Mammoth profits surge on Puerto Rico contract

A power restoration contract and a series of other expansions helped Mammoth Energy Services Inc.’s profits and revenues balloon in the first quarter.

The oil-field services and electric grid repair company on Wednesday boasted a profit of $55.5 million, or $1.24 a share, in the first quarter, up from a net loss of $5 million, or 13 cents a share, one year ago. Revenues surged to $494 million, up 559 percent from $75 million in the first quarter of 2017.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $131 million were up more than 1,000 percent from $11.5 million one year ago.

The company’s massive growth was led by a $945 million contract to help restore electricity in Puerto Rico following last year’s Hurricane Maria. Mammoth and its utility company Cobra Acquisitions have more than 900 employees and contractors working on the island.

“The first quarter was challenging due to several factors, including harsh working environments, severe winter weather and logistics issues, but our teams were able to overcome these obstacles and continue to execute at a high level,” CEO Arty Straehla said in a statement Wednesday.

“The outlook for all of our operating divisions is strong and we intend to continue to grow both organically and through accretive acquisitions.”

Mammoth’s infrastructure services segment — including its Puerto Rico operations — contributed almost $326 million of the company’s $494 million in revenue in the first quarter. The segment did not generate revenue in the year-ago period.

Besides the utility segment, Mammoth also received a boost from some of its oil-field operations. Its sand division saw revenues increase 16 percent to $51 million. The company’s Taylor Frac LLC subsidiary boosted sand production to about 4 million tons a year, up from 3 million tons per year at the end of 2017.