Financial Instruments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Financial Instruments [Abstract]

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

6. FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS.

Fair value of financial instruments

The carrying amount and estimated fair values of our financial instruments as of December 31, 2011 and 2010 are as follow (in thousands):

		December 31, 2011				December 31, 2010
		Carrying				Carrying
		Amount		Fair Value		Amount		Fair Value
Financial assets:
	Cash	$	164	$	164	$	148	$	148
	Short-term financial assets		255,878		255,878		108,985		108,985
	ARO Trust investments		24,545		24,545		40,413		40,413
	Long-term financial assets		7,277		7,277		144		144
Financial liabilities:
	Long-term debt, including current portion		1,353,718		1,539,152		1,279,950		1,432,866

For cash and short-term financial assets (third-party notes receivable and advances to affiliates) that have variable interest rates, the carrying amount is a reasonable estimate of fair value due to the short maturity of those instruments. For long-term financial assets (long-term receivables), the carrying amount is a reasonable estimate of fair value because the interest rate is a variable rate.The fair value of our publicly traded long-term debt is valued using year-end traded bond market prices. The fair value of our private debt is based on market rates and the prices of similar securities with similar terms and credit ratings. At December 31, 2011 and 2010, 72 percent and 100 percent, respectively, of long-term debt were publicly traded. (See Note 3.)