Asset Retirement Obligations Asset Retirement Obligations (Notes)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Asset Retirement Obligation Disclosure [Abstract]

(10) Asset Retirement Obligations

Liabilities for legal obligations associated with the retirement obligations of tangible long-lived assets are initially recorded at fair value in the period in which they are incurred. When a liability is initially recorded, the carrying amount of the related asset is increased. The liability is discounted from the expected date of abandonment. Over time, accretion of the liability is recognized each period, and the capitalized cost is amortized on a unit-of-production basis as part of depreciation, depletion, and amortization expense for our oil and gas properties. Upon settlement of the liability, the Company either settles the obligation for its recorded amount or incurs a gain or loss upon settlement which is included in the “Property and Equipment” balance on our accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets. This guidance requires us to record a liability for the fair value of our dismantlement and abandonment costs, excluding salvage values.

The following provides a roll-forward of our asset retirement obligations for the year ended December 31, 2019 and the nine months ended September 30, 2020 (in thousands):


Asset Retirement Obligations as of December 31, 2018	$	4,259
Accretion expense	329
Liabilities incurred for new wells and facilities construction	250

Reductions due to plugged wells and facilities	(82)
Revisions in estimates	(309)
Asset Retirement Obligations as of December 31, 2019	$	4,447
Accretion expense	263
Liabilities incurred for new wells and facilities construction	165

Reductions due to plugged wells and facilities	(92)

Asset Retirement Obligations as of September 30, 2020	$	4,783

At both September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, approximately $0.4 million of our asset retirement obligations were classified as a current liability in “Accounts payable and accrued liabilities” on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets.