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Commitments and Contingencies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2024
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies Commitments and Contingencies
 
Purchase Obligations

The Company has commitments to pay demand charges under long-term contracts and binding precedent agreements with various pipelines as well as charges for processing capacity to extract heavier liquid hydrocarbons from the natural gas stream. Aggregate future payments for such commitments as of December 31, 2024 were $13.6 billion, composed of $1.1 billion in 2025, $1.1 billion in 2026, $1.0 billion in 2027, $0.9 billion in 2028, $0.9 billion in 2029 and $8.6 billion thereafter.

In addition, the Company has commitments to pay for services related to its operations, including electric hydraulic fracturing services, and purchase equipment, materials and sand. Aggregate future payments for such commitments as of December 31, 2024 were $494.3 million, composed of $219.9 million in 2025, $148.4 million in 2026, $88.1 million in 2027 and $37.9 million in 2028.

See Note 14 for a summary of undiscounted future cash flows owed to lessors by the Company as lessee pursuant to contractual agreements in effect as of December 31, 2024.

Legal and Regulatory Proceedings

In the ordinary course of business, various legal and regulatory claims and proceedings are pending or threatened against the Company. While the amounts claimed may be substantial, the Company is unable to predict with certainty the ultimate outcome of such claims and proceedings.

The Company evaluates its legal proceedings, including litigation and regulatory and governmental investigations and inquiries, on a regular basis and accrues a liability for such matters when the Company believes that a loss is probable and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Any such accruals are adjusted thereafter as appropriate to reflect changed circumstances. In the event the Company determines that (i) a loss to the Company is probable but the amount of the loss cannot be reasonably estimated, or (ii) a loss to the Company is less likely than probable but is reasonably possible, then the Company is required to disclose the matter herein, although the Company is not required to accrue such loss.

When able, the Company determines an estimate of reasonably possible losses or ranges of reasonably possible losses, whether in excess of any related accrued liability or where there is no accrued liability, for legal proceedings. In instances where such estimates can be made, any such estimates are based on the Company's analysis of currently available information and are subject to significant judgment and a variety of assumptions and uncertainties and may change as new information is obtained. The ultimate outcome of the matters described below, such as whether the likelihood of loss is remote, reasonably possible, or probable, or if and when the range of loss is reasonably estimable, is inherently uncertain. Furthermore, due to the inherent subjectivity of the assessments and unpredictability of outcomes of legal proceedings, any amounts accrued or estimated as possible losses may not represent the ultimate loss to the Company from the legal proceedings in question and the Company's exposure and ultimate losses may be higher, and possibly significantly so, than the amounts accrued or estimated.

Securities Class Action Litigation. On December 6, 2019, an amended putative class action complaint was filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania by Cambridge Retirement System, Government of Guam Retirement Fund, Northeast Carpenters Annuity Fund, and Northeast Carpenters Pension Fund, on behalf of themselves and all those similarly situated, against EQT, and certain former executives and current and former board members of EQT (the Securities Class Action). The complaint alleges that certain statements made by EQT regarding its merger with Rice Energy Inc. in 2017 (the Rice Merger) were materially false and violated various federal securities laws. Pursuant to the complaint, the plaintiffs seek compensatory or rescissory damages in an unspecified amount for all damages allegedly sustained by the class as a result of alleged negative impacts to EQT stock price in 2018 and 2019.

Additionally, following the filing of the Securities Class Action complaint, several other lawsuits were filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania and the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania by certain shareholders of EQT against EQT and certain former executives and current and former board members of EQT asserting substantially the same allegations as those raised in the Securities Class Action. These matters are currently pending, the majority of which have been stayed pending a ruling on dispositive motions in the Securities Class Action.
Following the commencement of the Securities Class Action, the parties engaged in fact and expert discovery. In June 2024, the discovery phase of the Securities Class Action was completed. On June 27, 2024, the parties to the Securities Class Action participated in a mediation (the Mediation), which did not result in resolution. A trial date for the Securities Class Action has not been determined.

In the second quarter of 2024, the Company recorded an accrual for estimated loss contingencies associated with the Securities Class Action in an amount equal to the settlement offer the Company tendered at the Mediation. Due to the inherent subjectivity of the assessments and unpredictability of outcomes of legal proceedings, the amount accrued for estimated losses associated with the Securities Class Action may not represent the ultimate loss to the Company, and the Company's exposure and ultimate losses may be higher, and possibly significantly so, than the amounts accrued or estimated. The amount accrued for such estimated losses is based on the Company's analysis of currently available information and is subject to significant judgment and a variety of assumptions and uncertainties and may change as new information is obtained. While the parties have completed discovery, various motions, including dispositive motions, have not yet been decided, the matters present meaningful legal uncertainties, and predicting the outcome depends on making assumptions about future decisions of courts and the behavior of other parties for which the Company does not currently have sufficient information. Given these uncertainties, the Company is unable at this time to reasonably estimate the range of possible additional losses above the amount accrued. The Company disputes the claims asserted in the Securities Class Action and related litigation and believes it has meritorious defenses, but unpredictability is inherent in litigation and the Company cannot predict the outcomes with any certainty.

With respect to the matters described above, the Company is unable at this time to estimate the losses that are reasonably possible to be incurred or a range of such losses due to various factors, including that the proceedings are still in their early stages and discovery is not complete; the matters present meaningful legal uncertainties; and predicting the outcome depends on making assumptions about future decisions of courts and the behavior of other parties for which the Company does not currently have sufficient information. The matters described above contain certain information related to claims against the Company as alleged in pleadings. While information of this type may provide insight into the potential magnitude of a matter, it does not necessarily represent the Company’s estimate of a probable or reasonably possible loss or the Company's judgment as to any currently appropriate accrual.

Regulatory and Environmental Matters. The Company is subject to various federal, state and local environmental and environmentally-related laws and regulations. These laws and regulations, which are constantly changing, can require expenditures for remediation and may result in the assessment of fines. The Company has established procedures for ongoing evaluation of its operations to identify potential environmental exposures and to assure compliance with regulatory policies and procedures. The estimated costs associated with identified situations that require remedial action are accrued. Ongoing expenditures for compliance with environmental laws and regulations, including investments in plant and facilities to meet environmental requirements, have not been material. Management believes that any such required expenditures will not be significantly different in either their nature or amount in the future and does not know of any environmental liabilities that will have a material effect on the Company's financial position, results of operations or liquidity. The Company has identified situations that require remedial action for which approximately $10.3 million was recorded in other liabilities and credits in the Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2024.

Other Matters. In addition to the matters described above, the Company, in the normal course of business, is subject to various other pending and threatened legal proceedings in which claims for monetary damages or other relief are asserted. The Company does not anticipate, at the present time, that the ultimate aggregate liability, if any, arising out of such other legal proceedings will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.