Properties
The following table presents certain information concerning our principal properties included in the Pipeline Segment:
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Property Classification | | % Owned | | Operator | | Capacity (Bcf/d) | | Compression Horsepower | | Description | | Location |
Pipeline | | | | | | | | | | | | |
FERC-Regulated Interstate Pipelines |
NEXUS (a) | | 50% | | No | | 1.4 | | | 99,137 | | | 256-mile pipeline and three compression facilities transporting Utica and Marcellus shale gas to Ohio, Michigan and Ontario market centers. NEXUS owns 100% of Generation Pipeline | | OH and MI |
Vector Pipeline (a) | | 40% | | No | | 2.8 | | | 120,000 | | | 348-mile pipeline and five compression facilities connecting Illinois, Michigan and Ontario market centers | | IL, IN, MI and Ontario |
Millennium Pipeline (a) | | 52.5% | | No | | 1.9 | | | 84,389 | | | 263-mile pipeline and compression facilities serving markets in the northeast and supply from the northeast Marcellus region | | NY |
Birdsboro Pipeline | | 100% | | Yes | | 0.2 | | | — | | | 14-mile pipeline delivering gas supply to a gas-fired power plant in Pennsylvania | | PA |
Intrastate Pipelines |
Generation Pipeline | | 50% | | No | | 0.4 | | | — | | | 25-mile pipeline located in northern Ohio and owned by NEXUS | | OH |
FERC-Regulated Storage System |
Washington 10 Storage Complex (b) | | 91% | | Yes | | N/A | | 26,205 | | | 94 Bcf of storage capacity and associated compression facilities | | MI |
Lateral Pipelines |
Bluestone | | 100% | | Yes | | 1.2 | | | 36,720 | | | 65-mile pipeline and two compression facilities gathering Marcellus shale gas to the Millennium Pipeline and the Tennessee Pipeline | | PA and NY |
LEAP | | 100% | | Yes | | 1.0 | | | — | | | 155-mile pipeline gathering Haynesville shale gas to markets in the Gulf Coast region | | LA |
Stonewall Gas Gathering | | 85% | | Yes | | 1.5 | | | — | | | 68-mile pipeline gathering Marcellus/Utica natural gas to the Columbia Pipeline | | WV |
__________________________________(a)We account for our ownership interest in these properties as equity method investments in accordance with GAAP. See Note 1, "Description of the Business and Basis of Presentation" to the Consolidated Financial Statements under Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K.
(b)The Washington 10 Storage Complex includes 16 Bcf of leased capacity from Washington 28 Storage which is held by a joint venture, South Romeo, in which DT Midstream owns a 50% interest.
Business Updates
On October 7, 2022, DT Midstream closed on the $552 million purchase of an additional 26.25% ownership interest in Millennium Pipeline from National Grid. The transaction was financed with cash on hand and available capacity under the Company's Revolving Credit Facility. The purchase constituted National Grid's full ownership interests in Millennium Pipeline, and, brought DT Midstream's total ownership interest in Millennium Pipeline to 52.50%. See Note 1, "Description of the Business and Basis of Presentation" to the Consolidated Financial Statements under Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K.
During 2022, DT Midstream continued the LEAP expansion and reached the final investment decision on phases 2 and 3. The LEAP expansion phases 2 and 3 will increase the capacity to 1.9 Bcf/d and will provide access to LNG export terminals. DT Midstream also placed into service the Stonewall Gas Gathering expansion.
Capital expenditure investments for these expansion projects have been contemplated in our forecasted capital expenditures discussed under Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Capital Investments of this Form 10-K.
Gathering Segment
Description
Our Gathering segment includes gathering systems, related treatment plants, and compression and surface facilities. Our subsidiary companies own and operate these types of assets across multiple states.
Our natural gas gathering systems primarily consist of networks of pipelines that collect natural gas from points at or near our customers’ wells for delivery to plants for treating, to gathering pipelines for further gathering, or to pipelines for transportation. Natural gas is moved from the receipt points to the central delivery points on our gathering systems. We provide other ancillary services within our Gathering segment, including compression, dehydration, gas treatment, water impoundment, water transportation, water disposal, and sand mining. Our gathering systems provide a gathering function and are therefore not subject to FERC jurisdiction. Our gathering business has significant infrastructure within our customers' production acreage that is contractually dedicated to DT Midstream to provide gathering services.
Revenues
Our Gathering segment typically has firm revenue contracts that are long-term and structured using fixed demand charges or MVCs with fixed deficiency fee rates. This provides for fixed revenue commitments regardless of actual volumes of natural gas that flow, which leads to more stable operating performance, revenues and cash flows and limits our exposure to natural gas price fluctuations. Additional revenues are generated from proved developed producing reserves connected to our assets, which we refer to as "flowing gas." For the year ended December 31, 2022, 68% and 20% of our Gathering revenue was generated under firm revenue contracts and flowing gas, respectively. Together, revenues generated under firm revenue contracts and flowing gas account for approximately 88% of our Gathering revenue.
For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, average throughput from the Gathering segment was 3.1 Bcf/d and 2.8 Bcf/d, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2022, revenue from the Gathering segment accounted for approximately 63% of our consolidated revenue.
Competition
Our Gathering operations compete for customers based on reputation, operating reliability and flexibility, price and service offerings, including interconnectivity to producer-desired takeaway options (i.e., processing facilities and pipelines). We mitigate the risk of competition by signing acreage dedications, entering firm revenue contracts, expanding treating capacity and expanding our systems to desirable production basins. Competition customarily is impacted by the level of drilling activity in a particular geographic region. Our primary competitors include other independent midstream companies with gathering operations and producer owned systems.
Properties
The following table presents certain information concerning our principal properties included in the Gathering Segment:
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Property Classification | | % Owned | | Operator | | Capacity (Bcf/d) | | Compression Horsepower | | Description | | Location |
Gathering |
Susquehanna Gathering System | | 100% | | Yes | | 1.4 | | | 97,005 | | | 198-mile pipeline delivering Marcellus shale gas production to Bluestone | | PA |
Blue Union | | 100% | | Yes | | 2.2 | | | 55,000 | | | 355-mile gathering system delivering shale gas production from the Haynesville formation of Louisiana to markets in the Gulf Coast region; ancillary services include water impoundment, water transportation. water disposal, and sand mining | | LA and TX |
Appalachia Gathering System | | 100% | | Yes | | 0.9 | | | 60,680 | | | 139-mile pipeline delivering Marcellus shale gas to the Texas Eastern Pipeline and Stonewall Gas Gathering | | PA and WV |
Tioga Gathering System | | 100% | | Yes | | 0.1 | | | — | | | 3-mile pipeline delivering production gas to the Dominion Transmission interconnect | | PA |
Michigan Gathering System | | 100% | | Yes | | 0.8 | | | 2,400 | | | 328-mile pipeline system in northern Michigan | | MI |
Business Updates
During 2022, DT Midstream continued the Blue Union expansion that will increase the capacity to over 2.6 Bcf/d. DT Midstream also placed into service the Appalachia Gathering System expansion and executed agreements to further expand the Appalachia Gathering System. Additionally during 2022, DT Midstream continued the conversion of the Michigan Gathering System to dry gas transmission service and completed construction in early 2023.
Capital expenditure investments for these expansion projects have been contemplated in our forecasted capital expenditures discussed under Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Capital Investments of this Form 10-K.
Pipeline and Gathering Rights-of-Way
We obtain satisfactory title to the properties we own and use in our businesses, subject to liens for current taxes, liens incident to minor encumbrances, and easements and restrictions, which do not materially detract from the value of such property, the interests in those properties or the use of such properties in our businesses. Our storage facilities, treating and processing plants, compressor stations, offices and related facilities are located on real property owned or leased by us. In some cases, the real property we lease is on federal, state or local government land.
We typically obtain and maintain rights to construct and operate the pipelines on other people’s land under agreements that are perpetual or provide for renewal rights. Our pipelines are constructed on rights-of-way granted by the current record owners of such property. In many instances, lands over which rights-of-way have been obtained are subject to prior liens that have not been subordinated to the right-of-way grants. All record owners have joined in the right-of-way grants and signatures have been obtained, except in unusual cases where title is unclear and requires additional investigation.
Human Capital Resources
DT Midstream recognizes that being agile and innovative is necessary for our continued growth. After the Separation, DTM has continued to build out our workforce to support our corporate and operational functions as an independent public company. We currently employ 362 employees, all of whom are employed full-time, exclusive of our student intern program. All of our employees are in the U.S., with our headquarters in Detroit and office locations in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Louisiana, and Texas. None of our employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements. We believe that our employee relations are good.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
DT Midstream is committed to building a diverse, empowered, and engaged team that delivers safe and reliable service to our customers. Rather than having DEI solely as a stand-alone program, we integrate these practices into our overall operating model. We review DEI performance in several ways:
•Diversity of interviewees, hires, high potential talent, and leadership promotions;
•Workforce representation of women, minorities, and employees with disabilities based on voluntary self-identification information; and
•Employee engagement, including specific programs focused on a culture of belonging.
Health and Safety
The health and safety of people, including our employees, contractors, customers, and the communities we serve is our top priority. Our safety culture is maintained and strengthened by our safety team, which monitors events, compliance, and training activities.
We monitor our safety performance with leading and lagging indicators, such as safety observations, near-misses and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration recordable injury metrics.
Compensation and Benefits Description
Our human capital resources objectives include recruiting, incentivizing, fostering belonging, and retaining top talent. To achieve this, we offer our employees competitive compensation packages, annual and long-term incentive programs, defined contribution retirement savings plans and an employer contribution match, as well as paid time off, medical, dental, vision and other employee benefits. We review our compensation practices annually to ensure that pay is fair and internally equitable. For additional information on the metrics used in our incentive plans, please see the "Annual and Long-term Incentives" section of our Proxy Statement.
In 2022, our human resource professionals worked with external compensation consultants to refine our compensation structure to ensure competitive, market-driven pay ranges by job classification, which enables us to recruit candidates and retain current employees based on objective factors like years of experience and strength of relevant skills.
For additional information on our approach to managing our human capital resources, see our 2022 Corporate Sustainability Report on our website. The information in our Corporate Sustainability Report is not incorporated by reference into this Form 10-K.
Regulatory Environment
Our operations and investments are subject to extensive regulation by United States federal, state and local authorities. In addition, NEXUS and the Vector Pipeline are subject to applicable laws, rules, and regulations in Canada.
FERC Regulation
Many of our business operations are subject to extensive regulation by the FERC under the Natural Gas Act, the Natural Gas Policy Act and regulations, rules and policies promulgated under those and other statutes. Specifically, the Vector Pipeline, the Millennium Pipeline, the Birdsboro Pipeline, the NEXUS Gas Transmission Pipeline, and the Washington 10 Storage Complex are subject to the FERC's Natural Gas Act authority and provide interstate natural gas transportation or storage services in accordance with their FERC-approved tariffs. Generally, the FERC’s authority with respect to natural gas extends to:
•rates and charges for interstate pipelines and storage facilities as well as intrastate pipelines and storage facilities providing service in interstate commerce;
•certification and construction of new interstate pipelines and storage services and facilities and expansion of such facilities;
•abandonment of interstate pipelines and storage services and facilities;
•maintenance of accounts and records;
•relationships between pipelines and certain affiliates;
•terms and conditions of services and service contracts with customers;
•depreciation and amortization rates and policies; and
•acquisitions and dispositions of interstate pipelines and storage facilities.
The FERC regulates the rates and charges for pipelines and storage in interstate commerce. Under the Natural Gas Act, rates charged by interstate pipelines must be just, reasonable, and not unduly discriminatory or preferential.
The recourse rate is the maximum rate an interstate pipeline may charge for its services under its tariff. It is established through the FERC’s cost-of-service ratemaking process. Generally, the maximum filed recourse rates for interstate pipelines are based on the cost of providing that service including recovery of and a return on the pipeline’s cost of capital. Key determinants in the ratemaking process include the costs of providing service, the volumes of gas being transported or stored, the rate design, the allocation of costs between services, the capital structure, the depreciation rate and the rate of return a natural gas company is permitted to earn.
The maximum applicable recourse rates and terms and conditions for service on an interstate natural gas pipeline are set forth in the pipeline’s FERC-approved tariff unless market-based rates have been approved by the FERC. Rate design and the allocation of costs also can affect a pipeline’s profitability. While the ratemaking process establishes the recourse rate, interstate pipelines such as some of our pipelines and storage systems are permitted to charge discounted rates, which are lower than the recourse rates, without further FERC authorization down to the minimum rate set forth in the tariff for the applicable service. Changes to recourse rates or terms and conditions of service and contracts can be proposed by a pipeline company under Section 4 of the Natural Gas Act. Rate increases proposed by a regulated interstate pipeline may be challenged and such increases may ultimately be rejected by the FERC. The existing interstate pipeline and storage rates or terms and conditions of service and contracts may be challenged by a complaint filed by interested persons including customers, state agencies or the FERC under Section 5 of the Natural Gas Act. Rate increases proposed by a pipeline may be allowed to become effective subject to refund and/or a period of suspension, while rates or terms and conditions of service that are the subject of a complaint under Section 5 of the Natural Gas Act are subject only to prospective change by the FERC. Any successful challenge against existing or proposed rates charged for our pipelines and storage services could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
In addition, our interstate pipelines may also charge negotiated rates that may be above or below the recourse rate or that are subject to a different rate design than the rates specified in our interstate pipeline tariffs, provided that the pipeline has appropriate language in its tariff permitting negotiated rates, that affected customers are willing to agree to such rates rather than recourse rates, and that the FERC has approved the negotiated rate agreement. A prerequisite for allowing the negotiated rates is that negotiated rate customers must have had the option to take service under the pipeline’s recourse rates. Some negotiated rate transactions are designed to fix the negotiated rate for the term of the firm transportation agreement and the fixed rate is generally not subject to adjustment for increased or decreased costs occurring during the contract term or for changes in the recourse rate during the contract term.
FERC regulations also extend to the terms and conditions set forth in agreements for pipelines and storage services executed between interstate pipelines and their customers. These service agreements are required to conform, in all material respects, with the form of service agreements set forth in the pipeline’s FERC-approved tariff. Non-conforming agreements must be filed with, and accepted by, the FERC. If the FERC finds that an agreement is materially non-conforming, in whole or in part, it could reject, or require us to seek modification of, the agreement, or alternatively require us to modify our tariff so that the non-conforming provisions are generally available to all customers or class of customers. The Vector Pipeline, the Millennium Pipeline, the Birdsboro Pipeline, the NEXUS Gas Transmission Pipeline, and the Washington 10 Storage Complex provide interstate services in accordance with their FERC-approved tariffs. Notwithstanding the regulatory discussion above, we believe the regulatory burden does not currently affect our competitive condition.
Failure of an interstate pipeline to comply with its obligations under the Natural Gas Act could result in the imposition of civil and criminal penalties. Among other matters, the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which we refer to as the "EPAct 2005," amended the Natural Gas Act to give FERC authority to impose civil penalties for violations of the Natural Gas Act up to $1 million for any one violation, per day and violators may be subject to criminal penalties of up to $1 million per violation, per day and five years in prison. The $1 million civil penalty levels adjust annually based on inflation and have been set at $1,496,035 per violation, per day for 2023.
To the extent that an intrastate pipeline system transports natural gas in interstate commerce, the rates, terms and conditions of such interstate transportation service are subject to FERC rules and regulations under Section 311 of the Natural Gas Policy Act, or "Section 311". Non-compliance with FERC’s rules and regulations established under Section 311 could result in the imposition of civil and criminal penalties. Among other matters, the EPAct 2005 also amended the Natural Gas Policy Act to give FERC authority to impose civil penalties for violations of the Natural Gas Policy Act up to $1 million for any one violation and violators may be subject to criminal penalties of up to $1 million per violation and five years in prison. The $1 million civil penalty levels adjust annually based on inflation and have been set at $1,496,035 per violation, per day for 2023.
State Regulation of Natural Gas Pipelines
Many state agencies possess the authority to review and authorize natural gas transportation transactions and the construction, acquisition, abandonment and interconnection of physical facilities for intrastate pipelines. State agencies also may regulate transportation rates, service terms, and conditions and contract pricing. Other state regulations may not directly apply to our business but may nonetheless affect the availability of natural gas for purchase, compression and sale. Regulations within a particular state generally will affect all intrastate pipeline operators within the state on a comparable basis; thus, we believe that the regulation of intrastate transportation in any state in which we operate will not disproportionately affect our operations.
Gathering Pipeline Regulation
Section 1(b) of the Natural Gas Act exempts natural gas gathering facilities from regulation by the FERC. We believe that our gathering systems meet the traditional tests the FERC has used to establish a pipeline’s status as an exempt gatherer not subject to regulation as a jurisdictional natural gas company. However, the distinction between FERC-regulated transmission services and federally unregulated gathering services is often the subject of litigation in the industry, so the classification and regulation of these systems are subject to change based on future determinations by the FERC, the courts or the U.S. Congress. If the FERC were to consider the status of an individual facility and determine that the facility is not a gathering pipeline and the pipeline provides interstate transmission service, the rates for, and terms and conditions of, services provided by such facility would be subject to regulation by the FERC under the Natural Gas Act or the Natural Gas Policy Act. Such regulation could decrease revenue, increase operating costs, and, depending upon the facility in question, adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, if any of our facilities were found to have provided services or otherwise operated in violation of the Natural Gas Act or Natural Gas Policy Act, this could result in the imposition of civil penalties as well as a requirement to disgorge charges collected for such service in excess of the rate established by the FERC.
Our gathering assets may be subject to the rules and regulations of various state utility commissions. State regulation of gathering facilities generally includes various safety, environmental and, in some circumstances, nondiscriminatory take requirements and complaint-based rate regulation. States in which we operate may adopt ratable take and common purchaser statutes, which would require our gathering pipelines to take natural gas without undue discrimination in favor of one producer over another producer or one source of supply over another similarly situated source of supply. The regulations under these statutes may have the effect of imposing some restrictions on our ability as an owner of gathering facilities to decide with whom we contract to gather natural gas. States in which we operate may also adopt a complaint-based regulation of natural gas gathering activities, which allows natural gas producers and shippers to file complaints with state regulators in an effort to resolve grievances relating to gathering access and rate discrimination. We cannot predict whether such a complaint will be filed against us in the future or how a regulator may rule on any such complaint. Failure to comply with state regulations may result in the imposition of administrative, civil and criminal remedies. We are not aware of any pending proceedings or complaints at this time.
Our gathering operations could be adversely affected should they be subject in the future to more stringent application of state regulation of rates and services. Our gathering operations also may be, or become, subject to additional safety and operational regulations relating to the design, installation, testing, construction, operation, replacement, and management of gathering facilities. Additional rules and legislation pertaining to these matters are considered or adopted from time to time. We cannot predict whether any such additional rules or legislation will be promulgated or enacted, or what effect, if any, such changes might have on our operations, but the industry could be required to incur additional capital expenditures and increased costs depending on future legislative and regulatory changes.
The price at which we buy and sell natural gas currently is not subject to U.S. federal regulation. The EPAct 2005 amended the Natural Gas Act and Natural Gas Policy Act to prohibit fraud and manipulation in natural gas markets. The FERC subsequently issued a final rule making it unlawful for any entity, in connection with the purchase or sale of natural gas or transportation service subject to the FERC’s jurisdiction, to defraud, make an untrue statement or omit a material fact or engage in any practice, act or course of business that operates or would operate as a fraud. The FERC’s anti-manipulation rules apply to interstate gas pipeline and storage companies and intrastate gas pipeline and storage companies that provide interstate services, such as Section 311 service, as well as otherwise non-jurisdictional entities to the extent the activities are conducted "in connection with" gas sales, purchases or transportation subject to FERC jurisdiction. The anti-manipulation rules apply to intrastate sales and gathering activities only to the extent that there is a "nexus" to FERC-jurisdictional transactions.
The EPAct 2005 also provided the FERC with the authority to impose civil penalties of up to approximately $1 million (adjusted annually for inflation) per day per violation. On January 6, 2023, FERC issued an order (Order No. 886) increasing the maximum civil penalty amounts under the Natural Gas Act and Natural Gas Policy Act to adjust for inflation. FERC may now assess civil penalties under the Natural Gas Act and Natural Gas Policy Act of up to $1,496,035 per violation per day. In addition, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which we refer to as the "CFTC," is directed under the Commodities Exchange Act, which we refer to as the "CEA," to prevent price manipulations for the commodity and futures markets, including the energy futures markets. Pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act and other authority, the CFTC has adopted anti-market manipulation regulations that prohibit fraud and price manipulation in the commodity and futures markets. The CFTC also has statutory authority to seek civil penalties of up to the greater of approximately $1.2 million or triple the monetary gain to the violator for violations of the anti-market manipulation sections of the CEA.
Pipeline Safety and Maintenance
Our interstate natural gas pipeline system is subject to regulation by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or PHMSA. PHMSA establishes and implements minimum federal safety standards and reporting requirements applicable to gas pipeline facilities, including associated underground natural gas storage. These standards include requirements that apply to the design, installation, testing, construction, operation and maintenance, as well as requirements for pipeline operator qualification and integrity management on certain pipelines. The integrity management programs apply to gas transmission line segments located in high consequence areas, or HCAs, and require operators to perform periodic risk-based assessments in addition to the minimum required inspections and other preventative and mitigation measures. Notwithstanding the investigatory and preventative maintenance costs incurred in our performance of customary pipeline management activities, we may incur significant additional expenses if anomalous pipeline conditions are discovered or additional preventative and mitigation measures need to be implemented.
PHMSA often issues new or amended safety standards and reporting requirements for gas pipeline facilities. For example, the "Safety of Gas Transmission Pipelines: MAOP Reconfirmation, Expansion of Assessment Requirements, and Other Related Amendments" rule, which became effective July 1, 2020, requires operators of certain gas transmission pipelines to reconfirm maximum allowable operating pressure and establishes a new "Moderate Consequence Area" for determining regulatory requirements for gas transmission pipeline segments outside of HCAs. The rule also establishes new requirements for conducting baseline assessments and incorporates industry standards and guidelines as well as new requirements for integrity management programs. In October 2022, PHMSA published the "Safety of Gas Transmission Pipelines: Repair Criteria, Integrity Management Improvements, Cathodic Protection, Management of Change, and Other Related Amendments" rule, effective May 24, 2023, which increases gas integrity management and corrosion control requirements and establishes repair criteria for pipelines outside of HCAs, among other things. We are currently in the process of revising our operating and inspection procedures to address these requirements and will begin implementing those changes as required by the rules. We are assessing the impact of these rules on our future costs of operations and revenue from operations, but we do not expect any potential expenses to be material or our operations to be affected by this new rule any differently than other similarly situated midstream companies.
In November 2021, PHMSA issued another final rule, entitled "Safety of Gas Gathering Pipelines: Extension of Reporting Requirements, Regulation of Large, High-Pressure Lines, and Other Related Amendments," effective as of May 16, 2022, that establishes new safety standards and reporting requirements for certain historically unregulated onshore gas gathering lines. The final rule creates a new Type C category of regulated onshore gas gathering lines in Class 1 locations that are subject to PHMSA’s safety standards and reporting requirements. The final rule also creates a new Type R category of reporting-only onshore gas gathering that are subject to PHMSA’s incident and annual reporting requirements. We have revised our operating and maintenance procedures to address these requirements and have implemented these changes. We will incur expenses related to compliance activities but do not expect these expenses to be material or our operations to be affected any differently than similarly situated midstream companies.
Additionally, in April 2022, PHMSA published the "Pipeline Safety: Requirement of Valve Installation and Minimum Rupture Detection Standard" rule, effective October 5, 2022, which requires installation of remote control or automatic shut-off valves (or alternative equivalent technology) on certain newly constructed or replaced gas transmission pipelines. The final rule also imposes minimum performance standards for operation of those valves. We may incur expenses related to the requirements imposed by this new rule, but do not expect these expenses to be material or our operations to be affected any differently than similarly situated midstream companies.
PHMSA is in the process of developing other regulations to address congressional mandates set forth in the Protecting Our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act of 2020, which we refer to as the "2020 PIPES Act" and for other purposes. For example, PHMSA is in the early stages of developing rules for gas pipeline leak detection and repair and implementing a parallel self-executing provision from the 2020 PIPES Act that requires gas pipeline operators to reduce methane emissions. PHMSA is also in the process of developing inspection and maintenance requirements for idled pipelines. Congress is due to reauthorize the Pipeline Safety Act in 2023, which may mandate other statutory changes or that PHMSA develop additional rulemaking. The adoption of these new PHMSA rules and implementation of the mandate in the 2020 PIPES Act could impact our pipeline assets and operations by requiring the installation of new or modified safety controls and the implementation of new capital projects or accelerated maintenance programs, all of which could require us to incur increased operational costs that could be significant. We may also be affected by lost cash flows resulting from shutting down our pipelines during the pendency of any repairs and any testing, maintenance, and repair of pipeline facilities downstream from our own facilities. While we cannot predict the outcome of legislative or regulatory initiatives, such legislative and regulatory changes could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations, but we do not expect our operations to be affected any differently than similarly situated midstream companies.
Every state in which we operate is certified by PHMSA to regulate the safety of intrastate gas pipeline facilities consistent with the federal safety standards, and some of these states apply additional or more stringent safety standards or reporting requirements to intrastate gas pipeline facilities in their respective jurisdictions. We may incur significant costs and liabilities associated with repair, remediation, preventive or mitigation measures associated with complying with these additional or more stringent state requirements, including for gas gathering lines or other pipeline facilities that are not currently subject to PHMSA’s regulations. The costs, if any, for repair, remediation, preventive or mitigating actions that may be determined to be necessary, as well as lost cash flows resulting from shutting down our pipelines during the pendency of such actions, could be material.
We incur significant costs in complying with U.S. federal and state pipeline safety laws and regulations and otherwise administering our pipeline safety program, but we do not believe such costs of compliance will materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. While we cannot predict the outcome of pending or future legislative or regulatory initiatives, we anticipate that pipeline safety requirements will continue to become more stringent over time. As a result, we may incur significant additional costs to comply with the new pipeline safety regulations, the pending pipeline safety regulations, and any new pipeline safety laws and regulations associated with our pipeline facilities, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Should we fail to comply with PHMSA regulations, we could be subject to penalties and fines. PHMSA has the statutory authority to impose civil penalties for pipeline safety violations up to a maximum of approximately $258,000 per day for each violation and approximately $2.58 million for a related series of violations. This maximum penalty authority established by statute will continue to be adjusted periodically to account for inflation.
We believe that our operations are in substantial compliance with all existing U.S. federal, state and local pipeline safety laws and regulations. However, the adoption of new laws and regulations, such as those proposed by PHMSA, could result in significant added costs or delays in service or the termination of projects, which could have a material adverse effect on us in the future.
In the course of operating our pipeline facilities, we may experience a leak or a rupture on our system. These leaks and ruptures may cause explosions, fire, damage to the environment, damage to property, personal injury and/or death. Depending on the circumstances of the leak or rupture, PHMSA may require that certain pipeline assets remain out of service and/or operate at a significantly reduced operating pressure until certain corrective measures are performed and a return to normal operation is approved by PHMSA. In addition to any regulatory fines or corrective measures, we may be sued for any damages. Depending upon the facts and circumstances of a particular incident, state and federal regulatory authorities may also seek civil and/or criminal fines and penalties.
Natural Gas Storage Regulation
We operate natural gas storage facilities in Michigan as interstate facilities regulated by PHMSA and provide interstate storage and related services pursuant to a FERC-approved tariff. As such our natural gas storage facilities are required to meet the federal safety standards as required by 49 C.F.R. §192.12, Underground natural gas storage facilities.
We believe that our operations are in substantial compliance with 49 C.F.R. §192.12, Underground natural gas storage facilities. However, the adoption of new laws and regulations could result in significant added costs or delays in service or the termination of projects, which could have a material adverse effect on us in the future.
Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety Regulations
General. Our operations are subject to stringent U.S. federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment. These laws and regulations require the acquisition of and compliance with permits and the installation of pollution control equipment; limit or prohibit construction activities in sensitive areas, such as wetlands, coastal regions or areas inhabited by endangered or threatened species; require investigatory and remedial actions to mitigate or eliminate pollution conditions caused by our operations or attributable to former operations; and apply workplace health and safety standards for the benefit of employees.
In addition, our operations and construction activities are subject to county and local ordinances that restrict the time, place or manner in which those activities may be conducted to reduce or mitigate nuisance-type conditions, such as, for example, excessive levels of dust or noise or increased traffic congestion.
Any failure to comply with these laws and regulations may result in the initiation of administrative, civil and criminal actions and the imposition of penalties; the occurrence of delays or cancellations in the permitting or performance or expansion of projects; the denial or termination of project authorizations; the imposition of restrictions or limitations on project authorizations; the addition or removal of conditions or terms in project authorizations; the issuance of injunctions limiting or preventing some or all of our operations in a particular area; and, under certain environmental laws, citizen suits, which allow individuals and environmental organizations to act in the place of the government and sue operators for alleged violations of environmental law.
We have implemented programs and policies designed to keep our pipelines and other facilities in compliance with existing environmental laws and regulations, and we incur significant costs in connection with compliance. We also incur, and expect to continue to incur, additional costs with respect to construction as existing environmental laws and regulations impact the cost of planning, design, permitting, installation and start-up, and with respect to capital expenditures for pollution control equipment that is necessary to achieve emission and discharge standards included in our permits.
Moreover, we incur, and expect to continue to incur, additional costs in connection with spill response. Spills can result in significant costs associated with the investigation and remediation of contaminated facilities, and with injury and damage claims arising from releases and related contamination. The timing and complete extent of future expenditures related to environmental matters is difficult to estimate accurately because, among other things, interpretation and enforcement of environmental laws and regulations are constantly changing, our pollution control and clean-up cost estimates may change, especially when our current estimates are based on preliminary site investigations or agreements, and new contaminated facilities and sites may be found, or what we know about existing sites and facilities could change.
We do not believe that our compliance with such legal requirements will materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Nonetheless, the trend in environmental regulation is to place more restrictions and limitations on activities that may affect the environment. Thus, there can be no assurance as to the amount or timing of future expenditures for environmental compliance or remediation, and actual future expenditures may be significantly in excess of the amounts we currently anticipate. For example, we try to anticipate future regulatory requirements that might be imposed and plan accordingly to remain in compliance with changing environmental laws and regulations and to minimize the costs of such compliance. While we believe that we are in substantial compliance with existing environmental laws and regulations, additional, unplanned measures may be required to maintain compliance in the future.
The following is a discussion of several of the material environmental laws and regulations, as amended from time to time, which relate to our business.
Hazardous Substances and Waste. The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, which we refer to as "CERCLA," and comparable state laws impose liability, without regard to fault or the legality of the original conduct, on current and prior owners or operators of the sites where a release of hazardous substances occurred or extends and companies that transported, disposed or arranged for the transportation or disposal of the hazardous substances released. Under CERCLA, these "responsible parties" may be subject to strict and joint and several liability for the costs of cleaning up the hazardous substances that have been released into the environment, for damages to natural resources and for the costs of certain health studies. CERCLA also authorizes the EPA and, in some instances, third parties to act in response to threats to the public health or the environment and to seek to recover from the responsible parties the costs they incur. It is not uncommon for neighboring landowners and other third parties to file claims for personal injury and property damage allegedly caused by hazardous substances or other pollutants released into the environment. We generate materials in the course of our ordinary operations that are regulated as "hazardous substances" under CERCLA or similar state laws and, as a result, may be jointly and severally liable under CERCLA, or such laws, for all or part of the costs required to clean up sites at which these hazardous substances have been released into the environment.
We also generate solid wastes, including hazardous wastes, which are subject to the requirements of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, which we refer to as "RCRA," and comparable state statutes. While RCRA regulates both solid and hazardous wastes, it imposes strict requirements on the generation, storage, treatment, transportation and disposal of hazardous wastes. In the ordinary course of our operations, we generate wastes constituting solid waste and, in some instances, hazardous wastes. While certain petroleum production wastes are excluded from RCRA’s hazardous waste regulations, it is possible that these wastes will in the future be designated as "hazardous wastes" and be subject to more rigorous and costly disposal requirements, which could have a material adverse effect on our maintenance capital expenditures and operating expenses.
We own, lease or operate properties where hydrocarbons are being or have been handled for many years, by us and by former operators, and we send hydrocarbons and wastes to third-party sites for treatment or disposal. Under CERLCA, RCRA and analogous state laws, we could be required to remove or remediate previously disposed or released wastes (including wastes disposed of or released by prior owners or operators), to clean up contaminated property (including contaminated groundwater) or to perform remedial operations to prevent future contamination, as well as to reimburse for or contribute to the remediation of third-party disposal and treatment sites. We are not currently aware of any facts, events or conditions relating to the application of such requirements that could reasonably materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Air Emissions. The U.S. federal Clean Air Act and comparable state laws and regulations restrict the emission of air pollutants from various industrial sources, including our compressor stations and also impose various pre-construction, operational, monitoring and reporting requirements. Such laws and regulations may require that we obtain pre-approval for the construction or modification of certain projects or facilities, obtain and strictly comply with air permits containing various emissions and operational limitations and utilize specific emission control technologies to limit emissions. Our failure to comply with these requirements could subject us to monetary penalties, injunctions, conditions or restrictions on operations and, potentially, criminal enforcement actions. We may be required to incur certain capital expenditures in the future for air pollution control equipment in connection with obtaining and maintaining permits and approvals for air emissions. Compliance with these requirements may require modifications to certain of our operations, including the installation of new equipment to control emissions from our compressors that could result in significant costs, increased capital expenditures and operating costs, and could adversely affect our business. Further, the permitting, regulatory compliance and reporting programs, taken as a whole, increase the costs and complexity of oil and gas operations with potential to adversely affect the cost of doing business for our customers resulting in reduced demand for our gas processing and transportation services. Although we can give no assurances, we believe such requirements will not materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations, and the requirements are not expected to be more burdensome to us than to any similarly situated company.
Climate Change. Legislative and regulatory measures to address climate change and greenhouse gas, which we refer to as "GHG," emissions are in various phases of discussion or implementation. The EPA regulates GHG emissions from new and modified facilities that are potential major sources of criteria pollutants under the Clean Air Act’s Prevention of Significant Deterioration and Title V programs and has adopted regulations that require, among other things, preconstruction and operating permits for certain large stationary sources and the monitoring and reporting of GHGs from certain onshore oil and natural gas production sources on an annual basis. On November 15, 2021, the EPA published a proposed rule to regulate GHG emissions (in the form of methane limitations) and for volatile organic compound emissions from crude oil production and natural gas production, processing, transmission, and storage. The proposal includes standards of performance for new, modified, and reconstructed sources and emission guidelines for existing sources. On November 11, 2022, the EPA issued a supplemental proposed rule that would update, expand, or strengthen certain aspects of the rule for certain sources. Additionally, the U.S. Congress, along with U.S. federal and state agencies, has considered measures to reduce the emissions of GHGs. Legislation or regulation that restricts GHG emissions could increase our cost of environmental compliance by requiring us to install new equipment to reduce emissions from larger facilities; purchase emission allowances; pay any taxes related to our GHG emissions and/or administer and manage a GHG emissions program, and otherwise increase the costs of our operations, including costs to operate and maintain our facilities.
The FERC does not directly regulate GHG emissions. However, on February 17, 2022, the FERC issued two policy statements providing guidance on its consideration of GHG emissions and other factors when reviewing proposed projects under the Natural Gas Act. These policy statements have been the subject of public comments and remain under consideration by the FERC. If the policy statements come into effect as written, GHG emissions and climate-related considerations could play a more significant role in the FERC’s analysis of projects under its jurisdiction, including projects that do or would supply gas to the Company’s facilities.
The effect of climate change legislation or regulation on our business is currently uncertain. If we incur additional costs to comply with such legislation or regulations, we may not be able to pass on the higher costs to our customers or recover all the costs related to complying with such requirements and any such recovery may depend on events beyond our control, including the outcome of future rate proceedings before the FERC or state regulatory agencies and the provisions of any final legislation or implementing regulations. Our future business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected if such costs are not recovered through regulated rates or otherwise passed on to our customers. Additionally, our customers or suppliers may also be affected by legislation or regulation, which may adversely impact their drilling schedules and production volumes and reduce the volumes delivered to us and demand for our services.
Climate change and GHG legislation or regulation could also delay or otherwise negatively affect efforts to obtain permits and other regulatory approvals with regard to existing and new facilities or impose additional monitoring and reporting requirements. The effect of any new legislative or regulatory measures on us will depend on the particular provisions that are ultimately adopted.
Water Discharges. The U.S. federal Clean Water Act and analogous state laws impose restrictions and strict controls regarding the discharge of pollutants or dredged and fill material into state waters as well as waters of the United States, including adjacent wetlands. The discharge of pollutants into regulated waters is prohibited, except in accordance with the terms of permits issued by the EPA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which we refer to as "the U.S. Army Corps," or an analogous state agency. In April 2020, the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps issued the Navigable Waters Protection Rule under the U.S. federal Clean Water Act, which we refer to as the "WOTUS Rule," narrowing the definition of "waters of the United States" relative to the definition under a prior 2015 rule. On August 30, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona vacated and remanded the WOTUS Rule. Based on this ruling, the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps halted implementation of the WOTUS Rule, and, on December 7, 2021, a proposed rule replacing the WOTUS Rule was published which, if implemented, would in practice restore the pre-2015 definition of "waters of the United States." The agencies released the new rule in final form on December 30, 2022. It will take effect no sooner than early March 2023, sixty days after publication in the Federal Register. The meaning of “waters of the United States” is also under consideration at the U.S. Supreme Court in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency. The court’s decision, widely expected in 2023, could affect the implementation of the newly codified definition. To the extent that any future rules expand the scope of the Clean Water Act’s jurisdiction, we could face increased costs and delays with respect to obtaining permits for activities in jurisdictional waters, including wetlands.
Spill prevention, control and countermeasure requirements of U.S. federal laws require appropriate containment berms and similar structures to help prevent the contamination of regulated waters in the event of a hydrocarbon spill, rupture or leak. In addition, the Clean Water Act and analogous state laws require individual permits or coverage under general permits for discharges of storm water runoff from certain types of facilities. These permits may require us to monitor and sample the storm water runoff from some of our facilities. The Clean Water Act and regulations implemented thereunder also prohibit discharges of dredged and fill material in wetlands and other waters of the U.S. unless authorized by an appropriately issued permit. Some states also maintain groundwater protection programs that require permits for discharges or operations that may impact groundwater conditions. U.S. federal and state regulatory agencies can impose administrative, civil and criminal penalties for non-compliance with discharge permits or other requirements of the Clean Water Act and analogous state laws. We believe that compliance with existing permits and foreseeable new permit requirements will not materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
National Environmental Policy Act. The construction of interstate natural gas transportation pipelines pursuant to the Natural Gas Act requires authorization from the FERC. Certain FERC actions relating to such pipelines are subject to the National Environmental Policy Act, which we refer to as the "NEPA." NEPA requires U.S. federal agencies, such as the FERC, to evaluate major U.S. federal actions having the potential to significantly affect the environment. During such evaluations, an agency will prepare a detailed Environmental Impact Statement unless it has found on the basis of an environmental assessment that no significant effect is likely. Such NEPA analyses have the potential to significantly delay or limit, and significantly increase the cost of, development of midstream infrastructure. On April 20, 2022, the White House Council on Environmental Quality published a final rule amending its existing regulations governing the implementation of NEPA by federal agencies. The amendments principally address definitions relating to environmental effects and alternatives that require agency consideration. The Council has stated its intention to conduct a second and more extensive round of NEPA regulatory amendments. Though the second proposal has not been issued yet, it is possible (and widely anticipated) that it would permit or require agencies to undertake more searching inquiries during their NEPA reviews.
Hydraulic Fracturing. We do not operate any assets that conduct hydraulic fracturing. However, our customers’ natural gas production is developed from unconventional sources that require hydraulic fracturing as part of the completion process. Hydraulic fracturing involves the injection of water, sand and chemicals under pressure into the formation to fracture the surrounding rock and stimulate production. The process is regulated by state agencies, typically the state’s commission that regulates oil and gas production. A number of U.S. federal agencies, including the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy, have analyzed, or have been requested to review, a variety of environmental issues associated with hydraulic fracturing. For example, the EPA finalized regulations under the Clean Water Act in June 2016 prohibiting wastewater discharges from hydraulic fracturing and certain other natural gas operations to publicly owned wastewater treatment plants. In addition, some states have adopted, and other states are considering adopting, regulations that could impose more stringent disclosure and/or well construction requirements on hydraulic fracturing operations.
Certain state and U.S. federal regulatory agencies also focused on a possible connection between the operation of injection wells used for oil and gas wastewater disposal and seismic activity. Similar concerns have been raised that hydraulic fracturing may also contribute to seismic activity. When caused by human activity, such events are called induced seismicity. In light of these concerns, some state regulatory agencies have modified their regulations or issued orders to address induced seismicity through restrictions on disposal wells or enhanced well construction and monitoring requirements. Certain environmental and other groups have also suggested that additional U.S. federal, state and local laws and regulations may be needed to more closely regulate the wastewater disposal process.
If new laws or regulations that significantly restrict hydraulic fracturing or wastewater disposal wells are adopted, such laws could lead to greater opposition to, and litigation concerning, related oil and gas producing activities and to operational delays or increased operating costs for DT Midstream and our customers, which in turn could reduce the demand for our services.
Endangered Species Act. The U.S. federal Endangered Species Act, which we refer to as the "ESA," restricts activities that may adversely affect endangered and threatened species or their habitats. U.S. federal agencies are required to ensure that any action authorized, funded or carried out by them is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of listed species or modify their critical habitat. While some of our facilities are located in areas that are designated as habitats for endangered or threatened species, we have not incurred any material costs to comply or restrictions on our operations and we believe that we are in substantial compliance with the ESA. The designation of previously unprotected species as being endangered or threatened, or the designation of previously unprotected areas as a critical habitat for such species, could cause us to incur additional costs, result in delays in construction of pipelines and facilities, cause us to become subject to operating restrictions in areas where the species are known to exist or could result in limitations on our customers’ exploration and production activities that could have an adverse impact on demand for our services. For example, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has received hundreds of petitions to consider listing additional species as endangered or threatened and is being regularly sued or threatened with lawsuits to address these petitions. Compliance with all applicable laws providing special protection for designated species has not posed a material cost on our business and operations to date.
Employee Health and Safety. We are subject to a number of U.S. federal and state laws and regulations, including the U.S. federal Occupational Safety and Health Act, which we refer to as "OSHA," and comparable state statutes, whose purpose is to protect the health and safety of workers. In addition, the OSHA hazard communication standard, the EPA community "right-to-know" regulations and comparable state laws and regulations require that information be maintained concerning hazardous materials used or produced in our operations and that this information be provided to employees, state and local government authorities and citizens. We are also subject to OSHA Process Safety Management regulations, which are designed to prevent or minimize the consequences of catastrophic releases of toxic, reactive, flammable or explosive chemicals. We are also subject to EPA Risk Management Program regulations, which we refer to as the "RMP regulations." The RMP regulations were amended by the EPA under a final rule published December 19, 2019. The amendments were intended to better address potential security risks and ensure regulatory consistency, and we do not anticipate that they will significantly increase our cost of compliance. We have implemented internal programs and policies to comply with these health and safety requirements.
We believe that we are in substantial compliance with all applicable laws and regulations relating to worker health and safety. Historically, worker safety and health compliance costs have not materially adversely affected our business, financial condition and results of operations; however, there can be no assurance that such costs will not be material in the future or that such future compliance will not materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. While we may increase expenditures in the future to comply with higher industry and regulatory safety standards, such increases in costs of compliance, and the extent to which they might be recoverable through our rates, cannot be estimated at this time.
Physical and Cyber Security
Physical Security
Given the nature of the commodities we transport, treat, store, and sell, our assets and the assets of our customers and others in our industry may be targets of terrorist activities, theft or vandalism. A terrorist attack could create significant price volatility, disrupt our business, limit our access to capital markets, or cause significant harm to our operations, such as full or partial disruption to our ability to gather, process, or transport natural gas. The Transportation Security Administration published guidelines for the security of natural gas pipelines. We have implemented applicable practices from those guidelines. Acts of terrorism, as well as events occurring in response to or in connection with acts of terrorism, could cause environmental repercussions that could result in a significant decrease in revenues or significant reconstruction or remediation costs, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Cyber Security
We have become increasingly dependent on the systems, networks and technology that we use to conduct almost all aspects of our business, including the operation of our pipelines, storage and gathering assets, the recording of commercial transactions, communications with the employees supporting our operations and our customers or other business partners, and the reporting of financial information. We also collect and store sensitive data in the ordinary course of our business, including personally identifiable information of our employees as well as our proprietary business information and that of our vendors, customers and other business partners. The secure processing, maintenance and transmission of information is critical to our operations. We depend on our own systems, networks and technology, as well as the systems, networks and technology of our vendors, customers and other business partners, including our equity method investees. We have existing systems in place and continue to develop systems to monitor and address the risk of cyber security breaches in our business, operations and control environments. We routinely review and update those systems as the nature of that risk requires. Governmental standards and commonly accepted frameworks for the protection of computer-based systems and technology from cyber threats and attacks have been adopted. We monitor newly developed cyber security standards or legislation and consider adoption as appropriate for our business.
Breaches in our information technology infrastructure or physical facilities, or other disruptions including those arising from theft, vandalism, fraud, or unethical conduct, could result in damage to or destruction of our assets, unnecessary waste, safety incidents, damage to the environment, reputational damage, potential liability, delays in service performance for our customers, the loss of contracts, the imposition of significant costs associated with remediation and litigation, heightened regulatory scrutiny, increased insurance costs, or challenges in maintaining our books and records, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Moreover, we may not be able to anticipate, detect or prevent all cyberattacks, particularly because the methodologies used by attackers change frequently or may not be recognized until such attack is underway, and because attackers are increasingly using technologies specifically designed to circumvent cybersecurity measures and avoid detection. Cybersecurity attacks are also becoming more sophisticated and include, but are not limited to, ransomware, credential stuffing, spear phishing, social engineering and other attempts to gain unauthorized access to data for purposes of extortion or malfeasance.
As cyberattacks continue to evolve, we may be required to expend significant additional resources to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures or to investigate and remediate any vulnerabilities to cyberattacks. To date, we have not experienced any material losses relating to cyberattacks; however, there can be no assurance that we will not suffer such losses in the future. Consequently, it is possible that any of these occurrences, or a combination of them, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
You should carefully consider the following risks and other information in this Form 10-K. Any of the following risks and uncertainties could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Risks Relating to Our Business
Operational Risks
Any significant decrease in demand or in production of natural gas in our asset footprint could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our business is dependent on the continued availability of and demand for natural gas in our areas of operation, which include the Midwestern U.S., Eastern Canada, Northeastern U.S. and Gulf Coast regions. A reduction in the natural gas volumes supplied by producers could result in reduced throughput on our systems and materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. The primary factors affecting our ability to obtain sources of natural gas include (i) the level of successful drilling activity near our systems, (ii) our ability to compete for volumes from successful new wells and (iii) our ability to compete successfully for volumes from sources connected to other pipelines.
To maintain or increase the contracted capacity or the volume of natural gas transported, stored and gathered on our systems and cash flows associated therewith, our customers must continually obtain adequate supplies of natural gas. If new supplies of natural gas are not obtained to replace the natural decline in volumes from existing supply basins in our areas of operation, or if natural gas supplies are diverted to serve other markets, the overall volume of natural gas gathered, transported and stored on our systems would decline, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We have several customers with one being a key customer, Southwestern Energy. The loss of, or reduction in volumes from, this customer could result in a decline in demand for our services and materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Southwestern Energy accounted for approximately 65% of our operating revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022. Our operating revenues do not include revenues of unconsolidated joint ventures accounted for as equity method investments. The loss of all or even a portion of the contracted volumes of this or other customers, the failure to extend or replace these contracts or the extension or replacement of these contracts on less favorable terms, as a result of competition, creditworthiness, reduced production or otherwise, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We may be unable to renew or replace expiring contracts at favorable rates or on a long-term basis.
One of our exposures to market risk occurs at the time our existing contracts, including both our contracts with existing customers and our contracts with our suppliers and other counterparties, expire and are subject to renegotiation and renewal. The majority of our contracts are firm service revenue contracts. Firm service revenue contracts are typically long-term and structured using fixed demand charges or MVCs with fixed deficiency fee rates. This provides for fixed revenue commitments regardless of actual volumes of natural gas that flow, which leads to more stable operating performance, revenues and cash flows and limits our exposure to natural gas price fluctuations. We may not be able to renew or replace these contracts at expiration, and our efforts to negotiate for similar fixed revenue commitments may not be successful, which could cause our exposure to commodity price risk to change or adversely affect the stability of our cash flows.
If third-party pipelines and other facilities interconnected to our assets become unavailable to transport natural gas, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
We depend upon third-party pipelines and other facilities that provide receipt and delivery options to and from our assets. For example, our pipelines interconnect with multiple interstate pipelines in the Midwestern U.S., Eastern Canada, Northeastern U.S. and Gulf Coast regions and a significant number of intrastate pipelines. Because we do not own these third-party pipelines or facilities, their continuing operation is not within our control. If these pipeline connections were to become unavailable for current or future volumes of natural gas due to testing, turnarounds, repairs, maintenance, damage, reduced operating pressure, lack of capacity, regulatory requirements or any other reason, our ability to operate efficiently and continue shipping natural gas to end markets could be restricted, thereby reducing our revenues. Any temporary or permanent interruption at any key pipeline interconnect or other downstream facility utilized to move our customers’ product to their end destination that causes a material reduction in volumes transported on our pipelines could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
In addition, the rates charged by treating plants, pipelines and other facilities interconnected to our assets affect the utilization and value of our services. Significant changes in the rates charged by these third parties, or the rates charged by the third parties that own "downstream" assets required to move commodities to their final destinations, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our operations are subject to operational hazards, unforeseen interruptions and damage caused by third parties and natural events. If a significant accident or event occurs that results in a business interruption or damage to our pipelines, storage and gathering systems, the facilities of our customers or other interconnected pipelines and facilities, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
Our operations, our customers’ operations and other interconnected pipelines and facilities are subject to many hazards, including (i) damage to pipelines, facilities, equipment, environmental controls and surrounding properties, including damage resulting from slippage; (ii) leaks, migrations or losses of natural gas and other hydrocarbons, water, brine, other fluids and hazardous chemicals that we handle in our treating and other operations; (iii) inadvertent damage from third parties, including from construction, farm and utility equipment; (iv) uncontrolled releases of natural gas and other hydrocarbons; (v) ruptures, fires and explosions; (vi) product and waste spills and unauthorized discharges of products, wastes and other pollutants; (vii) pipeline freeze-offs due to cold weather; (viii) operator error; (ix) aging infrastructure, mechanical or other performance problems; (x) damages to and loss of availability of interconnecting third-party pipelines, railroads and terminals; (xi) disruption or failure of information technology systems and network infrastructure; (xii) floods; (xiii) severe weather; (xiv) lightning and (xv) terrorism.
These risks could result in loss of human life, personal injuries, significant damage to property, environmental pollution, impairment of our operations, regulatory investigations and penalties and substantial losses to us. The location of certain segments of our systems in or near populated areas, including residential areas, commercial business centers and industrial sites, could increase the damages resulting from these risks. In spite of any precautions taken, the occurrence of an event such as those described above that is not fully covered by insurance could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, these risks could materially impact or completely prevent our customers’ from performing their respective obligations under our commercial agreements, which, in turn, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Expansion projects or acquisitions that are expected to be accretive may nevertheless reduce our cash from operations and could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Even if we complete expansion projects or acquisitions that we believe will be accretive, these expansion projects or acquisitions may nevertheless reduce our cash from operations and could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Any expansion project or acquisition involves potential risks, including, among other things: (i) service interruptions or increased downtime associated with our projects; (ii) a decrease in our liquidity; (iii) an inability to complete expansion projects or acquisitions on schedule or within the budgeted cost; (iv) the assumption of unknown liabilities when making acquisitions for which we are not indemnified or for which our indemnity is inadequate; (v) the diversion of our management’s attention from other business concerns; (vi) mistaken assumptions about the overall costs of equity or debt, demand for our services, supply volumes, reserves, revenues and costs, including synergies and potential growth; (vii) an inability to secure adequate customer commitments to use the expanded or acquired systems or facilities; (viii) an inability to successfully integrate the businesses we build or acquire; (ix) an inability to receive cash flows from a newly built asset until it is operational; and (x) unforeseen difficulties operating in new product areas or new geographic areas.
We have entered into joint ventures, and may in the future enter into additional or modify existing joint ventures, which might restrict our operational and corporate flexibility. In addition, these joint ventures are subject to most of the same operational risks to which we are subject.
We conduct a meaningful portion of our operations through joint ventures with third parties, including through our interests in the Vector Pipeline, Millennium Pipeline, NEXUS and Generation Pipeline, and we may enter into additional joint venture arrangements in the future. Generally, we do not operate the assets owned by these joint ventures and our control over their operations is limited by the applicable governing provisions of such joint venture agreements. In certain cases, we could have limited ability to influence or control certain day-to-day activities affecting the operations, the amount of capital expenditures that we are required to fund with respect to these operations and the amount of cash we will receive from the joint venture. We also could be dependent on third parties to fund their required share of capital expenditures and be exposed to third party credit risk through our contractual arrangements with our joint venture partners. Additionally, we may be subject to restrictions or limitations on our ability to sell or transfer our interests in the jointly owned assets, and we may be required to
offer business opportunities to the joint venture, or rights of participation to other joint venture partners or participants in certain areas of mutual interest.
In addition, our joint venture arrangements may involve risks not otherwise present when operating assets directly. We may incur liabilities as a result of an action taken by our joint venture partners and may be required to devote significant management time to the requirements of and matters relating to the joint ventures. Our joint venture partners may be in a position to take actions contrary to our instructions or requests or contrary to our policies or objectives. Any disputes between us and our joint venture partners may result in delays, litigation or operational impasses.
The risks described above or the failure to continue our joint ventures or to resolve disagreements with our joint venture partners could adversely affect our ability to conduct business that is the subject of a joint venture, which could in turn materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, these joint ventures are subject to most of the same operational risks to which we are subject and the impact of any of these operational risks on our joint ventures’ respective business, financial condition or results of operations could in turn materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We do not own the majority of the land on which assets are located, which could disrupt our current and future operations.
We do not own the majority of the land on which our assets are located, and we are therefore subject to the possibility of more onerous terms and increased costs or delays to retain necessary land use rights required to conduct our operations if we do not have valid rights-of-way, if such rights-of-way lapse or terminate or if our facilities are not properly located within the boundaries of such rights-of-way. If we were to be unsuccessful in negotiating or renegotiating rights-of-way, we might have to institute condemnation proceedings on our FERC regulated assets or relocate our facilities for non-regulated assets. Restrictions on our ability to use our rights-of-way, through our inability to renew right-of-way contracts or otherwise, or a relocation could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, even when we own an interest in the land on which our assets are located, agreements with correlative rights owners may require us to relocate pipelines and facilities, shut in storage facilities to facilitate the development of the correlative rights owners’ estate or pay the correlative rights owners the lost value of their estate if they are not willing to accommodate development.
We face and will continue to face opposition to the development or operation of our assets from various groups.
We face and will continue to face opposition to the development or operation of our assets from environmental groups, landowners, local and national groups, activists and other advocates. Such opposition could take many forms, including organized protests, attempts to block, vandalize or sabotage our development or operations, intervention in regulatory or administrative proceedings involving our assets directly or indirectly, lawsuits, legislation or other actions designed to prevent, disrupt or delay the development or operation of our assets and business. Any such event that delays or interrupts the revenues generated, or expected to be generated, by our operations, or which causes us to make significant expenditures not covered by insurance, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The expansion of our existing assets and construction of new assets is subject to economic, market, regulatory, environmental, political, and legal risks, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If we are unable to complete expansion projects, our future growth may be limited.
We may be unable to complete successful, accretive expansion projects for many reasons, including economic and market risks such as an inability to identify attractive expansion projects; an inability to successfully integrate the infrastructure we build; an inability to raise financing for expansion projects on economically acceptable terms; and because some of our competitors may be better positioned to compete for certain expansion projects that we believe would be accretive. In addition, the construction of additions or modifications to our existing energy infrastructure assets, and the construction of other new energy infrastructure assets, involve numerous regulatory, environmental, political and legal uncertainties beyond our control. The development and construction of pipeline and gathering infrastructure and storage facilities expose us to construction risks such as: (i) the failure of third parties to meet their contractual requirements; (ii) environmental hazards; (iii) adverse weather conditions; (iv) the performance of third-party contractors; and (v) the lack of available skilled labor, equipment and materials.
Certain of our internal growth projects may require regulatory approval from U.S. federal and state authorities and Canadian authorities prior to construction. The approval process for storage and transportation projects located in the Northeast has become increasingly challenging, due in part to state and local concerns related to unregulated exploration and production and gathering activities in new production areas, including the Marcellus/Utica formations. In addition, the FERC is considering modifying its policy governing the issuance of interstate natural gas pipeline authorizations, in part to address concerns about climate change. Authorizations required for our projects under existing or future agency policies may not be granted or, if granted, such authorization may include burdensome or expensive conditions.
Failure to retain and attract key executives and other skilled professional and technical employees could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our business is dependent on our ability to attract, retain and motivate employees. We rely on our management team, which has significant experience in the midstream industry, to manage our day-to-day affairs and establish and execute our strategic and operational plans. The loss of any of our key executives or the failure to fill new positions created by expansion, turnover or retirement could adversely affect our ability to implement our business strategy. In addition, our operations require engineers, operational and field technicians and other highly skilled employees. The competition for talent has become increasingly intense, and we may experience increased employee turnover, increased wage inflation or an impediment of our ability to execute certain key strategic initiatives due to a tightening labor market and skilled labor shortages. Failure to successfully attract and retain an appropriately qualified workforce could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The lack of diversification of our assets and geographic locations could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We rely primarily on revenues generated from our pipeline, storage and gathering systems, substantially all of which are located in the Midwestern U.S., Eastern Canada, Northeastern U.S. and Gulf Coast regions. Due to our lack of diversification in assets and geographic location, an adverse development in these businesses or our areas of operations, including adverse developments due to catastrophic events, weather, regulatory action, state and local political activities, availability of equipment and personnel, local prices, producer liquidity and decreases in demand for natural gas could have a more significant impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations than if we maintained more diverse assets and locations.
Liquidity, Credit and Financial Risks
We may not have access to additional financing sources on favorable terms, or at all, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations, and independent third parties determine our credit ratings outside of our control.
The cost of capital for our business depends, in part, on our credit ratings; general market conditions; the market’s perception of our business risk and growth potential; our current debt levels; interest rate changes; our current and expected future earnings; our cash flow; and the market price per share of our common stock. In part based on our current credit ratings, potential lenders may be unwilling or unable to provide us with financing that is attractive to us, may increase collateral requirements or may charge us prohibitively high fees in order to obtain financing. Consequently, our ability to access the credit market in order to attract financing on reasonable terms may be adversely affected. Depending on market conditions at the relevant time, we may have to rely more heavily on additional equity financings or on less efficient forms of debt financing that require a larger portion of our cash flow from operations, thereby reducing funds available for our operations, future business opportunities and other purposes. We may not have access to such equity or debt capital on favorable terms, at the desired times, or at all. In addition, declines in our credit ratings may influence our suppliers’ and customers’ willingness to transact with us, and we may be required to make prepayments or provide security to satisfy credit concerns.
Fluctuations in energy prices could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Fluctuations in energy prices can greatly affect the development of new natural gas reserves. Drilling and production activity generally decreases as commodity prices decrease. In general terms, the prices of natural gas, oil and other hydrocarbon products fluctuate in response to changes in supply and demand, market uncertainty and a variety of additional factors that are beyond our control. These factors include (i) worldwide political and economic conditions; (ii) weather conditions and seasonal trends; (iii) the levels of domestic production and consumer demand; (iv) the availability of imported and exported natural gas, LNG and other commodities; (v) the ability to export LNG; (vi) the availability of transportation systems with adequate capacity; (vii) the volatility and uncertainty of regional pricing differentials and premiums; (viii) the price and availability of alternative fuels; (ix) the effect of energy conservation measures; and (x) governmental regulation and taxation.
Prices of natural gas have been historically volatile, and we expect this volatility to continue. Consequently, even if new natural gas reserves are discovered in areas served by our assets, producers may choose not to develop those reserves. Sustained declines in natural gas prices could have a negative impact on exploration, development and production activity and could lead to a material decrease in such activity, which could result in reduced throughput on our systems and materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. See also "—Any significant decrease in demand or in production of natural gas in our asset footprint could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations".
We are exposed to our customers’ credit risk and our credit risk management and contractual terms may be inadequate to protect against such risk.
We are subject to the risk of loss resulting from nonpayment or nonperformance by our customers in the ordinary course of our business. While some of our customers are rated investment grade, others have sub-investment grade ratings (including our key customer, Southwestern Energy). These customers are otherwise considered creditworthy or are required to make prepayments or provide security to satisfy credit concerns. However, our credit procedures and policies may not be adequate to fully eliminate customer credit risk. If we fail to adequately assess the creditworthiness of existing or future customers, the unanticipated deterioration in their creditworthiness and any resulting increase in nonpayment or nonperformance by them could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our existing and future level of debt may limit our flexibility to obtain additional financing and to pursue other business opportunities.
As of December 31, 2022, we had outstanding approximately $2.1 billion of senior notes, $600 million of senior secured notes, $399 million of indebtedness under our Term Loan Facility and $330 million of borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility. Our existing and future level of debt could have important consequences to us, including the following (i) our ability to obtain additional financing, if necessary, for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions or other purposes may be impaired, or such financing may not be available on favorable terms; (ii) the funds that we have available for operations and payment of dividends to shareholders will be reduced by that portion of our cash flow required to make principal and interest payments on outstanding debt; and (iii) our debt level could make us more vulnerable to competitive pressures than competitors with less debt or to a downturn in our business or the economy generally.
Our ability to service our debt will depend upon, among other things, our future financial and operating performance, which will be affected by prevailing economic conditions and financial, business, regulatory and other factors, some of which are beyond our control. In addition, our ability to service debt under our Revolving Credit Facility, our Term Loan Facility and other debt facilities with floating rate terms will depend on market interest rates, since we anticipate that the interest rates applicable to our borrowings will fluctuate with movements in interest rate markets. If our operating results are not sufficient to service our current or future indebtedness, we will be forced to take actions such as reducing dividends, reducing or delaying our business activities, acquisitions, investments or capital expenditures, selling assets, restructuring or refinancing our debt, or seeking additional equity capital. We may not be able to effect any of these actions on satisfactory terms, or at all.
Increases in interest rates could increase our interest expense and may adversely affect our cash flows, our ability to service our indebtedness and our ability to pay dividends to our shareholders.
Our Term Loan Facility and borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility have, and we may in the future enter into debt instruments with, variable interest rates. Beginning early in 2022, in response to growing signs of inflation, the Federal Reserve has increased interest rates rapidly. Further, the Federal Reserve has increased the benchmark rapidly and has announced an intention to take further actions to mitigate inflationary pressures. Increases in interest rates on variable rate debt will increase our interest expense unless we make arrangements to hedge the risk of rising interest rates. These increased costs could reduce our profitability, reduce our credit availability, limit our ability to pursue growth opportunities, impair our ability to meet our debt obligations, increase the cost of financing, place us at a competitive disadvantage and materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. An increase in interest rates also could limit our ability to refinance existing debt upon maturity or cause us to pay higher rates upon refinancing.
Restrictions under our existing or any future credit facilities, indentures and senior notes could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and ability to pay dividends to our shareholders.
Our existing credit facilities and the indenture governing our senior notes limit our ability to, and any future credit facility or indenture we may enter into might limit our ability to, among other things: (i) incur additional indebtedness or guarantee other indebtedness; (ii) grant liens or make certain negative pledges; (iii) make certain dividends or investments; (iv) engage in transactions with affiliates; (v) transfer, sell or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets; or (vi) enter into a merger, consolidate, liquidate, wind up or dissolve.
Furthermore, our existing credit facilities contain, or any future credit facility or indenture we may enter into may also contain, covenants requiring us to maintain certain financial ratios and tests. If we violate any of the restrictions, covenants, ratios or tests in the applicable credit facility or indentures, the lenders thereunder will be able to accelerate the maturity of all borrowings under the credit facility and demand repayment of amounts outstanding, and our lenders’ commitment to make further loans to us may terminate. We might not have, or be able to obtain, sufficient funds to make these accelerated payments. Any subsequent replacement of our credit facilities or any new indebtedness could have similar or greater restrictions. For more information, see the section entitled "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Capital Resources and Liquidity".
Continuing inflation and cost increases may impact our sales margins and profitability.
Inflationary pressure could adversely impact our profitability. Our operating costs have increased with the market and may continue to increase, due to the recent growth in inflation which has impacted product costs, labor rates, and domestic transportation. We may not be able to fully offset these inflation increases by raising prices for our services, which could result in downward pressure on our results of operations.
If our intangible assets or goodwill become impaired, we may be required to record a charge to earnings.
We annually review the carrying value of goodwill associated with business combinations we have made for impairment. Our intangible assets and goodwill are also reviewed whenever events or circumstances indicate that the carrying value of these assets may not be recoverable. Factors that may be considered for purposes of this analysis include a decline in stock price and market capitalization, slower industry growth rates, changes in cost of capital or material changes with customers or contracts that could negatively impact future cash flows. We cannot predict the timing, strength or duration of such changes or any subsequent recovery. If the carrying value of any of our intangible assets or goodwill is determined to be not recoverable, we may take a non-cash impairment charge, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Regulatory Risks
The adoption of legislation and introduction of regulations relating to hydraulic fracturing and the enactment of new or increased severance taxes and impact fees on natural gas production could cause our current and potential customers to reduce the number of wells or curtail production of existing wells. If reductions are significant for those or other reasons, the reductions could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The U.S. Congress has from time to time considered the adoption of legislation to provide for U.S. federal regulation of hydraulic fracturing, while a growing number of states, including some of those in which we operate, have adopted, and other states are considering adopting, regulations that could impose more stringent disclosure and well construction requirements on hydraulic fracturing operations. Some states, such as Pennsylvania, have imposed fees on the drilling of new unconventional oil and gas wells. States could elect to prohibit hydraulic fracturing altogether, as was announced in December 2014 with regard to hydraulic fracturing activities in New York. Also, certain local governments have adopted, and additional local governments may further adopt, ordinances within their jurisdictions regulating the time, place and manner of drilling activities in general or hydraulic fracturing activities in particular. Further, several U.S. federal governmental agencies have conducted or are conducting reviews and studies on the environmental aspects of hydraulic fracturing, including the Environmental Protection Agency, which we refer to as the "EPA." For example, in December 2016, the EPA issued its final report on a study it had conducted over several years regarding the effects of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water sources. The final report, contrary to several previously published draft reports issued by the EPA, found instances in which impacts to drinking water may occur. However, the report also noted significant data gaps that prevented the EPA from determining the extent or severity of these impacts. The report, or other reviews or studies on the environmental aspects of hydraulic fracturing, could spur initiatives to further regulate hydraulic fracturing.
Other governmental agencies, including the U.S. Department of Energy, have evaluated or are evaluating various other aspects of hydraulic fracturing. These completed, ongoing or proposed studies, depending on their degree of pursuit and any meaningful results obtained, could spur initiatives to further regulate hydraulic fracturing or other regulatory mechanisms.
Certain state and U.S. federal regulatory agencies have focused on a possible connection between hydraulic fracturing-related activities and the increased occurrence of seismic activity. In a few instances, operators of injection disposal wells in the vicinity of seismic events have been ordered to reduce injection volumes or suspend operations. These developments could result in additional regulation and restrictions on the use of injection disposal wells and hydraulic fracturing. Such regulations and restrictions could cause delays and impose additional costs and restrictions on us and our customers. The adoption of new laws, regulations or ordinances at the U.S. federal, state or local levels imposing more stringent restrictions on hydraulic fracturing could make it more difficult for our customers to complete natural gas wells, increase customers’ costs of compliance and doing business, and otherwise adversely affect the hydraulic fracturing services they perform, which could negatively impact demand for our services.
Furthermore, the tax laws, rules and regulations that affect our customers are subject to change. For example, Pennsylvania’s governor has in recent legislative sessions proposed legislation to impose a state severance tax on the extraction of natural resources, including natural gas produced from the Marcellus/Utica formations, either in replacement of or in addition to the existing state impact fee. In late January 2021, Pennsylvania’s governor announced he was re-proposing legislation to enact a severance tax to fund COVID-19 relief measures. Pennsylvania’s legislature has not thus far advanced any of the governor’s severance tax proposals; however, severance tax legislation may continue to be proposed in future legislative sessions. Any such tax increase or change could adversely impact the earnings, cash flows and financial position of our customers and cause them to reduce their drilling in the areas in which we operate.
Risks related to climate change could be material and adverse to our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flow, access to and cost of capital or insurance, reputation, and business strategies.
Our business is subject to physical risks and transition risks related to climate change. These physical risks may arise from more frequent or severe weather events such as floods, landslides, storms, rising water levels, and changes in established weather patterns that cause damage to our assets or to portions of the country’s gas infrastructure upon which we or our customers rely. Physical risks from climate change may reduce our ability to operate reliably, safely, and economically and may cause significant insured or uninsured losses that affect our cash flows. In addition to physical risks, our business is subject to transition risks arising from efforts to address climate change through laws and policies and through market preferences that disfavor fossil fuels and related businesses. State and federal governments, as well as foreign governments and international governing bodies such as the United Nations, continue to develop laws, policies, and goals to reduce carbon emissions and foster a lower-carbon economy. While these efforts are diverse and frequently change, they may impose additional compliance costs and may reduce market interest in our business. Changing customer behaviors may lead to less demand for our services, less favorable pricing for our services, inefficient utilization of our assets, and diminished reputation. Our ability to comply with laws and avoid or mitigate physical and transition risks related to climate change may be limited, insufficient, or dependent on technological developments (such as lower-emission equipment) that we do not control or that require substantial additional investments that increase our cost of doing business. If we are unable to implement business strategies that address the physical risks of climate change and that meet the changing expectations of regulators or investors concerning climate change, we may experience a material adverse effect on our business.
Our operations are subject to environmental laws and regulations that may expose us to significant costs and liabilities and changes in these laws and regulations could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our natural gas transmission, storage and gathering activities are subject to stringent and complex U.S. federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations relating to air quality, water quality, waste management, wildlife conservation, natural resources and worker health and safety. As with the industry generally, compliance with current and anticipated environmental laws and regulations increases our overall cost of business, including our capital costs to construct, maintain and upgrade pipelines and other facilities, or even cause us not to pursue a project. For instance, we may be required to obtain and maintain permits and other approvals issued by various U.S. federal, state and local governmental authorities; monitor for, limit or prevent releases of materials from our operations in accordance with these permits and approvals; install pollution control equipment or replace aging pipelines and other facilities; limit or refrain from construction activities in sensitive areas such as wetlands, wilderness or urban areas or areas inhabited by endangered or threatened species; incur potentially substantial new obligations or liabilities for any pollution or contamination that may result from our operations; and apply health and safety criteria addressing worker protections. Failure to comply with environmental laws and regulations, or the permits issued under them, may result in the assessment of administrative, civil and criminal penalties, the imposition of investigatory, remedial or corrective action obligations or the incurrence of capital expenditures, the occurrence of delays in the permitting or performance or expansion of projects, the issuance of injunctions limiting or preventing some or all of our operations in a particular area, and private party claims for personal injuries or property damage.
Moreover, environmental laws, regulations and enforcement policies tend to become more stringent over time. New, modified or stricter environmental laws, regulations or enforcement policies, including climate change laws and regulations restricting emissions of greenhouse gas, which we refer to as "GHG," could be implemented that significantly increase our compliance costs, pollution mitigation costs, or the cost of any remediation of environmental contamination that may become necessary, and these costs could be material. For example, in April 2020 the U.S. federal district court for the district of Montana issued a broad order vacating the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Clean Water Act Section 404 Nationwide Permit 12, which we refer to as "NWP 12," for alleged failure to comply with consultation requirements under the U.S. federal Endangered Species Act. Pipeline companies and other developers of linear infrastructure frequently rely upon NWP 12 for construction and maintenance projects in jurisdictional wetland areas. In May 2020, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which we refer to as "the U.S. Army Corps," appealed the U.S. federal district court’s order to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In July 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a stay of the district court’s order vacating NWP 12, pending the disposition of the appeal in the Ninth Circuit and any subsequent appeal to the Supreme Court. On January 5, 2021, the U.S. Army Corps announced that it reissued NWP 12. On August 11, 2021, the Ninth Circuit granted partial vacatur of the appeal, concluding that the U.S. Army Corps' reissuance of NWP 12 rendered the underlying claim of the appeal moot. A challenge to the reissuance of NWP 12 is pending in the federal district court in Washington, D.C. after the case was transferred from federal court in Montana. Environmental groups have filed a complaint in the Montana federal court challenging the U.S. Army Corps reissuance of NWP 12. The litigation is ongoing. Moreover, the NWP 12 reissuance is among the agency actions listed for review in accordance with President Biden’s January 20, 2021 Executive Order ("Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis"); and, in 2022 the U.S. Army Corps sought public comment on the potential to revise NWP 12 in response to objections to the use of NWP 12 related, primarily, to environmental justice, public participation, and climate change. Any disruption in our ability to obtain coverage under NWP 12 or other general permits may result in increased costs and project delays if we are forced to seek individual permits from the U.S. Army Corps. Our compliance with changing legal requirements could result in our incurring significant additional expenses and operating restrictions with respect to our operations, which may not be fully recoverable from customers and, thus, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our customers may similarly incur increased costs or restrictions that may limit or decrease those customers’ operations and have an indirect material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. For example, on January 27, 2021 President Biden issued an Executive Order ("Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad") that included provisions directing the Secretary of the Interior to pause approval of new oil and natural gas leases on public lands pending completion of a comprehensive review and reconsideration of U.S. federal oil and gas permitting and leasing practices and directing the heads of U.S. federal agencies to take steps to ensure that, to the extent consistent with applicable law, federal funding is not directly subsidizing fossil fuels. In July 2021, however, a Federal Court in Louisiana granted a nationwide preliminary injunction against enforcement of the moratorium. On appeal, the injunction was overturned. However, a short time later, the Federal Court in Louisiana issued a nationwide permanent injunction against enforcement of the moratorium. Litigation related to the moratorium continues in various courts. While lease sales continue to some extent, they have been scaled back and are subject to challenge by environmental groups. Also, on November 26, 2021 the Department of the Interior
issued a report calling for an increase in royalty payments for new oil and gas leases on federal lands and other measures. Royalty rates have been increased for new leases. In November 2022, the Department of the Interior issued a proposed rule that would strictly limit release of methane from oil and gas drilling on public lands. This could lead to increased costs for producers and increased need for pipeline capacity as operators would be required to have a plan to reduce venting and flaring as a predicate to approval of production of federal minerals. Moreover, a number of state and regional legal initiatives, including climate change laws, have emerged in recent years that seek to reduce GHGs emissions and the EPA, based on its findings that emissions of greenhouse gases present a danger to public health and the environment, has adopted regulations under existing provisions of the U.S. federal Clean Air Act that, among other things, restrict emissions of GHGs and require the monitoring and reporting of GHG emissions from specified onshore and offshore production sources and onshore treating sources in the U.S. on an annual basis. In addition, some communities and cities have banned new natural gas hook-ups or are expected to enact similar electrification measures in response to climate change concerns. Other actions that could be pursued by the Biden Administration may include the imposition of more restrictive requirements for the establishment of pipeline infrastructure or the permitting of LNG export facilities. Such regulations or any new U.S. federal laws restricting emissions of GHGs, such as a carbon tax, from customer operations, or that limit the growth of pipelines and LNG exports from the U.S., could delay or curtail their activities and, in turn, adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
There is inherent risk of the incurrence of environmental costs and liabilities in our business due to our handling of natural gas and hazardous substances, and historical industry operations and waste management and disposal practices. For example, an accidental release from one of our facilities could subject us to substantial liabilities arising from environmental cleanup and restoration costs, claims made by neighboring landowners and other third parties for personal injury and property damage, governmental claims for natural resource damages or imposing fines or penalties for related violations of environmental laws, permits or regulations. In addition, strict, joint and several liabilities may be imposed under certain environmental laws that govern the investigation and remediation of soil and groundwater contamination, which could cause us to become liable for the contamination caused by others, such as prior operators of our facilities, or for the consequences of our own actions that were in compliance with all applicable laws at the time those actions were taken, such as the historic disposal by us of hazardous substances or wastes at third party sites where contamination is subsequently discovered. Private parties, including the owners of the properties through which our assets pass and facilities where our wastes are taken for reclamation or disposal, may also have the right to pursue legal actions against us to enforce compliance, as well as to seek damages for non-compliance, with environmental laws and regulations or for personal injury or property damage that may result from environmental and other impacts of our operations. We may not be able to recover some or any of these costs through insurance or increased revenues, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. For more information, see the section entitled "Items 1. and 2. Business and Properties—Regulatory Environment—Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety Regulations".
Our natural gas transportation and storage operations are subject to extensive regulation by the FERC and state regulatory authorities and changes in FERC or state regulation could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our business operations are subject to extensive regulation by the FERC, and state regulatory authorities. Generally, the FERC’s authority extends to rates and charges for interstate pipelines and storage facilities as well as intrastate pipelines and storage facilities providing service in interstate commerce; certification and construction of new interstate pipelines and storage services and facilities and expansion of such facilities; abandonment of interstate pipelines and storage services and facilities; maintenance of accounts and records; relationships between pipelines and certain affiliates; terms and conditions of services and service contracts with customers; depreciation and amortization rates and policies; facility replacements and upgrades; and acquisitions and dispositions of interstate pipelines and storage facilities or assets.
While the FERC may exercise jurisdiction over the rates and terms of service for certain of the services provided by our intrastate pipelines providing service in interstate commerce, such assets are not subject to the FERC’s certification and construction authority. Prior to commencing construction of new or expanded existing interstate pipelines and storage facilities, an interstate pipeline must obtain a certificate from the FERC authorizing the construction, either by filing a new certificate application or filing to amend its existing certificate. In reviewing certificate applications or amendments, the FERC applies its Certificate Policy Statement, which the FERC is considering revising, in part to address the consideration of climate change when acting on such applications. A revised Certificate Policy Statement could result in more stringent review of future projects within the FERC’s jurisdiction.
FERC regulations also extend to the terms and conditions set forth in agreements for our transportation and storage services executed between interstate transportation and storage service providers and their customers. These service agreements are required to conform, in all material respects, with the forms of service agreements set forth in the interstate company's FERC-approved tariff. Non-conforming agreements must be filed with, and accepted by, the FERC. In the event that the FERC finds that an agreement is materially non-conforming, in whole or in part, it could reject or require us to seek modification of the agreement, or alternatively require us to modify our tariff so that the non-conforming provisions are generally available to all customers or similarly-situated customers. The Vector Pipeline, the Millennium Pipeline, the Birdsboro Pipeline, the NEXUS Gas Transmission Pipeline, and the Washington 10 Storage Complex provide interstate services in accordance with their FERC-approved tariffs.
Compliance with these requirements can be time-consuming, costly and burdensome and FERC action in any of these areas could adversely affect our ability to compete for business, construct new facilities, offer new services or recover the full cost of operating our pipelines. This regulatory oversight can result in longer lead times to develop and complete any future project than competitors that are not subject to the FERC’s regulations. Furthermore, should the FERC or state regulatory authorities find that we have failed to comply with all applicable FERC or state-administered statutes, rules, regulations and orders, or the terms of our tariffs on file with the FERC, we could be subject to administrative and criminal remedies and substantial civil penalties and fines. We cannot give any assurance regarding the likely future regulations under which we will operate our assets or the effect such regulation could have on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Any changes to the policies of the FERC or state regulatory authorities regarding the natural gas industry may have an impact on us, including the FERC’s approach as it considers policies affecting the establishment and modification of interstate pipeline rates and terms and conditions of service, policies that may affect rights of access to natural gas transmission capacity and policies that govern the FERC's authorization of new or expanded pipeline and storage infrastructure. The FERC is currently considering modifications to its long-standing Certificate Policy Statement that currently governs its granting of certificate authority for the construction of proposed interstate natural gas infrastructure, whether new or expanded. In addition, future U.S. federal, state or local legislation or regulations under which we will operate our assets could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We are exposed to costs associated with lost and unaccounted-for volumes.
A certain amount of natural gas is inherently lost and unaccounted-for in connection with meter differences and movement across a pipeline or storage system, and under our contractual arrangements with our customers we are entitled to retain a specified volume of natural gas in order to compensate us for such volumes as well as the natural gas used to run our compressor stations, which we refer to as "fuel usage." The level of fuel usage and lost and unaccounted-for volumes on our transportation, storage and gathering systems may exceed the natural gas volumes retained from our customers as compensation for our fuel usage and lost and unaccounted-for volumes pursuant to our contractual agreements. In addition, our gathering systems have contracts that provide for specified levels of fuel retainage. As such, we may find it necessary to purchase natural gas in the market to make up for any of these differences, which exposes us to commodity price risk. Future exposure to the volatility of natural gas prices as a result of gas imbalances on our transportation, storage and gathering systems could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
A change in the jurisdictional characterization of our gathering assets may result in increased regulation by FERC, which could cause our revenues to decline and operating expenses to increase and could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We believe that our non-jurisdictional natural gas gathering facilities, including those which we refer to as "lateral pipelines," meet the traditional tests the FERC has used to establish a pipeline’s status as an exempt gathering facility not subject to FERC regulation as a jurisdictional natural gas company under the Natural Gas Act, although the FERC has not made a formal determination with respect to the jurisdictional status of those facilities. FERC regulation nonetheless affects our businesses and the markets for products derived from our gathering businesses. The FERC’s policies and practices across the range of its gas regulatory activities, including, for example, its policies on certification of new interstate natural gas facilities, open access transportation, rate making, terms and conditions of service, capacity release and market center promotion, indirectly affect intrastate markets. We have no assurance that the FERC will continue its current policies as it considers matters such as certification of new interstate natural gas facilities, pipeline rates and rules and policies that may affect rights of access to natural gas transportation capacity. In addition, the distinction between FERC-regulated transmission services and gathering services not regulated by FERC has regularly been the subject of substantial litigation in the industry. Consequently, the classification and regulation of some of our gathering operations could change based on future determinations by the FERC, the courts or the U.S. Congress. If our gathering operations become subject to FERC jurisdiction, the result may adversely affect
the rates we are able to charge and the services we currently provide and may include the potential for a termination of certain gathering agreements, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
State and local legislative and regulatory initiatives relating to gas operations could adversely affect our services and customers’ production and therefore, materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
State and municipal regulations also impact our business. Common purchaser statutes generally require gatherers to gather or provide services without undue discrimination as to source of supply or producer; as a result, these statutes restrict our right to decide whose production we gather or transport. U.S. federal law leaves any economic regulation of natural gas gathering to the states. Some of the states in which we currently operate have adopted complaint-based regulation of gathering activities, which allows gas producers and shippers to file complaints with state regulators in an effort to resolve access and rate grievances. Other state and municipal regulations may not directly regulate our gathering business but may nonetheless affect the availability of natural gas for purchase, treating and sale, including state regulation of production rates and maximum daily production allowable from gas wells. While our gathering lines currently are subject to limited state regulation, there is a risk that state laws will be changed, which may give producers a stronger basis to challenge the rates, terms and conditions of their gathering lines.
Certain states in which we operate have adopted or are considering adopting measures that could impose new or more stringent requirements on gas exploration and production activities. For example, the potential for adverse impacts to our business is present where state or local governments have enacted ordinances directly regulating production rates and maximum daily production allowable from gas wells, and private individuals have sponsored and may in the future sponsor citizen initiatives to limit hydraulic fracturing, increase mandatory setbacks of oil and gas operations from occupied structures and achieve more restrictive state or local control over such activities.
In the event state or local restrictions or prohibitions are adopted in our areas of operations, our customers may incur significant compliance costs or may experience delays or curtailment in the pursuit of their exploration, development or production activities, and possibly be limited or precluded in the drilling of certain wells altogether. Any adverse impact on our customers’ activities would have a corresponding negative impact on our throughput volumes. In addition, while the general focus of debate is on upstream development activities, certain proposals may, if adopted, directly impact our ability to competitively locate, construct, maintain and operate our own assets. Accordingly, such restrictions or prohibitions could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Changes in tax laws or regulations may have a material adverse effect on our business, cash flow, financial condition or results of operations.
New income, sales, use or other tax laws, statutes, rules, regulations or ordinances could be enacted at any time, which could adversely affect our business operations and financial performance. Further, existing tax laws, statutes, rules, regulations or ordinances could be interpreted, changed, modified or applied adversely to us. For example, significant changes to the U.S. tax laws have been proposed, including, among others, an increase in the corporate tax rate and the imposition of a tax on the fair market value of stock that is repurchased by certain corporations. Changes to existing tax laws or the enactment of future reform legislation could have a material impact on our financial condition, results of operations and ability to pay dividends to our shareholders. It cannot be predicted whether or when tax laws, statutes, rules, regulations or ordinances may be enacted, issued, or amended that could materially and adversely impact our financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.
Some of our operations cross the U.S./Canada border and are subject to cross-border regulation.
Our cross-border activities subject us to regulatory matters, including import and export licenses, tariffs, Canadian and U.S. customs and tax issues, and toxic substance certifications. Such regulations include the "Short Supply Controls" of the Export Administration Act, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and the Toxic Substances Control Act. Violations of these licensing, tariff and tax-reporting requirements could result in the imposition of significant administrative, civil and criminal penalties, which could, in turn, materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Pipeline Safety and Maintenance Risks
We may incur significant costs and liabilities to maintain our pipeline integrity management program and related testing, pipeline repair, and preventative or remedial measures, as well as other operational and maintenance requirements and assessments.
The U.S. Department of Transportation, through the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, referred to as "PHMSA," has adopted regulations requiring pipeline operators to develop integrity management programs for transportation pipelines located where a leak or rupture could do the most harm in a high consequence area, referred to as an "HCA." The regulations require operators to: (i) perform ongoing assessments of pipeline integrity; (ii) identify and characterize applicable threats to pipeline segments that could impact an HCA; (iii) improve data collection, integration and analysis; (iv) repair and remediate the pipeline as necessary; and (v) implement preventive and mitigating actions. PHMSA regulations also require assessment and repairs outside of HCAs in what are referred to as moderate consequence areas or “MCAs.”
Additionally, while states are largely preempted by U.S. federal law from regulating pipeline safety for interstate lines, most are certified by PHMSA to assume responsibility for enforcing U.S. federal intrastate pipeline regulations and inspection of intrastate pipelines. In practice, states can adopt stricter standards for intrastate pipelines than those imposed by PHMSA for interstate lines, and states vary considerably in their authority and capacity to address pipeline safety. Accordingly, midstream operators of pipeline and associated storage facilities may be required to make operational changes or modifications at their facilities to meet standards beyond current federal requirements, where such changes or modifications may result in additional capital costs, possible operational delays and increased costs of operation that, in some instances, may be significant.
Failure to comply with PHMSA or state pipeline safety regulations could result in a number of consequences which may have an adverse effect on our operations. We incur significant costs associated with our compliance with existing PHMSA and state pipeline safety regulations, but we do not believe such costs of compliance will materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. We may incur significant costs associated with repair, remediation, preventive and mitigation measures associated with our integrity management programs for pipelines that are not currently subject to regulation by PHMSA and may be required to comply with new safety regulations and make additional maintenance capital expenditures in the future for similar regulatory compliance initiatives that are not reflected in our forecasted maintenance capital expenditures.
Certain portions of our pipelines, storage and gathering infrastructure are aging, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Certain portions of our systems, particularly our gathering assets in Northern Michigan and our storage assets, have been in operation for many years, with some portions being more than 40 years old. In some cases, certain portions may have been in service for many years prior to our purchase of the relevant systems or have been operated by third parties not under our control and consequently, there may be historical occurrences or latent issues regarding our pipeline systems that management may be unaware of and that could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Certain portions of our pipeline systems are located in or near areas determined to be HCAs, which are areas where a release could have the most significant adverse consequences. The age and condition of these systems could result in increased maintenance or repair expenditures and any downtime associated with increased maintenance and repair activities could materially reduce our revenue. If, due to their age, certain pipeline sections were to become unexpectedly unavailable for current or future volumes of natural gas because of repairs, maintenance, damage, spills or leaks, or any other reason, it could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operation.
Our insurance policies do not cover all losses, costs or liabilities that we may experience, and there is no assurance that we will be able to purchase cost effective insurance in the future.
We are not fully insured against all risks inherent in our business, including environmental accidents that might occur as well as cyber events. In addition, we do not maintain business interruption insurance of the types and in amounts necessary to cover all possible risks of loss, like project delays caused by governmental action or inaction. The occurrence of any operating risks not fully covered by insurance could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
As a result of market conditions, premiums and deductibles for certain of our insurance policies may substantially increase. In some instances, certain insurance could become unavailable or available only for reduced amounts of coverage. The occurrence of an event that is not fully covered by insurance could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If significant changes in the number or financial solvency of insurance underwriters for the energy industry occur, we may be unable to obtain and maintain adequate insurance at a reasonable cost. The unavailability of full insurance coverage or our inability to maintain or obtain insurance of the type and amount we desire at reasonable rates to cover events in which we suffer significant losses could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We are subject to cyber security and data privacy laws, regulations, litigation and directives relating to our processing of personal data.
Several jurisdictions in which we operate throughout the U.S. have laws governing how we must respond to a cyber incident that results in the unauthorized access, disclosure or loss of personal data. Our business involves collection, uses and other processing of personal data of our employees, contractors, suppliers and service providers. As legislation continues to develop and cyber incidents continue to evolve, we will likely be required to expend significant resources to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures to comply with such legislation and to detect, investigate and remediate vulnerabilities to cyber incidents. Any failure by us, or a company we acquire, to comply with such laws and regulations could result in reputational harm, loss of goodwill, penalties, liabilities and mandated changes in our business practices. Additionally, if we acquire a company that has violated or is not in compliance with applicable data protection laws, we may incur significant liabilities and penalties as a result.
A terrorist attack, armed conflict or cyber security event, or the threat of them, could harm our business.
In 2012, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued public warnings that indicated that pipelines and other assets might be specific targets of terrorist organizations or "cyber security" events. Potential targets might include our pipelines, storage and gathering systems or operating systems and may affect our ability to operate or control our assets or utilize our customer service systems. Also, destructive forms of protests and opposition by extremists and other disruptions, including acts of sabotage or eco-terrorism, against oil and natural gas development and production or midstream treating or transportation activities could potentially result in damage or injury to persons, property or the environment or lead to extended interruptions of our or our customers’ operations. The occurrence of any of these events, including an attack or threat targeted at our pipelines and other assets could cause a substantial decrease in revenues; increased costs or other financial losses; exposure or loss of customer information; damage to our reputation or business relationships; increased regulation or litigation; disruption of our operations; and inaccurate information reported from our operations. These developments may subject our operations to increased risks, as well as increased costs, and, depending on their ultimate magnitude, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Other Business Risks
Customers’, legislators’ and regulators’ perceptions of us are affected by many factors, including environmental and safety concerns, pipeline reliability, protection of customer information, media coverage and public sentiment. Customers’, legislators’ or regulators’ negative opinion of us could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
A number of factors can affect customers’, legislators’ or regulators’ perception of us, including safety concerns due to potential natural disasters, the rupture of pipelines or other causes, and our ability to promptly respond to such issues; and our ability to safeguard sensitive customer information. Customers’, legislators’ and regulators’ opinions of us can also be affected by media coverage, including the proliferation of social media, which may include information, whether factual or not, that could damage the perception of our company and the midstream industry.
If customers, legislators or regulators have or develop a negative opinion of us and our services, or of fossil fuels as an energy source generally, this could make it more difficult for us to achieve favorable legislative or regulatory outcomes. Negative opinions could also result in sales volumes reductions or increased use of other sources of energy, or additional difficulties in accessing capital markets or greater challenges in developing or operating our assets.
In addition, in recent years, increasing attention has been given to corporate activities related to environmental, social and governance, which we call "ESG," matters in public discourse and the investment community.
Investor advocacy groups, proxy advisory firms, certain institutional investors and lenders, investment funds and other influential investors and rating agencies are also increasingly focused on climate change, societal expectations on companies to address climate change, investor and societal expectations regarding voluntary ESG disclosures, and consumer demand for alternative forms of energy. Increasing attention to climate change and environmental conservation may result in increased costs, reduced access to insurance at reasonable rates, reduced demand for our products, reduced profits, negative impacts on our stock price, reduced access to capital markets, and additional governmental investigations and private litigation against us or our customers. To the extent that societal pressures or political or other factors are involved, it is possible that a liability could be imposed without regard to our causation of or contribution to the asserted damage, or to other mitigating factors. While we may participate in various voluntary frameworks and certification programs to improve the ESG profile of our operations and products, we cannot guarantee that such participation or certification will have the intended results on our or our products’ ESG profile.
A number of advocacy groups have campaigned for governmental and private action to promote change at public companies related to ESG matters, including increasing attention and demands for action related to climate change, promoting the use of substitutes for fossil fuel products and encouraging the divestment of companies in the fossil fuel industry, and some organizations that provide information to investors on corporate governance and related matters have developed ratings systems for evaluating companies on their approach to ESG matters. Unfavorable ESG ratings may lead to increased negative investor and bank financing sentiment toward us and our industry and to the diversion of investment to other companies or industries, which could adversely affect our stock price and our access to and costs of capital and could adversely impact the demand for our services and, in turn, materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We published our first Corporate Sustainability Report in the second quarter 2022, which detailed how we seek to manage our operations responsibly and ethically, as well as strategies and goals associated with reducing our environmental impact. The Corporate Sustainability Report included our policies and practices on a variety of social and ethical matters, including, but not limited to, corporate governance, environmental compliance, employee health and safety practices, human capital management and workforce inclusion and diversity. We believe providing more expansive disclosure on these topics in our Corporate Sustainability Report increases our level of transparency to our stakeholders and complements the disclosures regarding our contributions to sustainable development in this Form 10-K. It is possible that stakeholders may not be satisfied with our ESG practices or the speed of their adoption. We could also incur additional costs and require additional resources to monitor, report and comply with various ESG practices. Also, our failure, or perceived failure, to meet the standards set forth in the Corporate Sustainability Report could negatively impact our reputation, employee retention, and the willingness of our customers and suppliers to do business with us. Any of these consequences could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
A pandemic, epidemic or outbreak of an infectious disease, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations and we face numerous risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A global or national public health crisis, such as COVID-19, may cause disruptions to our business and operational plans.
Some factors from the COVID-19 pandemic that could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations include: third-party effects, including contractual and counterparty risk; litigation risk and possible loss contingencies related to COVID-19, employee matters and insurance arrangements; supply/demand market and macroeconomic forces; lower commodity prices; unavailable storage capacity and operational effects; decreased utilization and rates for our assets and services; impact on liquidity and access to capital markets; our ability to comply with our covenants and other restrictions in agreements governing our debt; workforce reductions and furloughs; cyber security threats; operational, health or safety-related incidents; global supply chain disruptions; and U.S. federal, state and local actions. As of December 31, 2022, there have not been meaningful impacts or disruptions to our business, financial condition and results of operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We continue to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on an ongoing basis.
Risks Relating to the Separation
We could have an indemnification obligation to DTE Energy in accordance with the terms of the Tax Matters Agreement if the Distribution were determined not to qualify for non-recognition treatment for U.S. federal tax purposes, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations
If it were determined that the Distribution did not qualify as a distribution to which Section 355(a), Section 355(c) and Section 361 of the Code apply, we could, under certain circumstances, be required to indemnify DTE Energy for the resulting taxes and related expenses. Any such indemnification obligation could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
In addition, Section 355(e) of the Code generally creates a presumption that the Distribution would be taxable to DTE Energy, but not to shareholders, if we or our shareholders were to engage in transactions that result in a 50% or greater change by vote or value in the ownership of our stock during the four-year period beginning on the date that begins two years before the date of the Distribution, unless it were established that such transactions and the Distribution were not part of a plan or series of related transactions giving effect to such a change in ownership. If the Distribution were taxable to DTE Energy due to such a 50% or greater change in ownership of our stock, DTE Energy would recognize gain equal to the excess of the fair market value of our common stock distributed to DTE Energy shareholders over DTE Energy’s tax basis in our common stock and we generally would be required to indemnify DTE Energy for the tax on such gain and related expenses. Any such indemnification obligation could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We agreed to numerous restrictions to preserve the non-recognition treatment of the Distribution, which may reduce our strategic and operating flexibility.
We agreed in the Tax Matters Agreement to covenants and indemnification obligations that address compliance with Section 355(e) of the Code. These covenants and indemnification obligations may limit our ability to pursue strategic transactions or engage in new businesses or other transactions that may otherwise maximize the value of our business and might discourage or delay a strategic transaction that our shareholders may consider favorable. For more information, see Note 1, "Description of the Business and Basis of Presentation" to the Consolidated Financial Statements under Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K.
The Separation may expose us to potential liabilities arising out of state and U.S. federal fraudulent conveyance laws and legal dividend requirements.
If DTE Energy files for bankruptcy or is otherwise determined or deemed to be insolvent under U.S. federal bankruptcy laws, a court could deem the Separation or certain internal restructuring transactions undertaken by DTE Energy in connection with the Separation to be a fraudulent conveyance or transfer. Fraudulent conveyances or transfers are defined to include transfers made or obligations incurred with the actual intent to hinder, delay or defraud current or future creditors or transfers made or obligations incurred for less than reasonably equivalent value when the debtor was insolvent, or that rendered the debtor insolvent, inadequately capitalized or unable to pay its debts as they become due. A court could void the transactions or impose substantial liabilities upon us, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Among other things, a court could require our shareholders to return to DTE Energy some or all of the shares of our common stock issued in the Separation or require us to fund liabilities of other companies involved in the restructuring transactions for the benefit of creditors. The distribution of our common stock is also subject to review under state corporate distribution statutes. Although DTE Energy intended to make a lawful distribution of our common stock, we cannot assure you that a court will not later determine that some or all of the Distribution to DTE Energy shareholders was unlawful.
After the Separation, certain members of management and directors may face actual or potential conflicts of interest.
Following the Separation, the management and directors of each of DTE Energy and DT Midstream own common stock in both companies and Robert Skaggs, Jr., who is a member of our Board, also serves on the board of directors of DTE Energy, which we refer to as the "DTE Energy Board," and may be required to recuse himself from deliberations relating to arrangements between us and DTE Energy. This ownership and directorship overlap could create, or appear to create, potential conflicts of interest when the management and directors of one company face decisions that could have different implications for themselves and the other company. For example, potential conflicts of interest could arise in connection with the resolution of any dispute regarding the terms of the agreements governing our relationship with DTE Energy. These agreements include the Separation and Distribution Agreement, the Transition Services Agreement, the Tax Matters Agreement, the Employee Matters Agreement and any commercial agreements between the parties or their affiliates. Potential conflicts of interest may also arise out of any commercial arrangements that we or DTE Energy may enter into in the future.