21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Lease Obligations

As of December 31, 2018, the Company is committed under legally enforceable agreements for purchase and rental payments for amounts as follows:


	2019		2020		2021		2022		2023		Thereafter		Total
Operating lease obligations	$	25	$	22	$	22	$	20	$	20	$	99	$	208
Capital lease commitments		7		4		2		—		—		—		13

For the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017 and 2016, the Company has recorded total lease expenses of $36 million, $37 million and $33 million, respectively.

Capital leases are a component of property, plant and equipment in the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets for the periods ended December 31, 2018 and 2017. The capital lease net balance was $10 million and $12 million for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Contingencies in the Normal Course of Business

As discussed in Note 6, satellite construction contracts may include performance incentives whereby payment for a portion of the purchase price of the satellite is contingent upon in-orbit performance of the satellite. The Company’s ultimate receipt of orbital performance incentives is subject to the continued performance of its satellites generally over the contractually stipulated life of the satellites. A complete or partial loss of a satellite’s functionality can result in loss of orbital receivable payments or repayment of amounts received by the Company under a warranty payback arrangement. The Company generally receives the present value of the orbital receivables if there is a launch failure or a failure caused by a customer error, but will forfeit some or all of the orbital receivables if the loss is caused by satellite failure or as a result of Company error. The Company recognizes orbital performance incentives in the financial statements based on the amounts that are expected to be received and believes that it will not incur a material loss relating to the incentives recognized.

The Company may incur liquidated damages on programs as a result of delays due to slippage, or for programs which fail to meet all milestone requirements as outlined within the contractual arrangements with customers. Losses on programs related to liquidated damages result in a reduction of revenue recognition.

The Company enters into agreements in the ordinary course of business with resellers and others. Most of these agreements require the Company to indemnify the other party against third-party claims alleging that one of its products infringes or misappropriates a patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret or other intellectual property right. Certain of these agreements require the Company to indemnify the other party against claims relating to property damage, personal injury or acts or omissions by the Company, its employees, agents or representatives.

From time to time, the Company has made guarantees regarding the performance of its systems to its customers. Some of these agreements do not limit the maximum potential future payments the Company could be obligated to make. The Company evaluates and estimates potential losses from such indemnification based on the likelihood that the future event will occur. To date, the Company has not incurred any material costs as a result of such obligations and has not accrued any liabilities related to such indemnification and guarantees in the Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company has entered into industrial cooperation agreements, sometimes referred to as offset agreements, as a condition to entering into contracts for its products and services from certain customers in foreign countries. These agreements are designed to return economic value to the foreign country and may be satisfied through activities that do not require a direct cash payment, including transferring technology, providing manufacturing, training and other consulting support to in-country projects. These agreements may provide for penalties in the event the Company fails to perform in accordance with offset requirements. The Company has historically not been required to pay any such penalties.

Legal Proceedings

The Company is a party to various other legal proceedings and claims that arise in the ordinary course of business as either a plaintiff or defendant. The Company analyzes all legal proceedings and the allegations therein. The outcome of any of these other proceedings, either individually or in the aggregate, is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.