EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

The components of net pension expense for the Company’s two defined benefit non-contributory pension plans and certain nonqualified supplemental pension plans were:



	Three months ended June 30,						Six months ended June 30,
(in thousands)	2013			2012			2013			2012
Components of net periodic benefit cost:
Service cost	$	3,602		$	2,632		$	7,204		$	5,264
Interest cost	2,718			2,700			5,436			5,400
Expected long-term return on assets	(3,713		)	(3,563		)	(7,426		)	(7,126		)
Actuarial loss	3,675			2,099			7,365			4,198
Prior service cost amortization	122			129			245			259
Settlement charge	—			—			144			—
Net periodic expense	$	6,404		$	3,997		$	12,968		$	7,995

There are no required contributions to the qualified pension plans during 2013. Additionally, it is not anticipated that the funded status of the qualified pension plans will fall below statutory thresholds requiring accelerated funding or constraints on benefit levels or plan administration. The Company made a discretionary contribution of $9.0 million to the qualified pension plans in January 2013. No additional discretionary contributions are currently expected to be made to the pension plans by the Company during 2013. For the three months and six months ending June 30, 2013, the Company made benefit payments aggregating $23,757 and $1.0 million, respectively, to retirees from the nonqualified supplemental retirement plans and expects to make additional benefit payments of approximately $0.2 million through the remainder of 2013. In the first quarter of 2013, the Company incurred a settlement charge of $0.5 million for the payment of lump sums from the nonqualified supplemental retirement plans, of which $0.1 million was expensed and $0.4 million was recognized as a pension and postretirement asset in regulatory assets at Alagasco.

The components of net periodic postretirement benefit expense for the Company’s postretirement benefit plans were:



	Three months ended June 30,						Six months ended June 30,
(in thousands)	2013			2012			2013			2012
Components of net periodic benefit cost:
Service cost	$	444		$	463		$	888		$	927
Interest cost	869			1,062			1,737			2,124
Expected long-term return on assets	(1,242		)	(1,109		)	(2,484		)	(2,219		)
Actuarial loss	—			9			—			18
Transition amortization	324			479			648			959
Net periodic expense	$	395		$	904		$	789		$	1,809

For the three months and six months ended June 30, 2013, the Company made contributions aggregating $0.4 million and $0.8 million to the postretirement benefit plans. The Company expects to make additional discretionary contributions of approximately $0.8 million to the postretirement benefit plans through the remainder of 2013.