FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

15. FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The Company is required to disclose the fair value of financial instruments where practicable. The carrying amounts of cash equivalents, accounts receivable and accounts payable reflected on the consolidated balance sheets approximate the fair value of these instruments due to the short duration to their maturities. Long-term debt fair value estimates are based on observed prices for securities with an active trading market when available (Level 2) and otherwise using discount rate estimates based on interest rates as of December 31, 2016 (Level 3).

The estimated fair value of the Company’s debt with fixed and variable interest rates are as follows:



	Fixed Interest Rate				Variable Interest Rate
	Carrying Value		Fair Value		Carrying Value		Fair Value
	(In thousands)				(In thousands)
December 31, 2016	$	409,362	$	395,274	$	699,704	$	658,557
December 31, 2015	414,419		291,919		605,760		390,350

The table below sets forth, by level, the Company’s financial assets and liabilities that are accounted for at fair value on a recurring basis:



	December 31, 2016
				Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets or Liabilities			Significant Other Observable Inputs
	Fair Value			Level 1			Level 2
	(In thousands)
Assets:
Contract to sell power included in Other current assets and Other assets	$	19,768		$	—		$	19,768
Available-for-sale investments included in Restricted investments and bond collateral	75,580			75,580			—
Available-for-sale investments included in Reclamation deposits	71,689			71,689			—
	$	167,037		$	147,269		$	19,768
Liabilities:
Contracts to purchase power included in Other current liabilities and Other liabilities	$	(31,766	)	$	—		$	(31,766	)
Warrants issued by WMLP included in Other liabilities	(613		)	(613		)	—
	$	(32,379	)	$	(613	)	$	(31,766	)



	December 31, 2015
				Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets or Liabilities			Significant Other Observable Inputs
	Fair Value			Level 1			Level 2
	(In thousands)
Assets:
Available-for-sale investments included in Restricted investments and bond collateral	$	35,813		$	35,813		$	—
Available-for-sale investments included in Reclamation deposits	31,545			31,545			—
	$	67,358		$	67,358		$	—
Liabilities:
Contracts to purchase power included in Other current liabilities and Other liabilities	$	(37,335	)	$	—		$	(37,335	)
Warrants issued by WMLP included in Other liabilities	(646		)	(646		)	—
	$	(37,981	)	$	(646	)	$	(37,335	)

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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