Principles of Consolidation and Nature of Operations | Principles of Consolidation and Nature of Operations The Consolidated Financial Statements include the accounts of NACCO Industries, Inc. ® (“NACCO”) and its wholly owned subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company”). NACCO brings natural resources to life by delivering aggregates, minerals, reliable fuels and environmental solutions through its robust portfolio of NACCO Natural Resources businesses. The Company operates under three business segments: Coal Mining, North American Mining ("NAMining") and Minerals Management. The Coal Mining segment operates surface coal mines for power generation companies. The NAMining segment is a trusted mining partner for producers of aggregates, activated carbon, lithium and other industrial minerals. The Minerals Management segment, which includes the Catapult Mineral Partners (“Catapult”) business, acquires and promotes the development of mineral interests. Mitigation Resources of North America ® (“Mitigation Resources”) provides stream and wetland mitigation solutions. The Company also has items not directly attributable to a reportable segment. Intercompany accounts and transactions are eliminated in consolidation. See Note 15 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion of segment reporting. The Company’s operating segments are further described below: Coal Mining Segment The Coal Mining segment, operating as The North American Coal Corporation ® ("NACoal"), operates surface coal mines under long-term contracts with power generation companies pursuant to a service-based business model. Coal is surface mined in North Dakota, Texas, Mississippi and through September 30, 2021, on the Navajo Nation in New Mexico. Each mine is fully integrated with its customer's operations. As of December 31, 2022, the Company's operating coal mines were: The Coteau Properties Company (“Coteau”), Coyote Creek Mining Company, LLC (“Coyote Creek”), The Falkirk Mining Company (“Falkirk”), Mississippi Lignite Mining Company (“MLMC”) and The Sabine Mining Company (“Sabine”). MLMC is the exclusive supplier of lignite to the Red Hills Power Plant in Ackerman, Mississippi. Choctaw Generation Limited Partnership ("CGLP") leases the Red Hills Power Plant from a Southern Company subsidiary pursuant to a leveraged lease arrangement. CGLP's ability to make required payments to the Southern Company subsidiary is dependent on the operational performance of the Red Hills Power Plant. During 2020, Southern Company revised the estimated cash flows to be received under the leveraged lease which resulted in a full impairment of the lease investment. If lease payments are not paid in full, the Southern Company subsidiary may be unable to make its corresponding payment to the holders of the underlying non-recourse debt related to the Red Hills Power Plant. Failure to make the required payment to the debtholders could represent an event of default that would give the debtholders the right to foreclose on, and take ownership of, the Red Hills Power Plant from the Southern Company subsidiary. On October 27, 2022, Southern Company disclosed in its Form 10-Q that it provided notice to the lessee, CGLP, to terminate the related operating and maintenance agreement effective June 30, 2023. CGLP failed to make the semi-annual lease payment due December 15, 2022. As a result, the Southern Company subsidiary was unable to make its corresponding payment to the debtholders. The parties to the lease agreement are currently negotiating a potential restructuring, which could result in rescission of the termination notice. The parties to the lease have entered into a forbearance agreement which suspends the related contractual rights of the parties while they continue restructuring negotiations. The ultimate outcome of this matter cannot be determined at this time but could have a material impact on the Company's financial statements if the operating and maintenance agreement is terminated. On May 2, 2022, Great River Energy (“GRE”) completed the sale of Coal Creek Station and the adjacent high-voltage direct current transmission line to Rainbow Energy Center, LLC (“Rainbow Energy”) and its affiliates. As a result of the completion of the sale of Coal Creek Station, the Coal Sales Agreement, the Mortgage and Security Agreement and the Option Agreement between GRE and Falkirk were terminated. The Coal Sales Agreement (“CSA”) between Falkirk and Rainbow Energy became effective upon the closing of the transaction. Falkirk continues to supply all coal requirements of Coal Creek Station and is paid a management fee per ton of coal delivered. To support the transfer to new ownership, Falkirk agreed to a reduction in the current per ton management fee from the effective date of the CSA through May 31, 2024. After May 31, 2024, the per ton management fee increases to a higher base in line with 2021 fee levels, and thereafter adjusts annually according to an index which tracks broad measures of U.S. inflation. Rainbow Energy is responsible for funding all mine operating costs, including mine reclamation, and directly or indirectly providing all of the capital required to operate the mine. The initial production period is expected to run through May 1, 2032, but the CSA may be extended or terminated early under certain circumstances. The Company recognized a gain of $30.9 million within the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations during the second quarter of 2022 as GRE paid NACoal $14.0 million in cash, as well as transferred ownership of an office building with an estimated fair value of $4.1 million, and conveyed membership units in Midwest AgEnergy Group, LLC (“MAG”), a North Dakota-based ethanol business, with an estimated fair value of $12.8 million, as agreed to under the termination and release of claims agreement between Falkirk and GRE. Prior to receiving the membership units from GRE, the Company held a $5.0 million investment in the same privately-held company carried at cost, less impairment. Subsequent to the receipt of the additional membership units, the Company began to account for the investment under the equity method of accounting. During the third quarter, the Company recorded $2.2 million, which represented its share of MAG's earnings on the "Income from equity method investee" line within the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Operations. On December 1, 2022, HLCP Ethanol Holdco, LLC (“HLCP”) completed its acquisition of MAG. Upon closing of the transaction, NACCO transferred its ownership interest in MAG to HLCP and received a cash payment of $18.6 million and recognized a $1.3 million loss during the fourth quarter of 2022 on the line "Other, net" within the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Operations. The HLCP acquisition agreement includes two contingent earn-out arrangements under which additional payments are possible. The first earn-out is based on the achievement of EBITDA targets through December 31, 2024. The second earn-out is based on the development of a carbon dioxide pipeline that will support a carbon dioxide sequestration project over a four-year period commencing on the transaction closing date. Additional payments to NACCO could range from $0 to approximately $13.6 million based on achievement of the two earn-outs as well as payment of amounts held in escrow. Any future payments associated with the earn-outs or amounts held in escrow will be recognized when realized, consistent with the accounting for gain contingencies. Sabine operates the Sabine Mine in Texas. All production from Sabine is delivered to Southwestern Electric Power Company's (“SWEPCO”) Henry W. Pirkey Plant (the “Pirkey Plant”). SWEPCO is an American Electric Power (“AEP”) company. AEP intends to retire the Pirkey Plant during March 2023. Sabine expects deliveries to cease in March 2023 and final reclamation to begin on April 1, 2023. Funding for mine reclamation is the responsibility of SWEPCO, and Sabine will receive compensation for providing mine reclamation services. The contract mining agreement between Bisti Fuels Company, LLC (“Bisti”) and its customer, Navajo Transitional Energy Company ("NTEC") was terminated effective September 30, 2021. As required under the agreement, NTEC paid the Company a termination fee of $10.3 million reported on the line Contract termination settlement on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. As of October 1, 2021, NTEC assumed control and responsibility for operation and all reclamation of the Navajo Mine. At all operating coal mines other than MLMC, the Company is paid a management fee per ton of coal or heating unit (MMBtu) delivered. Each contract specifies the indices and mechanics by which fees change over time, generally in line with broad measures of U.S. inflation. The customers are responsible for funding all mine operating costs, including final mine reclamation, and directly or indirectly provide all of the capital required to build and operate the mine. This contract structure eliminates exposure to spot coal market price fluctuations while providing income and cash flow with minimal capital investment. Other than at Coyote Creek, debt financing provided by or supported by the customers is without recourse to NACCO and NACoal. See Note 16 for further discussion of Coyote Creek's guarantees. All operating coal mines other than MLMC meet the definition of a VIE. In each case, NACCO is not the primary beneficiary of the VIE as it does not exercise financial control; therefore, NACCO does not consolidate the results of these operations within its financial statements. Instead, these contracts are accounted for as equity method investments. The income before income taxes associated with these VIEs is reported as Earnings of unconsolidated operations on the Consolidated Statements of Operations, and the Company’s investment is reported on the line Investments in unconsolidated subsidiaries in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The mines that meet the definition of a VIE are referred to collectively as the “Unconsolidated Subsidiaries.” For tax purposes, the Unconsolidated Subsidiaries are included within the NACCO consolidated U.S. tax return; therefore, the income tax expense line on the Consolidated Statements of Operations includes income taxes related to these entities. See Note 16 for further information on the Unconsolidated Subsidiaries. While Falkirk meets the definition of a VIE, the completion of the Rainbow Energy transaction resulted in a VIE reconsideration event. As the terms of the CSA between Falkirk and Rainbow Energy are substantially the same as the terms of the coal supply contract between Falkirk and GRE, Falkirk remains a VIE and Rainbow Energy is the primary beneficiary; therefore, NACCO will continue to account for Falkirk under the equity method. The Company performs contemporaneous reclamation activities at each mine in the normal course of operations. Under all of the Unconsolidated Subsidiaries’ contracts, the customer has the obligation to fund final mine reclamation activities. Under certain contracts, the Unconsolidated Subsidiary holds the mine permit and is therefore responsible for final mine reclamation activities. To the extent the Unconsolidated Subsidiary performs such final reclamation, it is compensated for providing those services in addition to receiving reimbursement from customers for costs incurred. The MLMC contract is the only operating coal contract in which the Company is responsible for all operating costs, capital requirements and final mine reclamation; therefore, MLMC is consolidated within NACCO’s financial statements. MLMC sells coal to its customer at a contractually agreed-upon price which adjusts monthly, primarily based on changes in the level of established indices which reflect general U.S. inflation rates. Profitability at MLMC is affected by customer demand for coal and changes in the indices that determine sales price and actual costs incurred. As diesel fuel is heavily weighted among the indices used to determine the coal sales price, fluctuations in diesel fuel prices can result in significant fluctuations in earnings at MLMC. MLMC delivers coal to the Red Hills Power Plant in Ackerman, Mississippi. The Red Hills Power Plant supplies electricity to the Tennessee Valley Authority ("TVA") under a long-term Power Purchase Agreement ("PPA"). MLMC’s contract with its customer runs through 2032. TVA’s power portfolio includes coal, nuclear, hydroelectric, natural gas and renewables. The decision of which power plants to dispatch is determined by TVA. NAMining Segment The NAMining segment provides value-added contract mining and other services for producers of industrial minerals. The segment is a platform for the Company’s growth and diversification of mining activities outside of the thermal coal industry. NAMining provides contract mining services for independently owned mines and quarries, creating value for its customers by performing the mining aspects of its customers’ operations. This allows customers to focus on their areas of expertise: materials handling and processing, product sales and distribution. NAMining historically operated primarily at limestone quarries in Florida, but is focused on expanding outside of Florida, mining materials other than limestone and expanding the scope of mining operations provided to its customers. As of December 31, 2022, NAMining operates mines in Florida, Texas, Arkansas, Indiana, Virginia and Nebraska and will serve as exclusive contract miner for the Thacker Pass lithium project in northern Nevada. Certain of the entities within the NAMining segment are VIEs and are accounted for under the equity method as Unconsolidated Subsidiaries. See Note 16 for further discussion. Minerals Management Segment The Minerals Management segment derives income primarily by leasing its royalty and mineral interests to third-party exploration and production companies, and, to a lesser extent, other mining companies, granting them the rights to explore, develop, mine, produce, market and sell gas, oil, and coal in exchange for royalty payments based on the lessees' sales of those minerals. The Minerals Management segment owns royalty interests, mineral interests, nonparticipating royalty interests and overriding royalty interests. • Royalty Interest. Royalty interests generally result when the owner of a mineral interest leases the underlying minerals to an exploration and production company pursuant to an oil and gas lease. Typically, the resulting royalty interest is a cost-free percentage of production revenues for minerals extracted from the acreage. A holder of royalty interests is generally not responsible for capital expenditures or lease operating expenses, but royalty interests may be calculated net of post-production expenses, and typically has no environmental liability. Royalty interests leased to producers expire upon the expiration of the oil and gas lease and revert to the mineral owner. • Mineral Interest. Mineral interests are perpetual rights of the owner to explore, develop, exploit, mine and/or produce any or all of the minerals lying below the surface of the property. The holder of a mineral interest has the right to lease the minerals to an exploration and production company. Upon the execution of an oil and gas lease, the lessee (the exploration and production company) becomes the working interest owner and the lessor (the mineral interest owner) has a royalty interest. • Non-Participating Royalty Interest (“NPRIs”). NPRI is an interest in oil and gas production which is created from the mineral estate. The NPRI is expense-free, bearing no operational costs of production. The term “non-participating” indicates that the interest owner does not share in the bonus, rentals from a lease, nor the right to participate in the execution of oil and gas leases. The NPRI owner does; however, typically receive royalty payments. • Overriding Royalty Interest (“ORRIs”). ORRIs are created by carving out the right to receive royalties from a working interest. Like royalty interests, ORRIs do not confer an obligation to make capital expenditures or pay for lease operating expenses and have limited environmental liability; however, ORRIs may be calculated net of post-production expenses, depending on how the ORRI is structured. ORRIs that are carved out of working interests are linked to the same underlying oil and gas lease that created the working interest, and therefore, such ORRIs are typically subject to expiration upon the expiration or termination of the oil and gas lease. The Company may own more than one type of mineral and royalty interest in the same tract of land. For example, where the Company owns an ORRI in a lease on the same tract of land in which it owns a mineral interest, the ORRI in that tract will relate to the same gross acres as the mineral interest in that tract. The Minerals Management segment will benefit from the continued development of its mineral properties without the need for investment of additional capital once mineral and royalty interests have been acquired. The Minerals Management segment does not currently have any material investments under which it would be required to bear the cost of exploration, production or development. Total consideration for the 2022 and 2021 acquisitions of mineral and royalty interests was $11.9 million and $5.3 million, respectively. The 2022 acquisitions included 13.6 thousand gross acres and 880 net royalty acres. The 2021 acquisitions included 20.6 thousand gross acres and 1.8 thousand net royalty acres. Total mineral and royalty interests included approximately 141.4 thousand gross acres and 60.8 thousand net royalty acres at December 31, 2022. See Note 18 for further discussion of Minerals Management. |