Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2021

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

7. Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

Legal Matters

Between 2005 and 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (“OEPA”) issued Notices of Violations (“NOVs”), alleging violations of air emission operating permits for our Haverhill and Granite City cokemaking facilities. We worked in a cooperative manner with the EPA, the OEPA and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to address the allegations and, in November 2014, entered into a consent decree with these parties in federal district court in the Southern District of Illinois. The consent decree included a civil penalty paid in December 2014, and a commitment to undertake capital projects to improve reliability and enhance environmental performance. The Haverhill project was completed in 2016, but completion of the Granite City project was delayed to June 2019, with SunCoke agreeing to pay an immaterial amount associated with the delay.

Between 2010 and 2016, SunCoke Energy also received certain NOVs, Findings of Violations (“FOVs”), and information requests from the EPA, alleging violations of air operating permit conditions related to our Indiana Harbor cokemaking facility. To reach a settlement of these NOVs and FOVs, we met regularly with the EPA, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management and Cokenergy, LLC., an independent power producer that processes hot flue gas from our Indiana Harbor facility to reduce the sulfur and particulate content and produce steam and electricity. A consent decree among the parties was entered by the federal district court in the Northern District of Indiana during the fourth quarter of 2018. The settlement included a civil penalty paid in the fourth quarter of 2018, and implementation of certain capital projects, completed during the fourth quarter of 2019, to improve reliability and environmental performance of the coke ovens at the facility.

The Company is a party to certain other pending and threatened claims, including matters related to commercial disputes, employment claims, personal injury claims, common law tort claims and environmental claims. Although the ultimate outcome of these claims cannot be ascertained at this time, it is reasonably possible that some portion of these claims could be resolved unfavorably to the Company. Management of the Company believes that any liability which may arise from these claims would not have a material adverse impact on our consolidated financial statements. SunCoke's threshold for disclosing material environmental legal proceedings involving a government authority where potential monetary sanctions are involved is $1.0 million.

Black Lung Benefit Liabilities

The Company has obligations related to coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, or black lung, benefits to certain of its former coal miners and their dependents. Such benefits are provided for under Title IV of the Federal Coal Mine and Safety Act of 1969 and subsequent amendments, as well as for black lung benefits provided in the states of Virginia, Kentucky and West Virginia pursuant to workers’ compensation legislation. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“PPACA”), which was implemented in 2010, amended previous legislation related to coal workers’ black lung obligations. PPACA provides for the automatic extension of awarded lifetime benefits to surviving spouses and changes the legal criteria used to assess and award claims. On February 1, 2013, SunCoke obtained commercial insurance for black lung claims in excess of a deductible for employees with a last date of employment after that date. Also during 2013, we were reauthorized to continue to self-insure black lung liabilities incurred prior to February 1, 2013 by the U.S. Department of Labor's Division of Coal Mine Workers' Compensation ("DCMWC") in exchange for $8.4 million of collateral.

We adjust our liability each year based upon actuarial calculations of our expected future payments for these benefits. Our independent actuarial consultants calculate the present value of the estimated black lung liability annually based on actuarial models utilizing our population of former coal miners, historical payout patterns of both the Company and the industry, actuarial mortality rates, disability incidence, medical costs, death benefits, dependents, discount rates and the current federally mandated payout rates. The estimated liability may be impacted by future changes in the statutory mechanisms, modifications by court decisions and changes in filing patterns driven by perceptions of success by claimants and their advisors, the impact of which cannot be estimated. The estimated liability was $65.5 million and $64.6 million at March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively, of which the current portion of $4.6 million was included in accrued liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets in both periods.

In July 2019, the DCMWC required that SunCoke, along with a number of other companies, file an application and supporting documentation for reauthorization to self-insure our legacy black lung obligations incurred prior to February 1, 2013. The Company provided the requested information in the fourth quarter of 2019. The DCMWC subsequently notified the Company in a letter dated February 21, 2020 that the Company was reauthorized to self-insure certain of its black lung obligations; however, the reauthorization is contingent upon the Company providing collateral of $40.4 million to secure certain of its black lung obligations. This proposed collateral requirement is a substantial increase from the $8.4 million in collateral that the Company currently provides to secure these self-insured black lung obligations. The reauthorization process provided the Company with the right to appeal the security determination. SunCoke exercised its right to appeal the DCMWC’s security determination and provided additional information supporting the Company’s position in May 2020 and February 2021. If the

Company’s appeal is unsuccessful, the Company may be required to provide additional collateral to receive the self-insurance reauthorization from the DCMWC, which could potentially reduce the Company’s liquidity.