Note 3 - Properties, Plants, Equipment and Mineral Interests, and Lease Commitments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Notes to Financial Statements

Property, Plant and Equipment Disclosure [Text Block]

Note 3: Properties, Plants, Equipment and Mineral Interests, and Lease Commitments

Properties, Plants, Equipment and Mineral Interests

Our major components of properties, plants, equipment, and mineral interests are (in thousands):

	December 31,
	2019		2018
Mining properties, including asset retirement obligations	$	762,355	$	533,631
Development costs		503,111		444,229
Plants and equipment		1,056,512		988,285
Land		32,909		32,953
Mineral interests		1,018,380		1,269,956
Construction in progress		360,827		365,807
		3,734,094		3,634,861
Less accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization		1,310,396		1,114,857
Net carrying value	$	2,423,698	$	2,520,004

During 2019, we incurred total capital expenditures of approximately $121.4 million. This excludes non-cash items for equipment acquired under finance leases and adjustments for asset retirement obligations. The expenditures included $8.9 million at the Lucky Friday unit, $29.3 million at the Greens Creek unit, $36.1 million at the Casa Berardi unit, $5.0 million at the San Sebastian unit, and $42.1 million at the Nevada Operations unit.

Mineral interests include amounts for value beyond proven and probable reserves ("VBPP") related to mines and exploration or pre-development interests acquired by us which are not depleted until the mineralized material they relate to is converted to proven and probable reserves. As of December 31, 2019, mineral interests included VBPP assets of $321.1 million, $382.2 million and $181.4 million, respectively, at our Casa Berardi, Nevada Operations and Greens Creek units, along with various other properties.

Properties, plants, equipment, and mineral interests includes the portion of interest costs incurred on our debt capitalized as a part of the cost of constructing certain qualifying assets. For the year ended December 31, 2017, capitalized interest totaled $0.9 million, with no capitalized interest recognized for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018. The capitalized interest in 2017 was primarily related to the #4 Shaft project at Lucky Friday, which was completed in January 2017.

Finance and Capital Leases

We periodically enter into lease agreements, primarily for equipment at our operating units, which we have determined to be finance leases under accounting guidance that became effective on January 1, 2019, and capital leases prior to that date.  As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, we have recorded $64.9 million and $58.4 million, respectively, for the gross amount of assets acquired under the finance and capital leases and $44.3 million and $38.4 million, respectively, in accumulated depreciation on those assets, classified as plants and equipment in Properties, plants, equipment and mineral interests.  See Note 6 for information on future obligations related to our finance and capital leases.