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Commitments, Contingencies and Other Matters | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2014
Commitments And Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
Commitments, Contingencies and Other Matters | 8. Commitments, Contingencies and Other Matters Commitments – As of December 31, 2014, the Company maintained letters of credit in the aggregate amount of $39.8 million for the benefit of various insurance companies as collateral for retrospective premiums and retained losses which could become payable under the terms of the underlying insurance contracts. These letters of credit expire annually at various times during the year and are typically renewed. As of December 31, 2014, no amounts had been drawn under the letters of credit. As of December 31, 2014, the Company had commitments to purchase approximately $512 million of major equipment for its drilling and pressure pumping businesses. The Company’s pressure pumping business has entered into agreements to purchase minimum quantities of proppants and chemicals from certain vendors. These agreements expire in 2016, 2017 and 2018. As of December 31, 2014, the remaining obligation under these agreements was approximately $71.8 million, of which materials with a total purchase price of approximately $15.4 million are required to be purchased during 2015. In the event that the required minimum quantities are not purchased during any contract year, the Company could be required to make a liquidated damages payment to the respective vendor for any shortfall. In November 2011, the Company’s pressure pumping business entered into an agreement with a proppant vendor to advance up to $12.0 million to such vendor to finance the construction of certain processing facilities. This advance is secured by the underlying processing facilities and bears interest at an annual rate of 5.0%. Repayment of the advance is to be made through discounts applied to purchases from the vendor and repayment of all amounts advanced must be made no later than October 1, 2017. As of December 31, 2014, advances of approximately $11.8 million had been made under this agreement and repayments of approximately $8.6 million had been received resulting in a balance outstanding of approximately $3.2 million. Contingencies – In May 2013, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) notified the Company of cause findings related to certain of its employment practices. The cause findings relate to allegations that the Company tolerated a hostile work environment for employees based on national origin and race. The cause findings also allege, among other things, failure to promote, subjecting employees to adverse employment terms and conditions and retaliation. The Company and the EEOC engaged in the statutory conciliation process. In March 2014, the EEOC notified the Company that this matter will be forwarded to its legal unit for litigation review. In November 2014, the Company and the EEOC participated in a mediation to resolve the matter. Discussions are ongoing. If no resolution is reached, the Company believes that litigation will ensue, and the Company intends to defend itself vigorously. Based on the information available to the Company at this time, the Company does not expect the outcome of this matter to have a material adverse effect on its financial condition, results of operations or cash flows; however, there can be no assurance as to the ultimate outcome of this matter. In October 2014, the Company was notified by EPA Region 6 that it intends to seek civil penalties for alleged RCRA administrative violations at a former facility of one of the Company’s subsidiaries in Midland, Texas. The EPA subsequently alleged RCRA administrative violations at other facilities of that subsidiary and are seeking an aggregate monetary penalty of approximately $1.1 million. The Company is in negotiations with the EPA regarding the scope and amount of any potential settlement. The Company does not expect the outcome of this matter to have a material adverse effect on its financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. The Company’s operations are subject to many hazards inherent in the contract drilling and pressure pumping businesses, including inclement weather, blowouts, well fires, loss of well control, pollution and reservoir damage. These hazards could cause personal injury or death, work stoppage, and serious damage to equipment and other property, as well as significant environmental and reservoir damages. These risks could expose the Company to substantial liability for personal injury, wrongful death, property damage, loss of oil and natural gas production, pollution and other environmental damages. Any contractual right to indemnification that the Company may have for any such risk, may be unenforceable or limited due to negligent or willful acts of commission or omission by the Company, its subcontractors and/or suppliers. The Company’s customers may dispute, or be unable to meet, their contractual indemnification obligations to the Company due to financial, legal or other reasons. Accordingly, the Company may be unable to transfer these risks to its customers by contract or indemnification agreements. Incurring a liability for which the Company is not fully indemnified or insured could have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. The Company has insurance coverage for comprehensive general liability, automobile liability, workers’ compensation and employer’s liability, and certain other specific risks. The Company has also elected in some cases to accept a greater amount of risk through increased deductibles on certain insurance policies. For example, the Company generally maintains a $1.5 million per occurrence deductible on its workers’ compensation and equipment insurance coverages and a $2.0 million per occurrence self-insured retention on its general liability coverage and $2.0 million per occurrence deductible on its automobile liability insurance coverage. The Company self-insures a number of other risks, including loss of earnings and business interruption, and does not carry a significant amount of insurance to cover risks of underground reservoir damage. If a significant accident or other event occurs and is not fully covered by insurance or an enforceable or recoverable indemnity from a customer, it could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Accrued expenses related to insurance claims are set forth in Note 5. The Company is party to various legal proceedings arising in the normal course of its business. The Company does not believe that the outcome of these proceedings, either individually or in the aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on its financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Other Matters — The Company has Change in Control Agreements with its Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, two Senior Vice Presidents and its General Counsel (the “Key Employees”). Each Change in Control Agreement generally has an initial term with automatic twelve-month renewals unless the Company notifies the Key Employee at least ninety days before the end of such renewal period that the term will not be extended. If a change in control of the Company occurs during the term of the agreement and the Key Employee’s employment is terminated (i) by the Company other than for cause or other than automatically as a result of death, disability or retirement, or (ii) by the Key Employee for good reason (as those terms are defined in the Change in Control Agreements), then the Key Employee shall generally be entitled to, among other things:
— | a bonus payment equal to the highest bonus paid after the Change in Control Agreement was entered into (such bonus payment for each Key Employee prorated for the portion of the fiscal year preceding the termination date);
— | a payment equal to 2.5 times (in the case of the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer), 2 times (in the case of the Senior Vice Presidents) or 1.5 times (in the case of the General Counsel) of the sum of (i) the highest annual salary in effect for such Key Employee and (ii) the average of the three annual bonuses earned by the Key Employee for the three fiscal years preceding the termination date and
— | continued coverage under the Company’s welfare plans for up to three years (in the case of the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer) or two years (in the case of the Senior Vice Presidents and General Counsel).
Other than with respect to the Chief Executive Officer, each Change in Control Agreement provides the Key Employee with a full gross-up payment for any excise taxes imposed on payments and benefits received under the Change in Control Agreements or otherwise, including other taxes that may be imposed as a result of the gross-up payment.

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