Asset Retirement Obligations

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Asset Retirement Obligation Disclosure [Abstract]

ASSET RETIREMENT OBLIGATIONSWe are required to record the estimated fair value of the liabilities relating to the future retirement of our long-lived assets. Our oil and natural gas wells are plugged and abandoned when the oil and natural gas reserves in those wells are depleted or the wells are no longer able to produce. The plugging and abandonment liability for a well is recorded in the period in which the obligation is incurred (at the time the well is drilled or acquired). None of our assets are restricted for purposes of settling these AROs. All our AROs relate to the plugging costs associated with our oil and gas wells.

The following table shows certain information about our estimated AROs for the periods indicated:


	Three Months Ended
	March 31,
	2020		2019
	(In thousands)
ARO liability, January 1:	$	66,627	$	64,208
Accretion of discount	596		562
Liability incurred	314		3,116
Liability settled	(319)		(1,636)
Liability sold	(15)		(549)
Revision of estimates ⁽¹⁾	(3,384)		2,139
ARO liability, March 31:	63,819		67,840
Less current portion	1,470		1,742
Total long-term ARO	$	62,349	$	66,098

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1.Plugging liability estimates were revised in both 2020 and 2019 for updates in the cost of services used to plug wells over the preceding year. We had various upward and downward adjustments.