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Commitments and contingencies | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2024
Commitments and contingencies |
Commitments and contingencies | Note 18 – Commitments and contingencies: Lead pigment litigation NL’s former operations included the manufacture of lead pigments for use in paint and lead-based paint. NL, other former manufacturers of lead pigments for use in paint and lead-based paint (together, the “former pigment manufacturers”), and the Lead Industries Association (“LIA”), which discontinued business operations in 2002, have previously been named as defendants in various legal proceedings seeking damages for personal injury, property damage and governmental expenditures allegedly caused by the use of lead-based paints. Certain of these actions were filed by or on behalf of states, counties, cities or their public housing authorities and school districts, and certain others were asserted as class actions. NL currently has no pending lead paint class action cases or pending lead paint cases brought by housing authorities, school districts or other government entities. In the matter titled County of Santa Clara v. Atlantic Richfield Company, et al. (Superior Court of the State of California, County of Santa Clara, Case No. 1-00-CV-788657) on July 24, 2019, an order approving a global settlement agreement entered into among all of the plaintiffs and the three defendants remaining in the case (the Sherwin Williams Company, ConAgra Grocery Products and NL) was entered by the court and the case was dismissed with prejudice. The global settlement agreement provides that an aggregate $305 million will be paid collectively by the three co-defendants in full satisfaction of all claims resulting in a dismissal of the case with prejudice and the resolution of (i) all pending and future claims by the plaintiffs in the case, and (ii) all potential claims for contribution or indemnity between NL and its co-defendants in respect to the case. In the agreement, NL expressly denies any and all liability and the dismissal of the case with prejudice was entered by the court without a final judgment of liability entered against NL. The settlement agreement fully concludes this matter. Under the terms of the global settlement agreement, each defendant must pay an aggregate $101.7 million to the plaintiffs as follows: $25.0 million within sixty days of the court’s approval of the settlement and dismissal of the case, and the remaining $76.7 million in six annual installments beginning on the first anniversary of the initial payment ($12.0 million for the first five installments and $16.7 million for the sixth installment). NL’s sixth installment due in September 2025 will be made with funds already on deposit at the court, which is included in current restricted cash on our Consolidated Balance Sheets, that are committed to the settlement, including all accrued interest at the date of payment, with any remaining balance to be paid by NL (and any amounts on deposit in excess of the final payment would be returned to NL). Pursuant to the settlement agreement, NL had placed an additional $9.0 million into an escrow account which was previously included in noncurrent restricted cash on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Following NL’s fifth $12.0 million installment made in September 2024, these funds became available for use and were reclassified as cash equivalents on our Consolidated Balance Sheet. For financial reporting purposes, using a discount rate of 1.9% per annum, we discounted the aggregate $101.7 million settlement to the estimated net present value of $96.3 million. NL made the initial $25.0 million payment in September 2019 and five annual installment payments of $12.0 million beginning in September 2020 and each September thereafter through 2024. We recognized an aggregate accretion expense of $.9 million, $.7 million and $.5 million in 2022, 2023, and 2024, respectively. New cases may continue to be filed against us. We do not know if we will incur liability in the future in respect of any of the pending or possible litigation in view of the inherent uncertainties involved in court and jury rulings. In the future, if new information regarding such matters becomes available to us (such as a final, non-appealable adverse verdict against us or otherwise ultimately being found liable with respect to such matters), at that time we would consider such information in evaluating any remaining cases then-pending against us as to whether it might then have become probable we have incurred liability with respect to these matters, and whether such liability, if any, could have become reasonably estimable. The resolution of any of these cases could result in the recognition of a loss contingency accrual that could have a material adverse impact on our net income for the interim or annual period during which such liability is recognized and a material adverse impact on our consolidated financial condition and liquidity. Environmental matters and litigation Our operations are governed by various environmental laws and regulations. Certain of our businesses are and have been engaged in the handling, manufacture or use of substances or compounds that may be considered toxic or hazardous within the meaning of applicable environmental laws and regulations. As with other companies engaged in similar businesses, certain of our past and current operations and products have the potential to cause environmental or other damage. Our businesses have implemented and continue to implement various policies and programs in an effort to minimize these risks. Our policy is to maintain compliance with applicable environmental laws and regulations at all of our plants and to strive to improve environmental performance and overall sustainability. Periodically we produce our Kronos Environmental Social Governance Report, which highlights Kronos’ focus on sustainability of its manufacturing operations, as well as its environmental, social and governance strategy. From time to time, our businesses may be subject to environmental regulatory enforcement under U.S. and non-U.S. statutes, the resolution of which typically involves the establishment or enhancement of compliance programs. It is possible that future developments, such as stricter requirements of environmental laws and enforcement policies, could adversely affect our production, handling, use, storage, transportation, sale or disposal of such substances. We believe all of our facilities are in substantial compliance with applicable environmental laws. Certain properties and facilities used in our former operations (primarily NL’s former operations), including divested primary and secondary lead smelters and former mining locations, are the subject of civil litigation, administrative proceedings or investigations arising under federal and state environmental laws and common law. Additionally, in connection with past operating practices, we are currently involved as a defendant, potentially responsible party (“PRP”) or both, pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, as amended by the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (“CERCLA”), and similar state laws in various governmental and private actions associated with waste disposal sites, mining locations, and facilities that we or our predecessors and NL or its predecessors, subsidiaries or their predecessors currently or previously owned, operated or used, certain of which are on the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA”) Superfund National Priorities List or similar state lists. These proceedings seek cleanup costs, damages for personal injury or property damage and/or damages for injury to natural resources. Certain of these proceedings involve claims for substantial amounts. Although we may be jointly and severally liable for these costs, in most cases NL is only one of a number of PRPs who may also be jointly and severally liable, and among whom costs may be shared or allocated. In addition, we are occasionally named as a party in a number of personal injury lawsuits filed in various jurisdictions alleging claims related to environmental conditions alleged to have resulted from our operations. Obligations associated with environmental remediation and related matters are difficult to assess and estimate for numerous reasons including the:
| ● | complexity and differing interpretations of governmental regulations,
| ● | number of PRPs and their ability or willingness to fund such allocation of costs,
| ● | financial capabilities of the PRPs and the allocation of costs among them,
| ● | solvency of other PRPs,
| ● | multiplicity of possible solutions,
| ● | number of years of investigatory, remedial and monitoring activity required,
| ● | uncertainty over the extent, if any, to which our former operations might have contributed to the conditions allegedly giving rise to such personal injury, property damage, natural resource and related claims, and
| ● | number of years between former operations and notice of claims and lack of information and documents about the former operations.
In addition, the imposition of more stringent standards or requirements under environmental laws or regulations, new developments or changes regarding site cleanup costs or the allocation of costs among PRPs, solvency of other PRPs, the results of future testing and analysis undertaken with respect to certain sites or a determination that we are potentially responsible for the release of hazardous substances at other sites, could cause our expenditures to exceed our current estimates. Actual costs could exceed accrued amounts or the upper end of the range for sites for which estimates have been made, and costs may be incurred for sites where no estimates presently can be made. Further, additional environmental and related matters may arise in the future. If we were to incur any future liability, this could have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial statements, results of operations and liquidity. We record liabilities related to environmental remediation and related matters (including costs associated with damages for personal injury or property damage and/or damages for injury to natural resources) when estimated future expenditures are probable and reasonably estimable. We adjust such accruals as further information becomes available to us or as circumstances change. Unless the amounts and timing of such estimated future expenditures are fixed and reasonably determinable, we generally do not discount estimated future expenditures to their present value due to the uncertainty of the timing of the payout. We recognize recoveries of costs from other parties, if any, as assets when their receipt is deemed probable. We do not know and cannot estimate the exact time frame over which we will make payments for our accrued environmental and related costs. The timing of payments depends upon a number of factors, including but not limited to the timing of the actual remediation process; which in turn depends on factors outside of our control. At each balance sheet date, we estimate the amount of the accrued environmental and related costs which we expect to pay within the next twelve months, and we classify this estimate as a current liability. We classify the remaining accrued environmental costs as a noncurrent liability. The table below presents a summary of the activity in our accrued environmental costs during 2022, 2023 and 2024. ​
​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​
​ | ​ | Years ended December 31,
​ |  | 2022 |  | 2023 |  | 2024
​ | ​ | (In millions)
Balance at the beginning of the year | ​ | $ | 97.6 | ​ | $ | 97.3 | ​ | $ | 96.9
Additions (deductions), net | ​ |  | 1.7 | ​ |  | 2.5 | ​ |  | (19.2)
Payments, net | ​ |  | (2.0) | ​ |  | (2.9) | ​ |  | (3.1)
Balance at the end of the year | ​ | $ | 97.3 | ​ | $ | 96.9 | ​ | $ | 74.6
Amounts recognized in the Consolidated Balance Sheet at the end of the year: | ​ |  |  | ​ |  |  | ​ |  |
Current liabilities | ​ | $ | 3.8 | ​ | $ | 3.7 | ​ | $ | 59.7
Noncurrent liabilities | ​ |  | 93.5 | ​ |  | 93.2 | ​ |  | 14.9
Total | ​ | $ | 97.3 | ​ | $ | 96.9 | ​ | $ | 74.6
​ NL. On a quarterly basis, NL evaluates the potential range of its liability for environmental remediation and related costs at sites where it has been named as a PRP or defendant. At December 31, 2024, NL had accrued approximately $69 million related to approximately 30 sites associated with remediation and related matters it believes are at the present time and/or in their current phase reasonably estimable. Excluding the $56.1 million environmental remediation settlement payment made in the first quarter of 2025 (as discussed below), the upper end of the range of reasonably possible costs to NL for remediation and related matters for which NL believes it is possible to estimate costs is approximately $38 million, including amounts currently accrued. On February 10, 2025, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey entered an order approving a consent decree relating to the Raritan Bay Slag Superfund Site (“RBS Site”) in Middlesex County, New Jersey. The consent decree requires the United States Army Corps of Engineers (and other federal agencies), the State of New Jersey, the Township of Old Bridge, NL, and twenty-two other private companies to pay a total of $151.1 million, plus interest, to resolve all federal and state law claims for past and future response costs under CERCLA and the New Jersey Spill Act, including natural resource damages, contribution, and indemnification, relating to the RBS Site. The consent decree is a global settlement of all such claims relating to the RBS Site and resolves a lawsuit captioned United States of America, et al. v. NL Industries, Inc., et al. (United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Civil Action No. 3:24-cv- 08946) as well as all claims asserted by NL and the other settling parties in NL’s previously filed contribution lawsuit, NL Industries, Inc. v. Old Bridge Township, et al., discussed above. ​ Under the terms of the consent decree, in the first quarter of 2025 NL paid $56.1 million, plus $.5 million interest, toward the global settlement and received approximately $9.6 million from the other private companies participating in the settlement. We recognized aggregate income of approximately $31.4 million in 2024 related to the adjustment of NL’s environmental accrual related to this matter and the recording of a $9.6 million receivable for the funds received in the first quarter of 2025 from the other private companies participating in the settlement. NL believes that it is not reasonably possible to estimate the range of costs for certain sites. At December 31, 2024, there were approximately five sites for which NL is not currently able to reasonably estimate a range of costs. For these sites, generally the investigation is in the early stages, and NL is unable to determine whether or not NL actually had any association with the site, the nature of its responsibility, if any, for the contamination at the site, if any, and the extent of contamination at and cost to remediate the site. The timing and availability of information on these sites is dependent on events outside of NL’s control, such as when the party alleging liability provides information to NL. At certain of these previously inactive sites, NL has received general and special notices of liability from the EPA and/or state agencies alleging that NL, sometimes with other PRPs, are liable for past and future costs of remediating environmental contamination allegedly caused by former operations. These notifications may assert that NL, along with any other alleged PRPs, are liable for past and/or future clean-up costs. As further information becomes available to us for any of these sites which would allow us to estimate a range of costs, we would at that time adjust our accruals. Any such adjustment could result in the recognition of an accrual that would have a material effect on our Consolidated Financial Statements, results of operations and liquidity. Other. We have also accrued approximately $6 million at December 31, 2024 for other environmental cleanup matters which represents our best estimate of the liability. Insurance coverage claims We are involved in certain legal proceedings with a number of our former insurance carriers regarding the nature and extent of the carriers’ obligations to us under insurance policies with respect to certain lead pigment and asbestos lawsuits. The issue of whether insurance coverage for defense costs or indemnity or both will be found to exist for our lead pigment and asbestos litigation depends upon a variety of factors and we cannot assure you that such insurance coverage will be available. We have agreements with certain of our former insurance carriers pursuant to which the carriers reimburse us for a portion of our future lead pigment litigation defense costs, and one such carrier reimburses us for a portion of our future asbestos litigation defense costs. We are not able to determine how much we will ultimately recover from these carriers for defense costs incurred by us because of certain issues that arise regarding which defense costs qualify for reimbursement. While we continue to seek additional insurance recoveries, we do not know if we will be successful in obtaining reimbursement for either defense costs or indemnity. Accordingly, we recognize insurance recoveries in income only when receipt of the recovery is probable and we are able to reasonably estimate the amount of the recovery. In this regard, NL received $.5 million and $1.4 million in insurance recoveries in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Recoveries in 2022 were nominal. Other litigation In addition to the litigation described above, we and our affiliates are involved in various other environmental, contractual, product liability, patent (or intellectual property), employment and other claims and disputes incidental to our present and former businesses. In certain cases, we have insurance coverage for these items, although we do not expect additional material insurance coverage for our environmental matters. We currently believe that the disposition of all of these various other claims and disputes (including asbestos-related claims), individually or in the aggregate, should not have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or liquidity beyond the accruals already provided. Other matters Concentrations of credit risk – Sales of TiO2 accounted for approximately 92% of our Chemicals Segment’s sales in 2022 and 90% in both 2023 and 2024. The remaining sales result from the sale of ilmenite ore (a raw material used in the sulfate pigment production process), and the manufacture and sale of iron-based water treatment chemicals and certain titanium chemical products (derived from co-products of the TiO2 production processes). TiO2 is generally sold to the paint, plastics and paper industries. Such markets are generally considered “quality-of-life” markets whose demand for TiO2 is influenced by the relative economic well-being of the various geographic regions. Our Chemicals Segment sells TiO2 to approximately 3,000 customers, with the top ten customers approximating 33% of our Chemicals Segment’s net sales in 2022, 35% in 2023 and 39% in 2024. One customer accounted for approximately 10% of our Chemicals Segment’s net sales in 2022, 12% in 2023 and 10% in 2024. The table below shows the approximate percentage of our Chemicals Segment’s TiO2 sales by volume for its significant markets, Europe and North America, for the last three years. ​
​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​ | ​
​ |  | 2022 |  | 2023 |  | 2024 |
Europe |  | 45% | ​ | 44% | ​ | 44% | ​
North America |  | 39% | ​ | 41% | ​ | 40% | ​
​ Our Component Products Segment’s products are sold primarily in North America to original equipment manufacturers. The ten largest customers related to our Component Product’s Segment accounted for approximately 52% of our Component Products Segment’s sales in each of 2022 and 2023 and 47% in 2024. One customer of the security products reporting unit accounted for approximately 14% of the Component Products Segment’s total sales in 2022, 24% in 2023 (of which 11% related to a non-recurring pilot project) and 21% in 2024. One customer of the marine components reporting unit accounted for 12% of the Component Products Segment’s total sales in 2022. Our Real Estate Management and Development Segment’s revenues are land sales income and water (through September 2022) and electric delivery fees (prior to December 2023). During 2022, we had sales to two customers that each exceeded 10% of our Real Estate Management and Development Segment’s net sales, both related to land sales. During 2023, we had sales to five customers that each exceeded 10% of our Real Estate Management and Development Segment’s net sales all related to land sales. During 2024, we had sales to three customers that each exceeded 10% of our Real Estate Management and Development Segment’s net sales all related to land sales. Long-term contracts – Our Chemicals Segment has long-term supply contracts that provide for certain of its TiO2 feedstock requirements through 2026. The agreements require Kronos to purchase certain minimum quantities of feedstock with minimum purchase commitments aggregating approximately $542 million over the life of the contracts in years subsequent to December 31, 2024 (including approximately $484 million committed to be purchased in 2025). In addition, our Chemicals Segment has other long-term supply and service contracts that provide for various raw materials and services. These agreements require Kronos to purchase certain minimum quantities or services with minimum purchase commitments aggregating approximately $67 million at December 31, 2024 (including $40 million committed to be purchased in 2025).

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