Form of PSU Grant Agreement
Exhibit 10.3
[FORM] PSU GRANT AGREEMENT
Participant Name: | ###PARTICIPANT_NAME### | |
Grant Date: | ###GRANT_DATE### | |
Performance Period: | January 1, 2025 to December 31, 2027 | |
Number of PSUs | ###TOTAL_AWARDS### | |
Currency of PSUs: | ###CF_GRANT_Currency### | |
Applicable Exchange: | ###CF_GRANT_Exchange### | |
Vesting Date: | See Schedule A |
This [FORM] PSU GRANT AGREEMENT, including Schedule A hereto (collectively, this Agreement), is dated effective as of ###GRANT_DATE### (the Grant Date), by and between you (Participant), and Ovintiv Inc. (the Corporation) or its Affiliate (Participant).
WHEREAS the Corporation has established the Omnibus Incentive Plan of Ovintiv Inc., as amended, (the Plan) and all capitalized terms used and not otherwise defined in this Agreement shall have the meanings given to such terms in the Plan; and
WHEREAS Participant is an employee of the Corporation or its Affiliate and the Committee has authorized the granting to Participant of certain performance share units (the PSUs) in such number and in respect of such Performance Period as set out above pursuant to, and in accordance with, the provisions of the Plan and this Agreement.
NOW THEREFORE, for good and valuable consideration including, among other things, the employment services rendered by Participant to the Corporation or its Affiliates, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged by the parties, and in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements set forth herein, the parties hereby covenant and agree:
1. | Certain Defined Terms. For the purposes of this Agreement, the following capitalized terms will have the meanings given below: |
(a) | Achieved Performance Criteria means, subject to the provisions of Schedule A, the Performance Criteria which have been satisfied, as, when and to the extent determined by the Committee in respect of the Performance Period; |
(b) | Cause means (A) on or after a Change in Control, CIC Cause as defined in the Plan, or (B) prior to a Change in Control, (1) cause as defined in any Individual Agreement to which the Participant is a party as of the Date Employment Ceases, or (2) if there is no such Individual Agreement or it does not define cause, cause as determined by the Corporation or its Affiliate, as applicable, in its sole discretion, which shall include, among other factors, provisions (i) and (ii) of a CIC Cause as defined in the Plan; |
(c) | Early Retirement means Participants Termination of Service on or after Participants attainment of the age of 55 years and prior to Participants attainment of the age of 60 years that is (i) initiated by the Corporation or an Affiliate, as applicable, for any reason other than Cause, or (ii) due to Participants resignation; |
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(d) | Eligible PSUs means those PSUs that are determined by the Committee as being eligible to vest on the Vesting Date based on the Achieved Performance Criteria; |
(e) | Grant Date means the date set forth on the cover page of this Agreement; and |
(f) | Normal Retirement means Participants Termination of Service on or after Participants attainment of the age of 60 years that is (i) initiated by the Corporation or its Affiliate, as applicable, for any reason other than Cause, or (ii) due to Participants resignation. |
2. | Grant of PSUs. Effective as of the Grant Date, the Corporation hereby grants to the Participant, in accordance with and subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan and this Agreement, PSUs in such number and in respect of such Performance Period as set out above and subject to the achievement of such Performance Criteria and such other terms and conditions as set forth in the Plan and this Agreement including, without limitation, Schedule A hereof. |
3. | Dividend Equivalent PSUs. When cash dividends are paid by the Corporation on the Shares between the Grant Date and the Committee Meeting Date, the Corporation shall credit to Participants account additional dividend equivalent PSUs (DEUs) with respect to the PSUs in accordance with this Section 3. The number of DEUs (including fractional DEUs) to be credited in respect of each dividend record date will be calculated by dividing the aggregate amount of the cash dividend that would have been paid to the Participant if the PSUs and DEUs outstanding at such dividend record date had been Shares held by the Participant on such dividend record date, by the closing price per Share on the Applicable Exchange on the Trading Day immediately preceding the dividend payment date for such cash dividend. DEUs shall be subject to the same terms and conditions as the PSUs and shall vest and be settled at the same time and in the same manner as the PSUs to which they relate. Fractional DEUs shall be rounded up to the nearest whole number as of the date of settlement. |
4. | Eligible PSUs. On the Committee Meeting Date immediately following the Performance Period, the Committee shall (i) determine whether and, where applicable, the degree to which the Performance Criteria for the Performance Period have been satisfied and constitute Achieved Performance Criteria and (ii) based on the Achieved Performance Criteria, determine the number of Eligible PSUs. |
5. | Eligible PSU Payment. Each Eligible PSU represents the right to receive, subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan and this Agreement, either (a) one Share or (b) a cash payment equal to the volume-weighted average (rounded to two decimal places) trading price per Share on the Applicable Exchange during the five Trading Days immediately preceding the date of settlement, or equal to the Fair Market Value of the Shares, as determined by the Committee in its sole discretion (in each case, the Eligible PSU Payment). Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan or this Agreement to the contrary, the Committee may, in its discretion, determine whether to adjust the Eligible PSU Payment, and where such an adjustment is to be made, the adjustment mechanism in respect thereof. |
6. | Vesting of Eligible PSUs. The Participants Eligible PSUs shall vest and become payable in accordance with Section 12 on the date specified in Schedule A (the Vesting Date) subject to Participants continued employment with the Corporation or its Affiliate through the Vesting Date and except as otherwise provided in Sections 7, 8, 9 and 10 below. |
7. | Effect of Change in Control. In accordance with Section 10.1(a) of the Plan, in the event of a Change in Control, the PSUs shall vest immediately prior to the time of such Change in Control, except to the extent that the PSUs are replaced with a Replacement Award. If the PSUs are replaced with a Replacement Award, then from and after the Change in Control, references herein to PSUs shall be deemed to refer to the Replacement Award. |
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8. | Effect of Termination of Service. Upon Participants Termination of Service prior to the Vesting Date for any reason other than due to Participants death, Early Retirement, Normal Retirement, or termination without CIC Cause or with Good Reason within the Specified Period following a Change in Control (each of which has the treatment specified below), all PSUs will be forfeited immediately. |
(a) | Death Prior to Age 60. Upon Participants death prior to the date that Participant attains the age of 60 years, a pro-rata portion of the PSUs shall immediately vest on the date of Participants death assuming a 100% Performance Payout Factor in proportion to the number of calendar months (rounded up to the nearest whole number of months) from the first day of the Performance Period to the Termination of Service relative to the total number of months in the Performance Period. All PSUs that do not vest pursuant to the preceding sentence shall be forfeited immediately upon such Termination of Service. |
(b) | Early Retirement. Upon Participants Termination of Service due to Early Retirement, a pro-rata portion of the PSUs shall remain outstanding and eligible to vest on the Vesting Date to the extent that such PSUs become Eligible PSUs based on the based on the Achieved Performance Criteria following the end of the Performance Period in proportion to the number of calendar months (rounded up to the nearest whole number of months) from the first day of the Performance Period to the Termination of Service relative to the total number of months in the Performance Period. All PSUs that do not vest pursuant to the preceding sentence shall be forfeited immediately upon such Termination of Service. |
(c) | Death on or After Age 60. Upon Participants death on or after the date that the Participant attains the age of 60 years, all PSUs shall immediately vest on the date of Participants death assuming a 100% Performance Payout Factor. |
(d) | Normal Retirement. Upon Participants Termination of Service due to Normal Retirement, all PSUs shall remain outstanding and eligible to vest on the Vesting Date to the extent that such PSUs become Eligible PSUs based on the based on the Achieved Performance Criteria following the end of the Performance Period. |
(e) | Termination Without CIC Cause or With Good Reason Within the Specified Period. If a Change in Control occurs and the PSUs are replaced with a Replacement Award, then upon Participants Termination of Service that is (i) initiated by the Corporation or an Affiliate, as applicable, without CIC Cause, or (ii) due to Participants resignation for Good Reason, in each case, within the Specified Period following a Change in Control, any unvested portion of the Replacement Award shall immediately vest in full on the date of such Termination of Service. |
9. | Effect of Absence. |
(a) | Period of Absence. Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, in the event of Participants Period of Absence, PSUs credited to Participants account immediately prior to such Period of Absence (including any related DEUs) shall continue to be or become, as applicable, Eligible PSUs in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement and such Eligible PSUs shall vest on the Vesting Date as if the Participant were an active employee on such date; provided that, all unvested PSUs will be forfeited upon the date that is two and one-half months following the end of the year in which Participant is deemed to have a Separation from Service for purposes of Section 409A if Participant has not returned to active employment with the Corporation or an Affiliate by such date. |
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(b) | Unpaid Leave of Absence. Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, the PSUs shall not vest or become Eligible PSUs during Participants Unpaid Leave of Absence. If, immediately following an Unpaid Leave of Absence in which the Vesting Date occurs, Participant returns to active employment with the Corporation or an Affiliate, then the PSUs credited to Participants account shall become Eligible PSUs and such Eligible PSUs shall vest and be paid as if Participant were an active employee during such Unpaid Leave of Absence. If Participant does not return to active employment immediately following such Unpaid Leave of Absence in which the Vesting Date occurs, then all unvested PSUs, regardless of whether such PSUs are or are not Eligible PSUs, shall be forfeited and cancelled upon the last day of such Unpaid Leave of Absence. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if Participant has not returned to active employment with the Corporation or an Affiliate by the last day of the calendar year in which the Vesting Date occurs, then all unvested PSUs shall be forfeited on such last day of such calendar year. |
10. | Effect of Forfeiture/Failure to Vest. Any PSUs (including DEUs) that do not become Eligible PSUs in accordance with Section 4 or do not vest in accordance with the terms of this Agreement or that are otherwise forfeited shall immediately be cancelled and all of Participants rights and interests in respect of such PSUs shall thereupon terminate, in all cases, for no consideration. For greater certainty, no amount shall be payable to any Person as damages, compensation or otherwise in respect of the loss of rights and interests in any PSUs (including DEUs) hereunder, whether in connection with a Participants Termination of Service or otherwise. |
11. | Settlement of PSUs. Once the Participants Eligible PSUs have become vested in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, they will be settled as soon as administratively practicable, and in all events within 60 days, following the earliest to occur of (i) the Vesting Date, and (ii) any Separation from Service that occurs within the Specified Period following a Change in Control, (iii) the Participants death, provided that, if the PSUs granted hereunder constitute a Section 409A Amount, then the clause (ii) will not apply if the Change in Control does not constitute a 409A Change of Control. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the PSUs become CIC Vested Awards pursuant to Section 10.1(a) of the Plan, they will be settled in accordance with Section 10.1(a) of the Plan. |
12. | Compliance with Law; Tax Withholding. The Corporations grant of the PSUs or payment of Shares or cash pursuant to the PSUs is subject to compliance with Applicable Law. As a condition of participating in the Plan, Participant hereby agrees to comply with all such Applicable Law and agrees to furnish to the Corporation all information and undertakings as may be required to permit compliance with such Applicable Law. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Participant hereby acknowledges and agrees that any payment or settlement to Participant in respect of the PSUs shall be subject to such taxes and other withholdings or deductions as may be required by Applicable Law. The provisions of Section 14.4 (Required Taxes) of the Plan shall apply to the PSUs; provided that, if the Participant is an individual covered under Section 16 of the Exchange Act at the time that a taxable event with respect to the PSUs occurs, then the Corporations withholding obligations with respect to such taxable event will be satisfied by the Corporation or its Affiliate withholding from the Shares deliverable pursuant to the PSUs a number of Shares having a value equal to the volume-weighted average (rounded to two decimal places) trading price per Share on the Applicable Exchange during the five Trading Days immediately preceding the date of withholding equal to the amount required to be withheld for tax purposes (calculated using the minimum statutory withholding rate, except as otherwise approved by the Committee). |
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13. | No Right to Continued Employment. Neither the Plan nor any action taken thereunder shall interfere with any right of the Corporation or any Affiliate which employs Participant to terminate Participants employment at any time. |
14. | Incentive Compensation Clawback Policy. Participant acknowledges and agrees that the PSUs (and the grant thereof) and any payment in respect thereof are expressly subject to the terms and conditions of the Corporations Amended and Restated Incentive Compensation Clawback Policy, as same may be amended by the Corporation from time to time. For purposes of the foregoing, Participant expressly and explicitly authorizes (a) the Corporation and any Affiliate to issue instructions, on Participants behalf, to any brokerage firm and/or third party administrator engaged by the Corporation or such Affiliate to hold shares of the Corporations common stock granted to Participant and other amounts acquired by Participant under the Plan or any other incentive compensation plan, program or arrangement of the Corporation to re-convey, transfer or otherwise return such shares and/or other amounts to the Corporation or the applicable Affiliate and (b) the Corporations or Affiliates recovery of any covered compensation through any method of recovery that the Corporation deems appropriate, including without limitation by reducing any amount that is or may become payable to Participant. Participant further agrees to comply with any request or demand for repayment by the Corporation or any Affiliate in order to comply with such policy. |
15. | No Rights as a Shareholder. Participant shall have no rights whatsoever as a shareholder in respect of any Shares (including any rights to receive dividends or other distributions from or on the Shares) other than in respect of Shares (if any) distributed to Participant in satisfaction of Participants vested PSUs in accordance with and in the manner provided for in this Agreement. |
16. | Amendment. Subject to Section 12.3 of the Plan, this Agreement may be unilaterally amended by the Committee. |
17. | Successors and Assigns. This Agreement shall enure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Corporation and its respective successors and assigns and upon Participant and all other persons claiming or deriving rights through Participant. |
18. | Choice of Law. This Agreement and the rights of all parties hereunder and the construction of each and every provision hereof shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware, without reference to the principles of conflicts of law. |
19. | Section 409A. |
(a) | The PSUs and this Agreement are intended to comply with the requirements of Section 409A of the Code or an exemption or exclusion therefrom and, to the extent that the PSUs constitute a Section 409A Amount, it is intended that the PSUs and this Agreement be administered in all respects in accordance with Section 409A of the Code. However, Participant is solely responsible and liable for the satisfaction of all taxes and penalties that may be imposed upon Participant or for Participants account in connection with the Plan, the PSUs and/or this Agreement (including any taxes and penalties under Section 409A), and neither the Corporation nor any Affiliate shall have any obligation to indemnify or otherwise hold Participant (or any beneficiary) harmless from any or all of such taxes or penalties. |
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(b) | Each payment under any of the PSUs shall be treated as a separate payment for purposes of Section 409A of the Code. |
(c) | If the PSUs constitute a Section 409A Amount, the following provisions shall apply: |
(i) | In no event may Participant, directly or indirectly, designate the calendar year of any payment to be made under the PSUs. |
(ii) | Participant will not be considered to have experienced a Termination of Service unless Participant has experienced a Separation from Service. |
(iii) | Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan or this Agreement to the contrary, if Participant is a specified employee within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code (as determined in accordance with the methodology established by the Corporation), to the extent required to avoid the imposition of excise tax or penalties under Section 409A of the Code, Shares subject to the PSUs that would otherwise be payable by reason of Participants Separation from Service during the six-month period immediately following such Separation from Service shall instead be paid or provided on the first business day following the date that is six months following the U.S. Participants Separation from Service. If Participant dies following the Separation from Service and prior to the payment of any Shares delayed on account of Section 409A of the Code, such Shares shall be paid or provided to the personal representative of Participants estate within 30 days following the date of Participants death. |
20. | Personal Information. Participant agrees to the collection, use and disclosure of personal information about Participant (including, without limitation, personal employee information about Participant) (collectively, Personal Information) by the Corporation or its Affiliates for purposes of administering and managing the grant of the PSUs to Participant hereunder, operation of the Plan and this Agreement and, as applicable, compliance with Applicable Law (the Purposes). |
Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Participant agrees to the collection, use and disclosure of the Personal Information by the Corporation and its Affiliates from and to such third party service provider(s) as may be retained by the Corporation from time to time to assist with the Purposes (Service Provider), as may be reasonably required to fulfil the Purposes, whether verbally (including by telephone), in writing or electronically over the Internet including, without limitation, by e-mail. Participant agrees that any acceptance or consent indicated by Participant in electronic form to any documents provided to Participant by the Corporation or the Service Provider including, without limitation, the Plan and this Agreement shall be the equivalent of original written paper documents and Participants written acceptance or consent thereto.
Participant further agrees to provide the Corporation and, where necessary, the Service Provider, with all information, including Personal Information, as may be reasonably required to fulfil the Purposes. Participant acknowledges and agrees that the Corporation, an Affiliate and/or the Service Provider (as applicable) may, from time to time, and in accordance with Applicable Laws, disclose Personal Information including, without limitation, in response to regulatory filings or other lawful requests by a government authority or regulatory body, or for purpose of complying with a subpoena, warrant or other order by a court or other party having jurisdiction over the Corporation, an Affiliate or the Service Provider (as applicable) to compel production of same. Participant acknowledges and agrees that the Corporation, an Affiliate or the Service Provider may, as part of their business practices, collect, use and disclose the Personal Information outside of the United States or Canada (as applicable) in respect of the Purposes. Should Participant have any questions regarding the Corporations collection, use and disclosure of Participants Personal Information, Participant should contact Ovintivs Privacy Officer at ***@***.
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21. | Participant understands that by indicating Participants acceptance of, agreement with and/or consent to the terms of this Agreement (whether electronically or otherwise), Participant confirms Participant has received and reviewed the Plan and this Agreement, which contain legal terms, and that Participant agrees to be bound by the terms of the Plan and this Agreement. |
IN WITNESS WHEREOF this Agreement has been executed effective as of the Grant Date.
OVINTIV INC.
|
Rachel Moore |
Executive Vice-President, Corporate Services |
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Schedule A
1. | Vesting Date: |
The Vesting Date upon which the Participants Eligible PSUs shall vest shall be the later of: (i) the third anniversary of the Grant Date; and (ii) the first Committee Meeting Date immediately following the end of the Performance Period and, in any event, shall be prior to December 31st of the calendar year in which the third anniversary of the Grant Date occurs.
For the purposes of this Agreement, Committee Meeting Date means the date of the meeting of the Committee held to review matters related to the PSUs, including the Committees determination of whether and, where applicable, the degree to which the Performance Criteria for the Performance Period have been satisfied and constitute Achieved Performance Criteria, which meeting shall occur at least once annually and, in any event, no later than June 1st of the year immediately following the Performance Period.
2. | Performance Criteria: |
The performance criteria to be used to determine the extent, if any, of vesting of the PSUs granted hereunder shall consist of the following:
(a) | Relative Total Shareholder Return (RTSR) (50%); and |
(b) | PSU Performance Measures (the PSU Performance Measures) (50%), consisting of the following: |
(i) | Return on Invested Capital (50%) |
(collectively, the Performance Criteria).
In respect of RTSR, the Corporations performance will be compared to the PSU Performance Peer Group (defined in Section 3 of this Schedule A), as measured over the Performance Period.
RTSR shall reflect a relative ranking of the Corporations compound annual growth rate in equity market value over the Performance Period (CAGR) as compared to the CAGR of each respective member of the PSU Performance Peer Group over the same period, arranged in ascending order. For purposes of determining CAGR for the Corporation and each PSU Performance Peer Group member during the Performance Period (or otherwise), the following calculation shall be performed:
CAGR = 100 x [(B ÷ A)^.3333 -1], where:
A = Commencement Adjusted Share Price: calculated as the average closing price of a share (or in the case of the Corporation, a Share) on the New York Stock Exchange over the thirty (30) calendar days immediately prior to the commencement of the Performance Period (for the Corporation, the Commencement Adjusted Share Price is $[##]); and
B = End Adjusted Share Price: calculated as the average closing price of a share (or in the case of the Corporation, a Share), adjusted for dividends paid during the Performance Period, on the New York Stock Exchange over the thirty (30) calendar days immediately prior to and including the last day of the Performance Period.
In respect of the PSU Performance Measures, the Corporations performance shall be assessed by the Committee at the conclusion of the Performance Period.
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For purposes of RTSR, the Corporations CAGR during the Performance Period shall be measured against the CAGR of members of the PSU Performance Peer Group, calculated at the 90th, 75th, 50th and 25th percentiles, as reflected in the table below.
Relative TSR Performance Thresholds | ||
Ranking of Corporations CAGR Relative to | Performance Payout Factor | |
P90 and Above | 200% | |
P75 | 150% | |
P50 | 100% | |
P25 | 50% | |
Below P25 | 0% |
The maximum Performance Payout Factor for the Performance Period is 200%, which may be applied by the Committee to an Achieved Performance Criteria at or above P90 (or the 90th percentile) of the PSU Performance Peer Group.
For Achieved Performance Criteria between the target percentiles set out above, the Performance Payout Factor shall be calculated by linear interpolation.
Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, in its discretion, Achieved Performance Criteria below P25 (or 25th percentile) will result in none of the PSUs granted hereunder becoming Eligible PSUs in respect of the Performance Period.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the Corporations CAGR over the Performance Period is negative, the Performance Payout Factor for the purposes of the RTSR component shall not exceed 100%.
3. | PSU Performance Peer Group: |
In respect of RTSR, the Corporations achievement of the Performance Criteria shall be measured in relation to a peer group (the PSU Performance Peer Group) as may be determined, amended and approved by the Committee from time to time. In respect of the Performance Period, the initial PSU Performance Peer Group shall be as follows:
Antero Resources Corporation | APA Corporation | |
ARC Resources Ltd. | Chord Energy Corp | |
Canadian Natural Resources Limited | Civitas Resources Inc. | |
Coterra Energy inc. | Devon Energy Corporation | |
Diamondback Energy, Inc. | EOG Resources Inc. | |
EQT Corporation | Expand Energy Corporation | |
Hess Corporation | Matador Resources | |
Murphy Oil Corporation | Occidental Petroleum Corporation | |
Permian Resources Corporation | Range Resources Corporation | |
S&P 400 Index | SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (XOP) |
The Committee may in its discretion amend or modify the PSU Performance Peer Group during the Performance Period (including by removing a member or adding a new member) including, without limitation, in the event that any member ceases, in the sole discretion of the Committee to constitute a suitable member of the PSU Performance Peer Group.
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4. | Achieved Performance Criteria: |
Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, the Performance Criteria shall be calculated by the Corporation prior to the Vesting Date, following the end of the Performance Period.
On the Committee Meeting Date immediately following the Performance Period, the Committee shall determinate whether and, where applicable, the degree to which the Performance Criteria for the Performance Period have been satisfied and constitute Achieved Performance Criteria.
In respect of RTSR, such assessment shall be relative to the corresponding performance of the PSU Performance Peer Group during the same period. In respect of the PSU Performance Measures, such assessment shall be relative to criteria as may be determined by the Committee. Based on such evaluation, the Committee shall determine whether and the extent to which PSUs granted hereunder may become Eligible PSUs.
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