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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)

x    QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2018

or

o     TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from                      to                  

Commission File Number:  001-34547

Cloud Peak Energy Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

(307) 687-6000

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

x  Yes      o  No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).

x  Yes      o  No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company.  See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.  (Check one):

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

o  Yes      x  No

Number of shares outstanding of Cloud Peak Energy Inc.’s common stock, as of the latest practicable date: Common stock, $0.01 par value per share, 75,772,193 shares outstanding as of April 18, 2018.

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Unless the context indicates otherwise, the terms “Cloud Peak Energy,” the “Company,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Cloud Peak Energy Inc. (“CPE Inc.”) and its subsidiaries.

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PART I — FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1.       Financial Statements.

CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF

OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)

(in thousands, except per share data)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(in thousands)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(in thousands)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

NOTES TO UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

1.  Organization and Business

We are one of the largest producers of coal in the United States of America (“U.S.”) and the Powder River Basin (“PRB”), based on our 2017 coal sales.  We operate some of the safest mines in the coal industry.  According to the most current Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) data, we have one of the lowest employee all injury incident rates among the largest U.S. coal producing companies.  We currently operate solely in the PRB, the lowest cost region of the major coal producing regions in the U.S., where we own and operate three surface coal mines: the Antelope Mine, the Cordero Rojo Mine, and the Spring Creek Mine.

Our Antelope Mine and Cordero Rojo Mine are located in Wyoming and our Spring Creek Mine is located in Montana.  Our mines produce subbituminous thermal coal with low sulfur content, and we sell our coal primarily to domestic and foreign electric utilities.  Thermal coal is primarily consumed by electric utilities and industrial consumers as fuel for electricity generation.  In 2017, the coal we produced generated approximately 2% of the electricity produced in the U.S.  We do not produce any metallurgical coal.

In addition, we have two development projects, both located in the Northern PRB.  For purposes of this report, the term “Northern PRB” refers to the area within the PRB that lies within Montana and the northern part of Sheridan County, Wyoming.  The Youngs Creek project is an undeveloped surface mine project located in Wyoming, seven miles south of our Spring Creek Mine and contiguous with the Wyoming-Montana state line.  The Big Metal project is located near the Youngs Creek project on the Crow Indian Reservation in southeast Montana.

Our logistics business provides a variety of services designed to facilitate the sale and delivery of coal.  These services include the purchase of coal from third parties or from our owned and operated mines, coordination of the transportation and delivery of purchased coal, negotiation of take-or-pay rail agreements and take-or-pay port agreements and demurrage settlement with vessel operators.  See Note 5 for further discussion.

Principles of Consolidation

The accompanying Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”).  In accordance with U.S. GAAP for interim financial statements, these Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements do not include certain information and footnote disclosures that are required to be included in annual financial statements prepared in conformity with U.S. GAAP.  The year-end Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet data was derived from the Audited Consolidated Financial Statements.  Accordingly, these Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the Audited Consolidated Financial Statements as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, and for each of the three years ended December 31, 2017, included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 (“2017 Form 10-K”).  In the opinion of management, the accompanying Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contain all adjustments, which are of a normal and recurring nature, necessary for a fair statement of our financial position as of March 31, 2018, and the results of our operations, comprehensive income (loss), and cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, in conformity with U.S. GAAP.  Our results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2018 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for future quarters or for the year ending December 31, 2018.

The preparation of our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires our management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting periods.  Significant estimates in these Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements include: assumptions about the amount and timing of future cash flows and related discount rates used in determining asset retirement obligations (“AROs”) and in testing long-lived assets and goodwill for impairment; the fair value of derivative financial instruments; the calculation of mineral reserves; equity-based compensation expense; workers’ compensation claims; reserves for

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

NOTES TO UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

contingencies and litigation; useful lives of long-lived assets; postretirement employee benefit obligations; the recognition and measurement of income tax benefits and related deferred tax asset valuation allowances; and allowances for inventory obsolescence and net realizable value.  Actual results could differ materially from those estimates.

Due to the tabular presentation of rounded amounts, certain tables reflect insignificant rounding differences.

2.  Accounting Policies and Standards Update

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

From time to time, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) or other standard setting bodies issue new accounting pronouncements.  Updates to the FASB Accounting Standards Codification are communicated through issuance of an Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”).  Unless otherwise discussed, we believe that the impact of recently issued guidance will not be material to our consolidated financial statements upon adoption.

In February 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-02, Income Statement — Reporting Comprehensive Income - Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (“ASU 2018-02”), which allows companies to make a one-time reclassification of the stranded tax effects (as defined by ASU 2018-02) from accumulated other comprehensive income to retained earnings as a result of the tax legislation enacted in December 2017, commonly known as the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (“TCJA”), and requires certain disclosures about stranded tax effects.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  Early adoption is permitted.  The amendments in this update should be applied either in the period of adoption or retrospectively to each period (or periods) in which the effects of the change in the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate in the TCJA is recognized.  We are still evaluating the impact the adoption of ASU 2018-02 will have.  We will adopt the new standard as of January 1, 2019.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-04, Goodwill — Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment (“ASU 2017-04”), which eliminates the second step in the goodwill impairment test whereby a company measures an impairment loss by calculating the implied fair value of goodwill of a reporting unit and comparing it against its carrying value.  As a result, a goodwill impairment loss will be calculated by comparing the fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  Early adoption is permitted.  The amendments in this update should be applied prospectively, with added disclosure regarding the nature of and reason for the change in accounting principal.  We will adopt the new standard as of January 1, 2020.

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (“ASU 2016-02”), which would require the lessee to recognize the assets and liabilities on all leases that may have not been recognized in the past.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  We will adopt the new standard effective January 1, 2019.  The amendments in this update should be applied at the beginning of the earliest period presented using a modified retrospective approach.  We began our review of our contracts with vendors in 2017 and will continue to evaluate the impact of the adoption of ASU 2016-02 throughout 2018.  However, based upon our initial reviews and the future payments under operating leases disclosed in our 2017 Form 10-K, we do not currently anticipate that adoption of this standard will have a significant impact on our results of operations, financial position, and cash flows.

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

In May 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-09, Compensation — Stock Compensation — Scope of Modification Accounting (“ASU 2017-09”), which provides guidance about the types of changes to terms or

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

NOTES TO UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

conditions of a share-based payment award that would require an entity to apply modification accounting.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  The amendments in this update should be applied prospectively to an award modified on or after the adoption date.  We adopted this standard on January 1, 2018.

In March 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-07, Compensation — Retirement Benefits — Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Cost (“ASU 2017-07”), which requires separate presentation of service costs and all other components of net benefit costs on the income statement.  Under ASU 2017-07, service cost is included in the same line item as other compensation costs arising from services rendered by employees during the period, with all other components of net benefit costs on the income statement outside of income from operations.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  We adopted this standard on January 1, 2018.  We retrospectively adopted the presentation of service costs separate from the other components of net periodic costs.  The interest costs and amortization of prior service costs have been reclassified from Cost of product sold and Selling, general and administrative expenses to Net periodic postretirement benefit income (cost), excluding service cost.

The effect of the retrospective presentation change related to the net periodic cost of our other postretirement employee benefits (“OPEB”) plan on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the three months ended March 31, 2017 was as follows (in thousands):

In November 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-18, Statement of Cash Flows — Restricted Cash (“ASU 2016-18”), which requires the statement of cash flows to explain the change during the period in total cash, cash equivalents, and amounts generally described as restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  The amendments in this update should be applied using a retrospective transition method to each period presented.  We adopted this standard on January 1, 2018.  Refer to Note 19, as well as the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows, for further information regarding the reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, and restricted cash equivalents.

In October 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-16, Accounting for Income Taxes — Intra-Entity Asset Transfers of Assets other than Inventory (“ASU 2016-16”), which would require the recognition of the tax expense from the sale of an asset other than inventory when the transfer occurs, rather than when the asset is sold to a third party or otherwise recovered through use.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  The amendments in this update should be applied on a modified retrospective basis through a cumulative-effect adjustment directly to retained earnings as of the beginning of the period of adoption.  We adopted this standard on January 1, 2018.  We completed a

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

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review of our intra-entity transfers as of December 31, 2017, and determined that ASU 2016-16 does not have an impact on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

In August 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-15, Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments (“ASU 2016-15”), which standardizes cash flow statement classification of certain transactions, including cash payments for debt prepayment or extinguishment, proceeds from insurance claim settlements, and distributions received from equity method investments.  The new guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  The amendments in this update should be applied using a retrospective transition method to each period presented.  If impracticable to apply the amendments retrospectively for some of the issues, the amendments for those issues would be applied prospectively as of the earliest date practicable.  We adopted this standard on January 1, 2018, with no impact on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

From May 2014 through December 2016, the FASB issued several ASUs related to Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”).  These ASUs are intended to provide greater insight into both revenue that has been recognized and revenue that is expected to be recognized in the future from existing contracts.  The core principle of the new standard is that a company should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services.  The new guidance is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2017.  The two permitted transition methods under the new standard are the full retrospective method, in which case the standard would be applied to each prior reporting period presented and the cumulative effect of applying the standard would be recognized at the earliest period shown, or the modified retrospective method, in which case the cumulative effect of applying the standard would be recognized at the date of initial application.  We have adopted the new standard as of January 1, 2018 and utilized the modified retrospective method.  This approach allowed us to apply the new standard to (1) all new contracts entered into after January 1, 2018 and (2) all existing contracts for which all (or substantially all) of the revenue has not been recognized under legacy revenue guidance as of January 1, 2018 through a cumulative adjustment to equity.  Consolidated revenue presented in our comparative financial statements for periods prior to January 1, 2018 has not been revised and continues to be reported under legacy revenue recognition guidance.

The following table reflects the adoption of ASC 606 on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of January 1, 2018 (in thousands):

As part of the adoption of ASC 606, we also will not recognize approximately 64,400 tons that were delivered in January 2018 in our tons sold figure for 2018.  These tons were delivered on a contract where title transferred to the customer upon delivery, while risk of loss transferred at the shipping point, or the mine.  Under legacy revenue recognition guidance, the revenue related to these tons was recognized upon delivery.  However, under ASC 606, revenue is now recognized at the shipping point, as this is when control passes to the customer.  As of December 31, 2017, these tons were appropriately placed back into inventory in accordance with legacy revenue recognition guidance.  The revenue recognition process was complete upon adoption of ASC 606 on January 1, 2018.

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CLOUD PEAK ENERGY INC.

NOTES TO UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

3.  Revenue

In accordance with the new revenue standard requirements, the disclosure of the impact of the adoption of ASC 606 on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) and Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets is as follows (in thousands):

Revenue from Contracts with Customers

We account for a contract with a customer when the parties have approved the contract and are committed to performing their respective obligations, the rights of each party are identified, payment terms are identified, the contract has commercial substance, and collectability of consideration is probable.  We recognize revenue when we satisfy a performance obligation by transferring control of a good or service to a customer.

Our revenue is derived from sales to customers of coal produced at our facilities and coal purchased from other companies.  We categorize our customers by how we sell coal to them.  Our mine customers purchase coal directly from our mine sites, where the sale occurs at the mine site and where title, risk of loss, and control typically pass to the customer at that point.  This revenue is generally recorded in our Owned and Operated Mines Segment.  Mine customers arrange for and bear the costs of transporting their coal from our mines to their plants or other specified discharge points.  Our mine customers are typically domestic utility companies primarily located in the mid-west and south central U.S., although we also sell to other domestic utility companies, as well as to third-party brokers.  Our coal sales agreements with our mine customers are generally fixed-price, fixed-volume supply contracts, or include a pre-determined escalation in price for each year.  Some of our customer contracts may include variable pricing and volumes.  Price re-opener and index provisions may allow either party to commence a renegotiation of the contract price at a pre-determined time.  Price re-opener provisions may automatically set a new price based on prevailing market price or, in some instances, require us to negotiate a new price, sometimes within specified ranges of prices.  In some agreements, if the parties do not agree on a new price, either party has an option to terminate the contract.  Under some of our contracts, we have the right to

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match lower prices offered to our customers by other suppliers.  The terms of our coal sales agreements result from competitive bidding and extensive negotiations with customers.  Consequently, the terms of these contracts vary by customer.

Our logistics customers purchase coal from us, along with logistics services to deliver the coal to the customer at a terminal or the customer’s plant or other delivery point remote from our mine site.  Title, risk of loss, and control pass to the customer at the remote delivery point.  This revenue is recorded in our Logistics and Related Activities Segment.  Our logistics services are designed to facilitate the sale and delivery of coal.  These services include the purchase of coal from third parties or from our owned and operated mines, coordination of the transportation and delivery of purchased coal, negotiation of take-or-pay rail agreements and take-or-pay port agreements and demurrage settlements with vessel operators.  We also bear the costs of transporting the coal to the delivery point.  For our international customers, this means that we cover the costs associated with an export terminal located in the Pacific Northwest.  Refer to Note 5 for further information.  Our logistics customers located overseas are generally responsible for paying the cost of ocean freight, although occasionally we may arrange or be responsible for the cost of that transportation as well.  Logistics customers are primarily foreign and domestic utility companies as well as third-party brokers.  With respect to our international sales, at present, we are primarily focused on end-user customers.  However, a small portion of our sales are made to international traders who sell on to end-user customers.  Our coal sales agreements with our domestic logistics customers are generally fixed-price, fixed-volume supply contracts with terms of one to three years.  The terms of our coal sales agreements result from competitive bidding and extensive negotiations with customers.  Consequently, the terms of these contracts vary by customer.  With our international logistics customers, we often enter into contracts that contain multi-year terms with future year pricing to be agreed upon, meaning that there is an expectation of sales, provided that mutual agreement on pricing can be reached.  This is consistent with conventional industry standards for sales into the Asian Pacific region.  We typically agree upon volumes and pricing under these international customer agreements three to six months in advance of shipment.  Our Asian delivered shipments are typically priced broadly in line with a number of relevant international coal indices adjusted for energy content and other quality and delivery criteria.  These indices include the Newcastle benchmark price, as published by Global Coal and others, and the Platts Kalimantan 5000.  Contracts with our logistics customers include terms similar to those described for our mine customers and may also include terms relating to: demurrage fees for international contracts, fixed pricing for the current year of sales, and additional coal quality requirements.

Coal sales agreements with both mine and logistics customers typically contain coal quality specifications.  With coal quality specifications in place, the raw coal sold by us to the customer at the delivery point must be substantially free of magnetic material and other foreign material impurities, and crushed to a maximum size as set forth in the respective coal sales agreement.  Prior to billing the customer, price adjustments are made based on quality standards that are specified in the coal sales agreement, such as Btu factor, moisture, ash, and sodium content and can result in either increases or decreases in the value of the coal shipped.

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Disaggregation of Revenue

In the following table, Revenue is disaggregated by primary geographic markets, as we believe this best depicts how the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of our revenue and cash flows are affected by economic factors (in thousands):

(1)                                 The majority of our domestic revenue is attributable to the Owned and Operated segment.

(2)                                 All South Korean revenue and the majority of Other geographical revenue is attributable to our Logistics and Related Activities segment.

We attribute revenue to individual countries based on the location of the physical delivery of the coal.  All of our revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017 originated in the United States.

Performance Obligations

A performance obligation is a promise in a contract with a customer to provide distinct goods or services.  Performance obligations are the unit of account for purposes of applying the revenue recognition standard and therefore determine when and how revenue is recognized.  In most of our contracts, the customer contracts with us to provide coal that meets certain quality criteria, and, for our logistics customers, delivery of that coal to a certain destination.  These promises are highly interrelated and interdependent, and cannot be transferred to the customer without the other promises in the contract also being fulfilled.  As such, these promises are not separately identifiable within the context of the contract, and therefore, are not distinct.  Therefore, the entire contract is accounted for as one performance obligation.  We allocate the transaction price based on the base price per the contract, which is also the standalone selling price, increased or decreased for quality adjustments.

Under ASC 606, shipping and handling services may be considered a separate performance obligation if control of the goods transfers to the customer before shipment, but the entity has promised to ship the goods, or arrange for their shipment.  In contrast, if control of a good does not transfer to the customer before shipment, shipping is not a promised service to the customer.  This is because shipping is a fulfillment activity as the costs are incurred as part of transferring the goods to the customer.  ASC 606 includes an accounting policy election that permits entities to account for shipping and handling activities that occur after the customer has obtained control of a good as fulfillment cost rather than as an additional promised service.  We have made this accounting policy election, and will recognize the corresponding transportation expenses for contracts in which we arrange and pay for shipping costs when the customer has obtained control of the related coal.

We generally recognize revenue at a point in time as the customer does not have control over the asset at any point during the fulfillment of the contract.  For the majority of our customers in our Owned and Operated Segment, this is supported by the fact that title and risk of loss transfer to the customer upon loading of the railcar at the mine.  This is also the point at which physical possession of the coal transfers to the customer, as well as the significant risks and rewards in ownership of the coal.  Similarly, for customers in our Logistics and Related Activity Segment, this is supported by the fact that title and risk of loss transfer to the customer when the coal is delivered to an agreed-upon destination or loaded and trimmed on a vessel.  This is also the point at which physical possession of the coal transfers to the customer, as well as the significant risks and rewards in ownership of the coal.

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In our Owned and Operated Segment, we have remaining performance obligations relating to fixed priced contracts of approximately $777 million, which represent the average fixed prices on our committed contracts as of March 31, 2018.  We expect to recognize approximately 80% of this revenue through 2019, with the remainder recognized thereafter.  We have remaining performance obligations relating to index priced contracts or contracts with price reopeners of approximately $280 million, which represent the average re-opener/indexed price on committed contracts as of March 31, 2018.  We expect to recognize approximately 30% of this revenue through 2019, with the remainder recognized thereafter.  In our Logistics and Related Activities segment, we have remaining performance obligations relating to our fixed price contracts of approximately $102 million, which we expect to recognize in 2018.

The tons used to determine the remaining performance obligations are subject to adjustment in instances of force majeure and exercise of customer options to either take additional tons, or reduce tonnage, if such option exists in the customer contract.  Furthermore, export tons are subject to adjustment upon loading of vessels at the port and therefore represent the estimated tons we anticipate shipping.  The elimination of the purchase and sale of coal between reportable segments is not reflected above.

Contract Balances

Under ASC 606, the timing of when a performance obligation is satisfied can affect the presentation of accounts receivable, contract assets, and contract liabilities.  The main distinction between accounts receivable and contract assets is whether consideration is conditional on something other than the passage of time.  A receivable is an entity’s right to consideration that is unconditional.  Under the typical payment terms of our contracts with customers, the customer pays us a base price for the coal, increased or decreased for any quality adjustments.  In our contracts with mine customers, adjustments are known at the time of invoicing as we conduct our own tests of quality.  In contracts with our logistics customers, adjustments are also known at the time of billing as they are based on quality tests performed at the port.  Amounts billed and due are recorded as trade accounts receivable and included in Accounts receivable on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.  In cases where we invoice based on customers’ quality tests, we estimate the transaction price using our quality testing results.  Historically, the difference between customers’ testing results and our testing results have been immaterial.  We do not currently have any contracts in place where we would transfer coal in advance of knowing the final price of the coal sold, and thus do not have any contract assets recorded.  Contract liabilities arise when consideration is received in advance of performance.  This deferred revenue is included in Accrued expenses on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets when consideration is received and revenue is not recognized until the performance obligation is satisfied.  We are rarely paid in advance of performance and do not currently have any deferred revenue recorded on our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Accounts receivable consisted of the following (in thousands):

4.  Segment Information

We have two reportable segments; our Owned and Operated Mines segment and our Logistics and Related Activities segment.

Our Owned and Operated Mines segment is characterized by the predominant focus on thermal coal production where the sale occurs at the mine site and where title and risk of loss generally pass to the customer

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at that point.  This segment includes our Antelope Mine, Cordero Rojo Mine, and Spring Creek Mine.  Sales in this segment are primarily to domestic electric utilities and some industrials, although a portion may be made to our Logistics and Related Activities segment.  Sales between reportable segments are priced based on prevailing market prices for arm’s length transactions.  Our mines utilize surface mining extraction processes and are all located in the PRB.  The gains and losses resulting from any domestic coal futures contracts and WTI derivative financial instruments are reported within this segment.

Our Logistics and Related Activities segment is characterized by the services we provide to our international and certain of our domestic customers where we deliver coal to the customer at a terminal or the customer’s plant or other delivery point, remote from our mine site.  Services provided include the purchase of coal from third parties or from our Owned and Operated Mines segment, at market prices, as well as the contracting and coordination of the transportation and other handling services from third-party operators, which are typically rail and terminal companies and may include chartering of a vessel.  Title and risk of loss are retained by the Logistics and Related Activities segment through the transportation and delivery process.  Title and risk of loss pass to the customer in accordance with the contract and typically occur at a vessel loading terminal, a vessel unloading terminal or an end use facility.  Risk associated with rail and terminal take-or-pay agreements is also borne by the Logistics and Related Activities segment.  The gains and losses resulting from any international coal forward contracts and international coal put options are reported within this segment.  Amortization related to the amended port and rail take-or-pay agreements are also included in this segment.  See Note 5 for additional information about the amended transportation agreements.  Incremental production taxes and royalties associated with the sales made by our Logistics and Related Activities segment are included in this segment for the current year.  These taxes and royalties were immaterial in the prior year and have not been reclassified from the Owned and Operated Mines segment.

Our business activities that are not considered operating segments are included in Other, although they are not required to be included in this footnote.  They are provided for reconciliation purposes and include Selling, general and administrative expenses (“SG&A”) as well as results relating to broker activity.

Eliminations represent the purchase and sale of coal between reportable segments and the associated elimination of intercompany profit or loss in inventory and are provided for reconciliation purposes.

Revenue

The following table presents Revenue (in thousands):

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Capital Expenditures

The following table presents purchases of property, plant and equipment, investment in development projects, and capital expenditures included in Property, plant and equipment, net, Other assets, and Accounts payable (in thousands):

Adjusted EBITDA

EBITDA represents net income (loss) before: (1) interest income (expense) net, (2) income tax provision, (3) depreciation and depletion, and (4) amortization.  Adjusted EBITDA represents EBITDA as further adjusted for accretion, which represents non-cash increases in asset retirement obligation liabilities resulting from the passage of time, and specifically identified items that management believes do not directly reflect our core operations.  The specifically identified items that we routinely adjust for are:  (1) adjustments to exclude non-cash impairment charges, (2) adjustments for derivative financial instruments, excluding fair value mark-to-market gains or losses and including cash amounts received or paid, (3) adjustments to exclude debt restructuring costs, and (4) non-cash throughput amortization expense and contract termination payments made to amend the BNSF and Westshore agreements.

Adjusted EBITDA is an additional tool intended to assist our management in comparing our performance on a consistent basis for purposes of business decision making by removing the impact of certain items that management believes do not directly reflect our core operations.  Adjusted EBITDA is a metric intended to assist management in evaluating operating performance, compensation decisions, comparing performance across periods, planning and forecasting future business operations and helping determine levels of operating and capital investments.

The following table reconciles segment Adjusted EBITDA to Income (loss) before income tax provision and earnings from unconsolidated affiliates (in thousands):

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(1)                                 (Gain) loss on derivative financial instruments reflected in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss).

(2)                                 Cash amounts received and paid reflected within operating cash flows in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

5.  Transportation Agreements

To ensure export terminal and rail capacity for export sales, we enter into multi-year throughput agreements with export terminal companies and railroads.  These types of take-or-pay agreements require us to pay for a minimum quantity of coal to be transported on the railway or through the terminal regardless of whether we sell any coal.  If we fail to make sufficient export sales to meet our minimum obligations under the take-or-pay agreements, we are still obligated to make payments to the export terminal company and railroad.

We have a throughput agreement with Westshore Terminals Limited Partnership (“Westshore”) for our anticipated export sales through their export terminal in Vancouver, British Columbia, and a similar agreement with Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad (“BNSF”).

Current Agreements

In December 2016, we terminated our previous agreement with Westshore and entered into a new agreement effective January 1, 2017.  In February 2017, we terminated our previous agreement with BNSF and entered into a new agreement effective April 1, 2017.  These new agreements provided for shipments in 2017 and 2018 and required minimum payments for those two years.  In exchange for the termination of the previous agreements in 2015 and 2016, we made termination payments.  These amounts have been deferred and will be

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amortized, along with the previous amendment payments made in 2015, over the remaining life of the new agreements.

In December 2017 and January 2018, we extended the agreements with Westshore and BNSF, respectively, through the end of 2020 with minimum payment commitments for each year.  We have the right to terminate our commitments for the remaining years at any time in exchange for buyout payments.  Additionally, after the new Westshore agreement terminates and through 2024, if we choose to ship to export customers, we are required to offer to ship through Westshore up to a specified annual tonnage on terms similar to the new agreement before shipping through any other export terminal.  Westshore has the right to accept or reject our offer in its sole discretion.

As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, there was $20.8 million and $22.4 million, respectively, recorded as a deferred asset for these agreements.  As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, $15.3 million and $22.4 million, respectively, is included in Other prepaid and deferred charges in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.  $5.5 million is included in noncurrent Other assets in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of March 31, 2018.  We incurred $52.3 million and $24 million in costs under our logistics agreements with Westshore and BNSF, including amortization of $4.2 million and $10.6 million, during the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.  These costs are included in Cost of product sold in the Unaudited Condensed Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss).

We had outstanding purchase commitments related to transportation agreements consisting of the following (in thousands):

(1)                                 Includes undiscounted port take-or-pay commitments as agreed to in the fourth quarter of 2017 for 2018-2020.  We have the right to terminate our commitments at any time in exchange for a buyout payment.  These amounts are considered minimum payments on services.  The per tonne loading charges reflect these advance payments.

(2)                                 Includes undiscounted rail take-or-pay commitments as agreed to in January 2018 for 2018-2020.  We have the right to terminate our commitments at any time in exchange for a buyout payment.  If we do not meet the required portion of our future nominated tons, there would be incremental liquidated damages due under the agreement.

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6.  Interest Expense

Interest expense consisted of the following (in thousands):

In connection with the public offering discussed in Note 13, upon redemption of the 2019 Notes (defined in Note 13), we paid $1.5 million in accrued and unpaid interest, $0.9 million in premium on the early retirement of debt, and wrote off $0.7 million in deferred financing and original issue discount in the three months ended March 31, 2017.

7.  Income Taxes

TCJA made significant changes to U.S. tax laws.  We have historically been subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax (“AMT”) under which taxes were imposed at a 20% rate on taxable income, subject to certain adjustments, and we assumed that we would be subject to the AMT rate in future periods.  As such, the elimination of the AMT and reduction in the federal corporate tax rate to 21% does not have a material impact on our estimates for cash taxes payable in the next several years.  The corporate rate reduction required a revaluation of our net deferred tax asset at December 31, 2017.  However, since we had a full valuation allowance on our net deferred tax asset, there was no revaluation impact to our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss).

A material immediate impact of TCJA was the elimination of the AMT and the ability to offset our regular tax liability or claim refunds for taxable years 2018 through 2021 for our AMT credits carried forward from prior periods.  We currently anticipate we will realize approximately $30 million in AMT value over the next four years with approximately half of this value realized in 2019 for taxable year 2018.

As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had deferred tax assets principally arising from: AROs, postretirement benefits, contract rights, and net operating loss carry-forwards.  As management cannot determine that it is more likely than not that we will realize the benefit of the deferred tax assets, a valuation allowance equal to the net deferred tax asset has been established.

Our statutory income tax rate including state income taxes, for the three months ended March 31, 2018 was approximately 23%, while the rate for the three months ended March 31, 2017, was approximately 37%.  Our effective tax rate for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017 was (0.8)% and (1.5)%, respectively.  The difference between the statutory rates for each period is due to TCJA.  In addition, the difference between our

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statutory income tax rate and our effective income tax rate for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017 is primarily the result of the impact of percentage depletion, income tax in the states in which we do business and changes in our valuation allowance.

As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we had no uncertain tax positions that we expect to have a material impact on the financial statements as a result of tax deductions taken during the year or in prior periods or due to settlements with taxing authorities or lapses of applicable statues of limitations.  We are open to federal and state tax audits until the applicable statutes of limitations expire.  The statute of limitations has expired for all federal and state returns filed for periods ending before 2012.

8.  Equity Method Investments

Equity method investments include our 50% equity investment in Venture Fuels Partnership, a coal marketing company.  We have received distributions of $1.0 million and $3.0 million from the Venture Fuels Partnership during the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.  Our equity method investments are included in noncurrent Other assets on the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets and had a carrying amount of the following (in thousands):

9.  Earnings (Loss) per Share

Potential dilutive shares of common stock may include restricted stock and units, options, and performance units issued under our Long Term Incentive Plan (“LTIP”).  See Note 16.  We apply the treasury stock method to determine dilution from restricted stock and units, options, and performance units.  On February 28, 2017, we issued 13.5 million shares of common stock through a registered underwritten public offering.

The following table summarizes the calculation of diluted earnings (loss) per share (in thousands, except per share amounts):

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For the periods presented, the following items were excluded from the diluted earnings (loss) per share calculation because they were anti-dilutive (in thousands):

10.  Fair Value of Financial Instruments

We use a three-level fair value hierarchy that categorizes assets and liabilities measured at fair value based on the observability of the inputs utilized in the valuation.  The levels of the hierarchy, as defined below, give the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs.

·                  Level 1 is defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets for identical assets.  Our Level 1 assets currently include money market funds.

·                  Level 2 is defined as observable inputs other than Level 1 prices, including quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in an active market, quoted prices for identical assets and liabilities in markets that are not active, or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.  Our Level 2 assets and liabilities include derivative financial instruments with fair values derived from quoted prices in over-the-counter markets or from prices received from direct broker quotes.  We had no Level 2 assets or liabilities as of March 31, 2018 or December 31, 2017.

·                  Level 3 is defined as unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions.  We had no Level 3 financial instruments as of March 31, 2018 or December 31, 2017.

The tables below set forth, by level, our financial assets and liabilities that are recorded at fair value in the accompanying Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands):

(1)                                 Included in Cash and cash equivalents in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets along with $63.5 million and $58.8 million of demand deposits as of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively.

We did not have any transfers between levels during the three months ended March 31, 2018.  Our policy is to value all transfers between levels using the beginning of period valuation.

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11.  Derivative Financial Instruments

WTI Derivatives

Historically, we have used derivative financial instruments, such as swaps, to help manage our exposure to market changes in diesel fuel prices.  The derivatives were indexed to the West Texas Intermediate (“WTI”) crude oil price as quoted on the New York Mercantile Exchange.  As such, the nature of the derivatives did not directly offset market changes to our diesel costs.

Under a swap agreement, if the monthly average index price is higher than the swap price, we receive the difference and if the monthly average index price is lower than the swap price, we pay the difference.  We used swap agreements to fix our forecasted diesel costs for 2017.  All swap agreements were settled as of December 31, 2017.  We currently do not hold any swap agreements.

Derivative Gains and Losses

(Gain) loss on derivative financial instruments recognized in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) were as follows (in thousands):

See Note 10 for a discussion related to the fair value of derivative financial instruments.

12.  Inventories, Net

Inventories, net consisted of the following (in thousands):

13.  Senior Notes and Equity

On February 28, 2017, we issued 13.5 million shares of common stock through a registered underwritten public offering and received proceeds, net of underwriting discounts and commissions, of $64.7 million.  We used the net proceeds from the offering to fund the full redemption of our outstanding 8.50% Senior Notes due 2019 (“2019 Notes”).  On March 31, 2017, we redeemed the 2019 Notes at a total cost of $64.5 million, reflecting a redemption price of 101.417% of the principal amount of $62.1 million, or $63.0 million, plus accrued and unpaid interest of $1.5 million.  In addition, we wrote off $0.7 million in deferred financing costs and original issue discount as of the redemption date.

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Senior notes consisted of the following (in thousands):

(1)                                 The fair value of the senior notes was based on observable market inputs, which are considered Level 2 in the fair value hierarchy.  See Note 10 for further information on Level 2 fair value measurements.

14.  Other Obligations

Capital Equipment Lease Obligations

From time to time, we enter into capital leases on equipment under various lease schedules, which are subject to a master lease agreement, and are pre-payable at our option.  Our capital equipment lease obligations are included in Other liabilities.  As of March 31, 2018, future payments for these obligations are as follows (in thousands):