Estimates and Significant Accounting Policies

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2012

Estimates Disclosure [Abstract]

Estimates

ESTIMATES AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES:

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the accrual for and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period.

The natural gas industry conducts its business by processing actual transactions at the end of the month following the month of delivery. Consequently, the most current month’s financial results for natural gas and NGL related operations are estimated using volume estimates and market prices. Any differences between estimated results and actual results are recognized in the following month’s financial statements. Management believes that the estimated operating results represent the actual results in all material respects.

Some of the other significant estimates made by management include, but are not limited to, the timing of certain forecasted transactions that are hedged, the fair value of derivative instruments, useful lives for depreciation and amortization, purchase accounting allocations and subsequent realizability of intangible assets, fair value measurements used in the goodwill impairment test, market value of inventory, assets and liabilities resulting from the regulated ratemaking process, contingency reserves and environmental reserves. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Significant Accounting Policies

As a result of the Southern Union Merger on March 26, 2012, the following significant accounting policies have been added to our significant accounting policies described in our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011.

Pensions and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans

Employers are required to recognize in their balance sheets the overfunded or underfunded status of defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans, measured as the difference between the fair value of the plan assets and the benefit obligation (the projected benefit obligation for pension plans and the accumulated postretirement benefit obligation for other postretirement plans). Each overfunded plan is recognized as an asset and each underfunded plan is recognized as a liability. Employers must recognize the change in the funded status of the plan in the year in which the change occurs through Accumulated other comprehensive income in equity. See Note 14 for further information regarding pensions and other postretirement benefit plans.

Revenue Recognition for Southern Union's Natural Gas Distribution Operations

In Southern Union's natural gas distribution operations, natural gas utility customers are billed on a monthly-cycle basis. The related cost of natural gas and revenue taxes are matched with cycle-billed revenues through utilization of purchased natural gas adjustment provisions in tariffs approved by the regulatory agencies having jurisdiction. Revenues from natural gas delivered but not yet billed are accrued, along with the related natural gas purchase costs and revenue-related taxes.