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DEBT
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2020
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]  
DEBT DEBT
The components of debt as of September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 consisted of the following:
September 30, 2020
(in millions)Debt InstrumentUnamortized Issuance ExpenseUnamortized Debt DiscountTotal
Long-term debt:
Variable rate (1.60% at September 30, 2020) 2018 revolving credit facility due April 2024
$ $ 
(1)
$ $ 
4.10% Senior Notes due March 2022
207   207 
4.95% Senior Notes due January 2025 (2)
856 (4)(1)851 
7.50% Senior Notes due April 2026
618 (6) 612 
7.75% Senior Notes due October 2027
440 (5) 435 
8.375% Senior Notes due September 2028 (3)
350 (5) 345 
Total long-term debt$2,471 $(20)$(1)$2,450 
December 31, 2019
(in millions)Debt InstrumentUnamortized Issuance ExpenseUnamortized Debt DiscountTotal
Long-term debt:
Variable rate (4.310% at December 31, 2019) 2018 term loan facility due April 2024
$34 $— 
(1)
$— $34 
4.10% Senior Notes due March 2022
213 (1)— 212 
4.95% Senior Notes due January 2025 (2)
892 (5)(1)886 
7.50% Senior Notes due April 2026
639 (7)— 632 
7.75% Senior Notes due October 2027
484 (6)— 478 
Total long-term debt$2,262 $(19)$(1)$2,242 
(1)At September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, unamortized issuance expense of $10 million and $11 million, respectively, associated with the 2018 credit facility (as defined below) was classified as other long-term assets on the consolidated balance sheets.
(2)Effective in July 2018, the interest rate was 6.20% for the 2025 Notes, reflecting a net downgrade in the Company’s bond ratings since the initial offering. On April 7, 2020, S&P downgraded the Company’s bond rating to BB-, which had the effect of increasing the interest rate on the 2025 Notes to 6.45% following the July 23, 2020 interest payment date. The first coupon payment to the bondholders at the higher interest rate will be paid in January 2021.
(3)The $350 million of Senior Notes due 2028 are subject to special mandatory redemption if the Montage Merger does not close on or prior to February 12, 2021.
Credit Facilities
2018 Revolving Credit Facility
In April 2018, the Company replaced its credit facility that was entered into in 2016 with a new revolving credit facility (the “2018 credit facility”) with a group of banks that, as amended, has a maturity date of April 2024.  The 2018 credit facility has an aggregate maximum revolving credit amount of $3.5 billion and, in October 2020, the banks participating in the 2018 credit facility reaffirmed the elected borrowing base and aggregate commitments to be $1.8 billion. The borrowing base is subject to redetermination at least twice a year, in April and October, and is secured by substantially all of the assets owned by the Company and its subsidiaries. The permitted lien provisions in certain senior note indentures currently limit liens securing indebtedness to the greater of $2.0 billion or 25% of adjusted consolidated net tangible assets.
The Company may utilize the 2018 credit facility in the form of loans and letters of credit. Loans under the 2018 credit facility are subject to varying rates of interest based on whether the loan is a Eurodollar loan or an alternate base rate loan.  Eurodollar loans bear interest at the Eurodollar rate, which is adjusted LIBOR for such interest period plus the applicable margin (as those terms are defined in the 2018 credit facility documentation).  The applicable margin for Eurodollar loans under the 2018 credit facility, as amended, ranges from 1.75% to 2.75% based on the Company’s utilization of the 2018 credit facility.  Alternate base rate loans bear interest at the alternate base rate plus the applicable margin.  The applicable margin for alternate base rate loans under the 2018 credit facility, as amended, ranges from 0.75% to 1.75% based on the Company’s utilization of the 2018 credit facility.
In conjunction with the October 2020 redetermination process, the Company entered into an amendment to the credit agreement governing the 2018 credit facility to, among other matters:
limit the Company’s unrestricted cash and cash equivalents to $200 million when loans under the 2018 credit facility are outstanding, subject to certain exceptions; and
increase the applicable rate by 25 basis points on loans outstanding under the 2018 credit facility.
In addition, certain amendments and redeterminations were made conditioned upon the closing of the Merger. Upon the closing of the Merger and satisfaction of related conditions and pursuant to the amendment and the semi-annual borrowing base redetermination, the elected borrowing base and total aggregate commitments will be increased to $2.0 billion, the maximum permitted lien amount based on provisions in certain of the Company’s senior note indentures, and the credit agreement will be further amended to, among other matters:
include certain Montage entities owning gas and oil properties as guarantors to the 2018 credit facility; and
deem any Montage letters of credit issued prior to the merger close to have been issued under the 2018 credit facility.
The 2018 credit facility contains customary representations and warranties and contains covenants including, among others, the following:
a prohibition against incurring debt, subject to permitted exceptions;
a restriction on creating liens on assets, subject to permitted exceptions; 
restrictions on mergers and asset dispositions;
restrictions on use of proceeds, investments, transactions with affiliates, or change of principal business; and
maintenance of the following financial covenants, commencing with the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2018:
1.Minimum current ratio of no less than 1.00 to 1.00, whereby current ratio is defined as the Company’s consolidated current assets (including unused commitments under the credit agreement, but excluding non-cash derivative assets) to consolidated current liabilities (excluding non-cash derivative obligations and current maturities of long-term debt).
2.Maximum total net leverage ratio of no greater than, with respect to each fiscal quarter ending on or after June 30, 2020, 4.00 to 1.00.  Total net leverage ratio is defined as total debt less cash on hand (up to the lesser of 10% of credit limit or $150 million) divided by consolidated EBITDAX for the last four consecutive quarters.  EBITDAX, as defined in the credit agreement governing the Company’s 2018 credit facility, excludes the effects of interest expense, depreciation, depletion and amortization, income tax, any non-cash impacts from impairments, certain non-cash hedging activities, stock-based compensation expense, non-cash gains or losses on asset sales, unamortized issuance cost, unamortized debt discount and certain restructuring costs. 
The 2018 credit facility contains customary events of default that include, among other things, the failure to comply with the financial covenants described above, non-payment of principal, interest or fees, violation of covenants, inaccuracy of representations and warranties, bankruptcy and insolvency events, material judgments and cross-defaults to material indebtedness.  If an event of default occurs and is continuing, all amounts outstanding under the 2018 credit facility may become immediately due and payable. As of September 30, 2020, the Company was in compliance with all of the covenants contained in the credit agreement governing the 2018 credit facility.
Each United States domestic subsidiary of the Company for which the Company owns 100% guarantees the 2018 credit facility.  Pursuant to requirements under the indentures governing its senior notes, each subsidiary that became a guarantor of the 2018 credit facility also became a guarantor of each of the Company’s senior notes.
As of September 30, 2020, the Company had $203 million in letters of credit and no borrowings outstanding under the 2018 credit facility. The Company currently does not anticipate being required to supply a materially greater amount of letters of credit under its existing contracts.
The Company’s exposure to the anticipated transition from LIBOR in late 2021 is limited to the 2018 credit facility. Upon announcement by the administrator of LIBOR identifying a specific date for LIBOR cessation, the credit agreement governing the 2018 credit facility will be amended to reference an alternative rate as established by JP Morgan, as Administrative Agent, and the Company. The alternative rate will be based on the prevailing market convention and is expected to be the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”).
Senior Notes
In January 2015, the Company completed a public offering of $1.0 billion aggregate principal amount of its 4.95% senior notes due 2025 (the “2025 Notes”).  The interest rate on the 2025 Notes is determined based upon the public bond ratings from Moody’s and S&P.  Downgrades on the 2025 Notes from either rating agency increase interest costs by 25 basis points per downgrade level and upgrades decrease interest costs by 25 basis points per upgrade level, up to the stated coupon rate, on the following semi-annual bond interest payment.  Effective in July 2018, the interest rate for the 2025 Notes was 6.20%, reflecting a net downgrade in the Company’s bond ratings since the initial offering. On April 7, 2020, S&P downgraded the Company’s bond rating to BB-, which had the effect of increasing the interest rate on the 2025 Notes to 6.45% following the July 23, 2020 interest payment date. The first coupon payment to the bondholders at the higher interest rate will be paid in January 2021. In the event of future downgrades, the coupons for this series of notes have been capped at 6.95%.
In the first half of 2020, the Company repurchased $6 million of its 4.10% Senior Notes due 2022, $36 million of its 4.95% Senior Notes due 2025, $21 million of its 7.50% Senior Notes due 2026 and $44 million of its 7.75% Senior Notes due 2027 for $72 million, and recognized a $35 million gain on the extinguishment of debt.
In August 2020, the Company completed a public offering of $350 million aggregate principal amount of its 2028 Notes, with net proceeds from the offering totaling approximately $345 million after underwriting discounts and offering expenses. The 2028 Notes were sold to the public at 100% of their face value. The net proceeds from the notes are intended to be used, in conjunction with the net proceeds from the recent common stock offering and borrowings under the revolving credit facility, to fund a redemption of $510 million of Montage’s Notes in connection with the closing of the Merger. Pending the consummation of the Merger, a portion of these net proceeds has temporarily been used to repay revolving credit facility borrowings until the anticipated redemption of the Montage Notes. The 2028 Notes are subject to special mandatory redemption at par plus accrued and unpaid interest if the Merger does not close on or prior to February 12, 2021 or the Company determines in its sole discretion that the consummation of the Merger cannot or is not reasonably likely to be satisfied by February 12, 2021.