10. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Abandonment funding

Under the terms of the Etame PSC, the Company has a cash funding arrangement for the eventual abandonment of all offshore wells, platforms and facilities on the Etame Marin block. At March 31, 2024, $10.7 million ($6.3 million, net to VAALCO) of the abandonment fund has been funded on an undiscounted basis. The annual payments will be adjusted based on revisions in the abandonment estimate. This cash funding is reflected under “Other noncurrent assets” in the “Abandonment funding” line item of the consolidated balance sheets. Future changes to the anticipated abandonment cost estimate could change the asset retirement obligation and the amount of future abandonment funding payments.

Share Buyback Program

On November 1, 2022, the Company announced that the Company’s board of directors formally ratified and approved a share buyback program. The board of directors also directed management to implement a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan (the “10b5-1 Plan”) to facilitate share purchases through open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, or otherwise in compliance with Rule 10b-18 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The 10b5-1 Plan provides for an aggregate purchase of currently outstanding common stock up to $30 million over a maximum period of 20 months. Payment for shares repurchased under the share buyback program were funded using the Company's cash on hand and cash flow from operations. The share buyback program was completed March 12, 2024.  Under the share buyback program, we purchased a total of 6,797,711 shares at an average price of $4.41 per share.

The following table shows the repurchases of equity securities related to the share repurchase program from January 1, 2024 through March 31, 2024: 

Merged Concession Agreement

The Company is a party to the Merged Concession Agreement with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (“EGPC”). In accordance with the Merged Concession Agreement, we are required to make $10.0 million annual modernization payments through February 1, 2026. The $10.0 million modernization payment due  February 1, 2024 was offset against receivables owed to the Company from EGPC. On the consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2024, $9.4 million of the remaining modernization payment liability was recorded in the line item "Accrued liabilities and other" and $8.7 million was recorded in "Other long-term liabilities". 

The Company also has minimum financial work commitments of $50.0 million per each five-year period of the primary development term, commencing on February 1, 2020 for a total of $150 million over the 15 year license contract term. Through March 31, 2024, the Company's financial work commitments have exceeded the five-year minimum $50 million threshold and any excess carries forward to offset against subsequent five-year commitments. 

As the Merged Concession Agreement was signed in January 2022 and is effective as of  February 1, 2020, there was an effective date adjustment owed to the Company for the difference in the historic commercial terms and the revised commercial terms applied against the production since the Merged Concession Effective Date. In accordance with GAAP, the Company has recognized a receivable in connection with the effective date adjustment of $67.5 million as of  October 13, 2022, based on historical realized prices. However, the cumulative value to be received because of the effective date adjustment is currently being finalized with the EGPC and could result in a range of outcomes based on the final price per barrel negotiated. As of  March 31, 2024, the remaining $50.3 million of the original $67.5 million receivable is recorded on the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet in "Egypt receivables and other, net".