Fair Value Measurements Fair Value Measurements (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2013

Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]

Fair Value of Financial Instruments, Policy [Policy Text Block]

ASC 820 requires disclosures that categorize assets and liabilities measured at fair value into one of three different levels depending on the observability of the inputs employed in the measurement. Level 1 inputs are quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. Level 2 inputs are observable inputs other than quoted prices included within Level 1 for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly through market-corroborated inputs. Level 3 inputs are unobservable inputs for the asset or liability reflecting our assumptions about pricing by market participants.

Over the counter commodity swaps and sale contracts are generally valued using industry-standard models that consider various assumptions, including quoted forward prices, time value, volatility factors and contractual prices for the underlying instruments, as well as other relevant economic measures. The degree to which these inputs are observable in the forward markets determines the classification as Level 2 or 3. Our over the counter commodity swaps are valued using quotations provided by brokers based on exchange pricing and/or price index developers such as Platts or Argus. These are classified as Level 2.