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Alternative Energy Tax Credits | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2011
Alternative Energy Tax Credits [Abstract] |
Alternative Energy Tax Credits |
16. | ALTERNATIVE ENERGY TAX CREDITS
The Company generated black liquor as a by-product of its pulp manufacturing process and used it in a mixture with diesel fuel during 2009 to produce energy at its Counce, Tennessee, Valdosta, Georgia, and Tomahawk, Wisconsin mills. Through December 31, 2009, the U.S. Internal Revenue Code provided a $0.50 per gallon refundable tax credit for taxpayers who used alternative fuels in their trade or business. As a registered alternative fuel mixer, the Company believes the use of black liquor as an alternative fuel through December 31, 2009 qualified for this credit. After December 31, 2009, the alternative fuel mixture credit for a mixture of black liquor and diesel used is no longer available. During the first quarter of 2010, the IRS released a memorandum which provided clarification about the calculation of the alternative fuel mixture credit for black liquor. As a result, during the first quarter of 2010 the Company released the reserve of $9.2 million that was established in 2009 due to the ambiguity in the calculation of the credit. This reserve release resulted in additional income of $9.2 million, which was recorded in Alternative Fuel Mixture Tax Credits on the income statement in the first quarter of 2010. The total alternative fuel mixture credits earned by PCA in 2008 and 2009 were $185.4 million, which was recorded as income with a corresponding receivable on its balance sheet during 2009 when the Company received their registration as a producer of alternative fuels. As federal taxes became due, PCA applied these credits against the taxes due. The laws governing the taxability of the alternative fuel mixture tax credit are not completely defined. The IRS has not issued definitive guidance regarding such taxability. PCA believes that the manner in which the credit was claimed will not subject the Company to federal or state income taxes on such benefits. If it is determined that any of the credits are subject to taxation, PCA will be required to pay those taxes and take a corresponding charge to its income. In an IRS memorandum released during the second quarter of 2010, the IRS concluded that black liquor also qualifies for the taxable cellulosic biofuel producer credit of $1.01 per gallon of biofuel produced in 2009. In a subsequent memorandum, the IRS concluded that a black liquor producer may claim the alternative fuel mixture credit and the cellulosic biofuel producer credit in the same taxable year for different volumes of black liquor (the same gallon of fuel cannot receive both credits but can be claimed as either alternative fuel mixture credit or the cellulosic biofuel producer credit). PCA received the required cellulosic biofuel producer registration code in September 2010. Based upon both IRS memoranda and guidance regarding the cellulosic biofuel producer credit, during the quarter ended September 30, 2010, the Company analyzed the additional potential benefits from claiming the cellulosic biofuel producer credit for 2009 instead of the alternative fuel mixture credit, or claiming a combination of the two credits for 2009. For the gallons of alternative fuels produced in 2009, PCA claimed about two-thirds of the gallons as cellulosic biofuel producer credits and about one-third of the gallons as alternative fuel mixture credits. As a result, during the quarter ended September 30, 2010, the Company recorded a charge of $(111.9) million in Alternative Fuel Mixture Tax Credits due to the reversal of a portion of the income previously recorded from alternative fuel mixture credits and a $145.8 million benefit in the (Provision) Benefit for Income Taxes to reflect the reallocation of gallons to the cellulosic biofuel producer credit. The net impact of the reallocation of the gallons between the two credits resulted in additional net income impact of $33.4 million in the third quarter of 2010. Additional expenses of $0.8 million ($0.5 million after tax) related to the cellulosic biofuel producer credit were also recorded. During the quarter ended December 31, 2010, the Company determined that its proprietary biofuel process at the Filer City, Michigan mill would likely qualify for the 2009 cellulosic biofuel producer credit. The Company amended the 2009 federal return in December 2010 to claim these gallons, resulting in $107.0 million of cellulosic biofuel producer credits. Due to the unique and proprietary nature of the Filer City mill process, IRS guidelines do not specifically address the process and uncertainty exists. As a result, the Company increased the reserve for uncertain tax positions under ASC 740, "Income Taxes," by $102.0 million, which resulted in a fourth quarter net benefit of $5.0 million. Similar to the quarter ended September 30, 2010, the Company analyzed the appropriate combination of the cellulosic biofuel producer credit and the alternative fuel mixture credit. As a result, the Company recorded income of $16.4 million in Alternative Fuel Mixture Tax Credits, representing gallons reallocated to the alternative fuel credits per the amended 2009 federal return. The cellulosic biofuel producer credit is a taxable credit. However, the laws governing the taxability of the alternative fuel mixture credit are not completely defined. The IRS has not issued definitive guidance regarding such taxability. PCA believes that the manner in which the credit was claimed will not subject the Company to federal or state income taxes on such benefits. If it is determined that any of the alternative fuel mixture credits are subject to taxation, PCA will be required to pay those taxes and take a corresponding charge to its income. During the first quarter of 2011, the Company received notification that the IRS will begin its review of the cellulosic biofuel producer tax credits claimed in the 2009 federal income tax return, and such review is under way. The amount of credits that the Company can apply against future federal taxes owed will be dependent upon the timing and amount of PCA's future taxable income. As of December 31, 2011, including the reserve for uncertain tax positions, PCA had as much as $167.5 million of tax credits to be used to offset future tax payments. The cellulosic biofuel producer credit carryforward must be utilized to offset federal taxes owed by December 31, 2015, at which time the credit carryforward expires. A valuation allowance was not recorded against the deferred tax asset for this credit carryforward since the Company believes the credit can be fully utilized before expiration. If it is determined that any of the credit carryforward will become subject to expiration, PCA will reduce the deferred tax asset and record a corresponding charge to income. See Note 20 for a subsequent event which occurred on February 3, 2012, in which PCA amended its 2009 tax return to reflect a change in claimed gallons between the alternative fuel mixture credits and cellulosic biofuel producer credits.

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