Derivative Financial Instruments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities Disclosure [Abstract]

From time to time, we use derivative financial instruments, primarily interest rate swaps, to manage our exposure to fluctuations in interest rates. Our primary objective in managing interest rate risk is to decrease the volatility of our earnings and cash flows affected by changes in the underlying rates. We have floating rate long-term debt (see Note 7—Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities). These obligations expose us to variability in interest payments due to changes in interest rates. If interest rates increase, our interest expense increases. Conversely, if interest rates decrease, our interest expense also decreases. Through their expiration on June 30, 2022, we designated the interest rate swap agreements described below as cash flow hedges. Under these hedges, we received variable-rate amounts from a counterparty in exchange for us making fixed-rate payments over the lives of the agreements without exchange of the underlying notional amount. The change in the fair value of the interest rate swap agreements was reflected in accumulated other comprehensive loss and was subsequently reclassified into earnings in the period that the hedged transaction affected earnings by virtue of qualifying as effective cash flow hedges. We do not use derivative financial instruments for speculative purposes.

In 2019, we entered into variable-to-fixed interest rate swap agreements to hedge the interest on $4.0 billion notional amount of floating rate debt. As of December 31, 2021, we evaluated the effectiveness of our remaining hedges quantitatively and determined that hedges in effect on such dates qualified as effective hedge relationships. All remaining hedges were expired as of December 31, 2022.

Amounts accumulated in accumulated other comprehensive loss related to derivatives were indirectly recognized in earnings as periodic settlement payments were made throughout the term of the swaps.

The amount of unrealized losses recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss consists of the following (in millions):


Derivatives designated as hedging instruments
Cash flow hedging contracts
Year Ended December 31, 2021	$	1

The amount of realized losses reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss to the statement of operations consists of the following (in millions):


Derivatives designated as hedging instruments	2022		2021
Cash flow hedging contracts
Years Ended December 31,	$	22	83

For the year ended December 31, 2022, amounts included in accumulated other comprehensive loss at the beginning of the period were reclassified into earnings upon the settlement of the cash flow hedging contracts on March 31, 2022 and June 30, 2022. During the year ended December 31, 2022, $19 million of net losses on the interest rate swaps have been reflected in our consolidated statements of operations upon settlement of the agreements in the first half of 2022.