INCOME TAXES

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2024

Income Tax Expense (Benefit), Continuing Operations [Abstract]

INCOME TAXES

INCOME TAXES

The Company’s effective tax rate was approximately 22% for the three and six months ended June 30, 2024 and (2)% and 0% for the three and six months ended June 30, 2023, respectively. The effective tax rate for the three and six months ended June 30, 2023 was primarily the result of the partial release of the valuation allowances against the Company’s U.S. deferred tax assets in the first and second quarters of 2023. A valuation allowance for deferred tax assets, including net operating losses (“NOLs”), is recognized when it is more likely than not that some or all of the benefit from the deferred tax assets will not be realized. To assess that likelihood, the Company uses estimates and judgment regarding future taxable income and considers the tax consequences in the jurisdiction where such taxable income is generated, to determine whether a valuation allowance is required. Such evidence can include current financial position, results of operations, both actual and forecasted, the reversal of deferred tax liabilities and tax planning strategies as well as current and forecasted business economics of the oil and gas industry.

For the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company maintained a full valuation allowance against its deferred tax assets based on its conclusion, considering all available evidence (both positive and negative), that it was more likely than not that the deferred tax assets would not be realized. A significant item of objective negative evidence considered was the cumulative pre-tax loss incurred over the three-year period ended December 31, 2022, primarily due to impairments of proved oil and gas properties recognized in 2020. As of the first quarter of 2023, the Company sustained a three-year cumulative level of profitability. Based on this factor and other positive evidence such as forecasted income, the Company concluded that $512 million of its federal and state deferred tax assets were more likely than not to be realized and released this portion of the valuation allowance throughout 2023. Accordingly, during the six months ended June 30, 2023, the Company recognized $504 million of deferred income tax expense related to recording its tax provision which was partially offset by $497 million of tax benefit attributable to the release of the valuation allowance. The remaining valuation allowance was released during subsequent quarters during 2023. The Company expects to keep a valuation allowance of $52 million related to NOLs in jurisdictions in which it no longer operates and against the portion of its federal and state deferred tax assets such as capital

losses and interest carryovers, which may expire before being fully utilized due to the application of the limitations under Section 382 and the ordering in which such attributes may be applied.

Due to the issuance of common stock associated with the Indigo merger in September 2021, the Company incurred a cumulative ownership change and as such, the Company’s NOLs prior to the acquisition are subject to an annual limitation under Internal Revenue Code Section 382 of approximately $48 million. The ownership changes and resulting annual limitation will result in the expiration of NOLs or other tax attributes otherwise available. At June 30, 2024, the Company had approximately $4 billion of federal NOL carryovers, of which approximately $3 billion expire between 2035 and 2037 and $1 billion have an indefinite carryforward life. The Company currently estimates that approximately $2 billion of these federal NOLs will expire before they are able to be used and accordingly, no value has been ascribed to these NOLs on the Company’s balance sheet. If a subsequent ownership change were to occur as a result of future transactions in the Company’s common stock, the Company’s use of remaining U.S. tax attributes may be further limited.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the “IRA”) was enacted on August 16, 2022 and may impact how the U.S. taxes certain large corporations. The IRA imposes a 15% alternative minimum tax on the “adjusted financial statement income” of certain large corporations (generally, corporations reporting at least $1 billion average adjusted pre-tax net income on their consolidated financial statements) for tax years beginning after December 31, 2022. The Company was not impacted by the alternative minimum tax during 2023 and does not expect to be impacted by this alternative minimum tax during 2024. The Company will continue to monitor updates to the IRA and the impact it will have on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.