, or $0.14 per diluted Class A share, for fourth quarter 2023, compared to third quarter 2023 net income of $8 million, or $0.16 per diluted Class A share, and fourth quarter 2022 net income of $8 million, or $0.15 per diluted Class A share. Adjusted pro forma net income for fourth quarter 2023 was $7 million, or $0.15 per fully diluted share, compared to third quarter 2023 adjusted pro forma net income of $9 million, or $0.19 per fully diluted share, and fourth quarter 2022 adjusted pro forma net income of $10 million, or $0.22 per fully diluted share.
Revenue was $63 million for fourth quarter 2023, which was down 9% from third quarter 2023 and down 25% from fourth quarter 2022. Adjusted EBITDA for fourth quarter 2023 was $21 million, which was down 9% from third quarter 2023 and down 7% from fourth quarter 2022. The sequential decrease in revenue was driven by decreases in lower-margin ancillary last mile logistics services activity and frac crews followed. The sequential decrease in Adjusted EBITDA was impacted by the decline in Solaris system deployments related to fewer frac crews followed, as the average industry frac crew count softened into the end of 2023.
During the fourth quarter of 2023, Solaris earned revenue on 103 fully utilized systems, which includes sand systems, top fill systems and AutoBlend™ systems. Total fully utilized systems were down 5% from third quarter 2023 and down 6% from fourth quarter 2022. Solaris followed an average of 64 industry frac crews on a fully utilized basis in the fourth quarter of 2023, which was down 4% from 67 frac crews followed in the third quarter of 2023.
See “About Non-GAAP Measures” below for additional detail and reconciliations of GAAP to non-GAAP measures in the accompanying financial tables.
Full Year 2023 Financial Review
Net income was $39 million, or $0.78 per diluted Class A share, for full year 2023, compared to 2022 net income of $34 million, or $0.64 per diluted Class A share. Adjusted pro forma net income for full year 2023 was $37 million, or $0.83 per fully diluted share, compared to 2022 adjusted pro forma net income of $36 million, or $0.76 per fully diluted share.
Revenue was $293 million for full year 2023, which was down 8% from 2022. Adjusted EBITDA for full year 2023 was $97 million, which was up 15% from 2022. The sequential decrease in revenue was driven by a decrease in lower-margin ancillary last mile logistics services activity, partially offset by an increase in Solaris system deployments. The higher system deployments drove the sequential increase in Adjusted EBITDA.
Conference Call
Solaris will host a conference call to discuss its results for fourth quarter and full year 2023 on Tuesday, February 27, 2024 at 8:00 a.m. Central Time (9:00 a.m. Eastern Time). To join the conference call from within the United States, participants may dial (844) 413-3978, or for participants outside of the United States (412) 317-6594. Participants should ask the operator to join the Solaris Oilfield Infrastructure, Inc. call. Participants are encouraged to log in to the webcast or dial in to the conference call approximately ten minutes prior to the start time. To listen via live webcast, please visit the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at http://www.solarisoilfield.com.
An audio replay of the conference call will be available shortly after the conclusion of the call and will remain available for approximately seven days. It can be accessed by dialing (877) 344-7529 within the United States or (412) 317-0088 outside of the United States. The conference call replay access code is 8480084. The replay will also be available in the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website shortly after the conclusion of the call and will remain available for approximately seven days.