Asset Retirement Obligations

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2023

Asset Retirement Obligation Disclosure [Abstract]

Asset Retirement Obligations

Asset Retirement Obligations During the six months ended June 30, 2023, the Company revised its cost estimates for existing Asset Retirement Obligations (ARO) at Cholla related to the closure of ponds and facilities, which resulted in an increase to the ARO of approximately $36 million. Additionally, an updated Four Corners coal-fired power plant decommissioning estimate was updated, which resulted in a decrease of approximately $13 million. See additional details in Notes 4 and 8.

The following schedule shows the change in our asset retirement obligations for the six months ended June 30, 2023 (dollars in thousands): 

	2023
Asset retirement obligations at January 1, 2023	$	797,762
Changes attributable to:
Accretion expense	21,313
Settlements	(2,868)
Estimated cash flow revisions	22,912
Asset retirement obligations at June 30, 2023	$	839,119

In accordance with regulatory accounting, APS accrues removal costs for its regulated utility assets, even if there is no legal obligation for removal.  See detail of regulatory liabilities in Note 4.