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Derivative and Financial Instruments
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2013
Derivative and Financial Instruments [Abstract]  
Derivative and Financial Instruments

Note 15—Derivative and Financial Instruments

 

Derivative Instruments

We use futures, forwards, swaps and options in various markets to meet our customer needs and capture market opportunities. Our commodity business primarily consists of natural gas, crude oil, bitumen, LNG and natural gas liquids. Under our current business model, we are not required to register as a Swap Dealer or Major Swap Participant.

 

Our derivative instruments are held at fair value on our consolidated balance sheet. Where these balances have the right of setoff, they are presented net. Related cash flows are recorded as operating activities on the consolidated statement of cash flows. On the consolidated income statement, realized and unrealized gains and losses are recognized either on a gross basis if directly related to our physical business or a net basis if held for trading. Gains and losses related to contracts that meet and are designated with the normal purchase normal sale exception are recognized upon settlement. We generally apply this exception to eligible crude contracts. We do not use hedge accounting for our commodity derivatives.

The following table presents the gross fair values of our commodity derivatives, excluding collateral, and the line items where they appear on our consolidated balance sheet:
     
 Millions of Dollars
  March 31  December 31
 2013 2012
Assets    
Prepaid expenses and other current assets$ 1,402  1,538
Other assets  98  105
Liabilities    
Other accruals  1,461  1,509
Other liabilities and deferred credits  94  99

The gains (losses) from commodity derivatives incurred, and the line items where they appear on our consolidated income statement were:
      
  Millions of Dollars
   Three Months Ended
March 31
  2013 2012
      
Sales and other operating revenues $ (208)  (403)
Other income    2  (6)
Purchased commodities   185  398
      

The table below summarizes our material net exposures resulting from outstanding commodity derivative contracts.
     
 Open Position
Long/(Short)
 March 31 December 31
 2013 2012
     
Natural gas and power (billions of cubic feet equivalent)    
Fixed price  (22)  (48)
Basis  (1)  125

Foreign Currency Exchange Derivatives

We have foreign currency exchange rate risk resulting from international operations. Our foreign currency exchange derivative activity primarily consists of transactions designed to mitigate our cash-related and foreign currency exchange rate exposures, such as firm commitments for capital projects or local currency tax payments, dividends, and cash returns from net investments in foreign affiliates. We do not elect hedge accounting on our foreign currency exchange derivatives.

 

The following table presents the gross fair values of our foreign currency exchange derivatives, excluding collateral, and the line items where they appear on our consolidated balance sheet:
     
 Millions of Dollars
  March 31  December 31
 2013 2012
Assets    
Prepaid expenses and other current assets$ 12  32
Liabilities    
Other accruals  5  2
Other liabilities and deferred credits  -  1

The (gains) losses from foreign currency exchange derivatives incurred, and the line items where they appear on our consolidated income statement were:
      
   Millions of Dollars
   Three Months Ended
March 31
  2013 2012
      
Foreign currency transaction (gains) losses $ 22  (15)

We had the following net notional position of outstanding foreign currency exchange derivatives:
      
  In Millions
   Notional Currency
 March 31 December 31
   2013 2012
     
Sell U.S. dollar, buy other currencies*USD -  2,573
Buy U.S. dollar, sell other currencies**USD 842  140
Buy British pound, sell euroGBP 11  -
Buy euro, sell British poundEUR -  96
*Primarily euro, Canadian dollar, Norwegian krone and British pound.    
**Primarily euro, Canadian dollar and Norwegian krone.

Financial Instruments

We have certain financial instruments on the consolidated balance sheet related to interest bearing time deposits and commercial paper. These held-to-maturity financial instruments are included in “Cash and cash equivalents” on our consolidated balance sheet if the maturities at the time we made the investments were 90 days or less; otherwise, these investments are included in “Short-term investments” on our consolidated balance sheet.

These balances consisted of the following:
         
 Millions of Dollars
 Carrying Amount
 Cash and Cash Equivalents Short-Term Investments
 March 31 December 31 March 31 December 31
2013201220132012
         
Cash$ 681  829  -  -
Time Deposits  4,741  2,789  -  -
Commercial Paper  -  -  23  -
 $ 5,422  3,618  23  -

In conjunction with the separation of our Downstream business, we received a special cash distribution from Phillips 66. See Note 3—Discontinued Operations, for additional information. The balance of the special cash distribution was zero at March 31, 2013, and $748 million at December 31, 2012 and was included in “Restricted cash” on our consolidated balance sheet. At December 31, 2012, the funds in the restricted cash account were invested in money market funds with maturities within 90 days from December 31, 2012.

Credit Risk

Financial instruments potentially exposed to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash equivalents, over-the-counter (OTC) derivative contracts and trade receivables. Our cash equivalents and short-term investments are placed in high-quality commercial paper, money market funds, government debt securities and time deposits with major international banks and financial institutions.

The credit risk from our OTC derivative contracts, such as forwards and swaps, derives from the counterparty to the transaction. Individual counterparty exposure is managed within predetermined credit limits and includes the use of cash-call margins when appropriate, thereby reducing the risk of significant nonperformance. We also use futures, swaps and option contracts that have a negligible credit risk because these trades are cleared with an exchange clearinghouse and subject to mandatory margin requirements until settled; however, we are exposed to the credit risk of those exchange brokers for receivables arising from daily margin cash calls, as well as for cash deposited to meet initial margin requirements.

 

Our trade receivables result primarily from our petroleum operations and reflect a broad national and international customer base, which limits our exposure to concentrations of credit risk. The majority of these receivables have payment terms of 30 days or less, and we continually monitor this exposure and the creditworthiness of the counterparties. We do not generally require collateral to limit the exposure to loss; however, we will sometimes use letters of credit, prepayments and master netting arrangements to mitigate credit risk with counterparties that both buy from and sell to us, as these agreements permit the amounts owed by us or owed to others to be offset against amounts due us.

 

Certain of our derivative instruments contain provisions that require us to post collateral if the derivative exposure exceeds a threshold amount. We have contracts with fixed threshold amounts and other contracts with variable threshold amounts that are contingent on our credit rating. The variable threshold amounts typically decline for lower credit ratings, while both the variable and fixed threshold amounts typically revert to zero if we fall below investment grade. Cash is the primary collateral in all contracts; however, many also permit us to post letters of credit as collateral, such as certain transactions administered through the New York Mercantile Exchange or the IntercontinentalExchange.

 

The aggregate fair value of all derivative instruments with such credit-risk-related contingent features that were in a liability position on March 31, 2013, and December 31, 2012, was $143 million and $130 million, respectively. For these instruments, no collateral was posted as of March 31, 2013 or December 31, 2012. If our credit rating had been lowered one level from its “A” rating (per Standard and Poor's) on March 31, 2013, we would be required to post no additional collateral to our counterparties. If we had been downgraded below investment grade, we would be required to post $143 million of additional collateral, either with cash or letters of credit.