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Fair Value Measurements

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2017

The Partnership uses a valuation framework based upon inputs that market participants use in pricing certain assets and liabilities. These inputs are classified into two categories: observable inputs and unobservable inputs. Observable inputs represent market data obtained from independent sources. Unobservable inputs represent the Partnership's own market assumptions. Unobservable inputs are used only if observable inputs are unavailable or not reasonably available without undue cost and effort. The two types of inputs are further prioritized into the following hierarchy:

Level 1: Quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2: Observable market based inputs or unobservable inputs that are corroborated by market data.

Level 3: Unobservable inputs that reflect the entity's own assumptions and are not corroborated by market data.

Assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis are summarized below:



	Level 2
	March 31, 2017			December 31, 2016
Commodity derivative contracts, net	$	(67	)	$	(3,904	)

The Partnership is required to disclose estimated fair values for its financial instruments. Fair value estimates are set forth below for these financial instruments. The following methods and assumptions were used to estimate the fair value of each class of financial instrument:

•

Accounts and other receivables, trade and other accounts payable, accrued interest payable, other accrued liabilities, income taxes payable and due from/to affiliates: The carrying amounts approximate fair value due to the short maturity and highly liquid nature of these instruments, and as such these have been excluded from the table below. There is negligible credit risk associated with these instruments.


•	Note receivable and long-term debt including current portion: The carrying amount of the revolving credit facility approximates fair value due to the debt having a variable interest rate and is in Level 2. The Partnership has not had any indicators which represent a change in the market spread associated with its variable interest rate debt.


•	The estimated fair value of the senior unsecured notes is based on market prices of similar debt. The estimated fair value of the note receivable from MET was determined by calculating the net present value of the payments over the life of the note. The note is considered Level 3 due to the lack of observable inputs for similar transactions between related parties.



	March 31, 2017				December 31, 2016
	Carrying Value		Fair Value		Carrying Value		Fair Value
Note receivable - affiliates	$	15,000	$	15,797	$	15,000	$	15,797
2021 Senior unsecured notes	372,333		381,756		372,239		377,882

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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