Commitments and Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Commitments and Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies

In the second quarter of 2019, Marathon E.G. Production Limited (“MEGPL”), a consolidated and wholly-owned subsidiary, signed a series of agreements to process third-party Alen Unit gas through existing infrastructure located in Punta Europa, E.G. Our equity method investee, Alba Plant LLC, is also a party to some of the agreements. These agreements contain clauses that require MEGPL to indemnify the owners of the Alen Unit against injury to Alba Plant LLC’s personnel and damage to or loss of Alba Plant LLC’s automobiles, as well as third party claims caused by Alba Plant and certain environmental liabilities arising from certain hydrocarbons in the custody of Alba Plant LLC. Pursuant to these agreements, MEGPL agreed to indemnify third party property or events, including environmental liabilities, injury to Alba Plant LLC’s personnel, and damage to or loss of Alba Plant LLC’s automobiles. At this time, we cannot reasonably estimate this obligation as we do not have any history of prior indemnification claims, and thus, we do not have any history of environmental discharge or contamination. Therefore, we have not recorded a liability with respect to these indemnities since the amount of potential future payments under these indemnification clauses is not determinable.

The agreements to process the third-party Alen Unit gas required the execution of third-party guarantees by Marathon Oil Corporation in favor of the Alen Unit’s owners. Two separate guarantees were executed during the second quarter of 2020; one for a maximum of $91 million pertaining to the payment obligations of Equatorial Guinea LNG Operations, S.A. and another for a maximum of $25 million pertaining to the payment obligations of Alba Plant LLC.  Payment by us would be required if either of those entities fails to honor its payment obligations pursuant to the relevant agreements with the owners of the Alen Unit. Certain owners of the Alen Unit, or their affiliates, are also direct or indirect shareholders in Equatorial Guinea LNG Operations, S.A. and Alba Plant LLC. Each guarantee expires no later than December 31, 2027. We measured these guarantees at fair value using the net present value of premium payments we expect to receive from our investees. Our liability for these guarantees was $4 million as of September 30, 2020, with a corresponding receivable from our investees. Each of Equatorial Guinea LNG Operations, S.A. and Equatorial Guinea LNG Train 1, S.A. provided us with a pledge of its receivables as recourse against any payments we may make under the guaranty of Equatorial Guinea LNG Operations, S.A.’s performance.

Various groups, including the State of North Dakota and three Indian tribes represented by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, have been involved in a dispute regarding the ownership of certain lands underlying the Missouri River and Little Missouri River.  As a result, as of September 30, 2020, we have a $103 million current liability in suspended royalty and working interest revenue, including interest, and have a long-term receivable of $23 million for capital and expenses.

In December 2019, we received a Notice of Violation from the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality and a verbal notice of enforcement in January 2020 from the North Dakota Industrial Commission, related to a release of produced water in North Dakota. In January 2020, we received a Notice of Violation from the EPA related to the Clean Air Act. Each enforcement action will likely result in monetary sanctions in excess of $100,000; however, we do not believe these enforcement actions would have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flow.

We are a defendant in a number of legal and administrative proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business including, but not limited to, royalty claims, contract claims, tax disputes and environmental claims. While the ultimate outcome and impact to us cannot be predicted with certainty, we believe the resolution of these proceedings will not have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. 

We have incurred and will continue to incur capital, operating and maintenance, and remediation expenditures as a result of environmental laws and regulations. If these expenditures, as with all costs, are not ultimately offset by the prices we receive for our products and services, our operating results will be adversely affected. We believe that substantially all of our competitors must comply with similar environmental laws and regulations. However, the specific impact on each competitor may vary depending on a number of factors, including the age and location of its operating facilities, marketing areas and production processes. These laws generally provide for control of pollutants released into the environment and require responsible parties to undertake remediation of hazardous waste disposal sites. Penalties may be imposed for noncompliance.