Other Contingencies and Commitments

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2013

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Other Contingencies and Commitments

Other Contingencies and Commitments

Income Taxes The company calculates its income tax expense and liabilities quarterly. These liabilities generally are subject to audit and are not finalized with the individual taxing authorities until several years after the end of the annual period for which income taxes have been calculated. Refer to Note 8 on page 14 for a discussion of the periods for which tax returns have been audited for the company’s major tax jurisdictions.

As discussed on page 14, Chevron is currently assessing the potential impact of a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit that disallows the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits claimed by an unrelated taxpayer. It is reasonably possible that the specific findings from this assessment could result in a significant increase in unrecognized tax benefits, which may have a material effect on the company's results of operations in any one reporting period. The company does not expect settlement of income tax liabilities associated with uncertain tax positions to have a material effect on its consolidated financial position or liquidity.

Guarantees The company and its subsidiaries have certain other contingent liabilities with respect to guarantees, direct or indirect, of debt of affiliated companies or third parties. Under the terms of the guarantee arrangements, the company would generally be required to perform should the affiliated company or third party fail to fulfill its obligations under the arrangements. In some cases, the guarantee arrangements may have recourse provisions that would enable the company to recover any payments made under the terms of the guarantees from assets provided as collateral.

Indemnifications In the acquisition of Unocal, the company assumed certain indemnities relating to contingent environmental liabilities associated with assets that were sold in 1997. The acquirer of those assets shared in certain environmental remediation costs up to a maximum obligation of $200 million, which had been reached at December 31, 2009. Under the indemnification agreement, after reaching the $200 million obligation, Chevron is solely responsible until April 2022, when the indemnification expires. The environmental conditions or events that are subject to these indemnities must have arisen prior to the sale of the assets in 1997.

Although the company has provided for known obligations under this indemnity that are probable and reasonably estimable, the amount of additional future costs may be material to results of operations in the period in which they are recognized. The company does not expect these costs will have a material effect on its consolidated financial position or liquidity.

Off-Balance-Sheet Obligations The company and its subsidiaries have certain other contingent liabilities with respect to long-term unconditional purchase obligations and commitments, including throughput and take-or-pay agreements, some of which relate to suppliers’ financing arrangements. The agreements typically provide goods and services, such as pipeline and storage capacity, drilling rigs, utilities, and petroleum products, to be used or sold in the ordinary course of the company’s business.

Environmental The company is subject to loss contingencies pursuant to laws, regulations, private claims and legal proceedings related to environmental matters that are subject to legal settlements or that in the future may require the company to take action to correct or ameliorate the effects on the environment of prior release of chemicals or petroleum substances, including MTBE, by the company or other parties. Such contingencies may exist for various sites, including, but not limited to, federal Superfund sites and analogous sites under state laws, refineries, crude oil fields, service stations, terminals, land development areas, and mining operations, whether operating, closed or divested. These future costs are not fully determinable due to such factors as the unknown magnitude of possible contamination, the unknown timing and extent of the corrective actions that may be required, the determination of the company’s liability in proportion to other responsible parties, and the extent to which such costs are recoverable from third parties.

Although the company has provided for known environmental obligations that are probable and reasonably estimable, the amount of additional future costs may be material to results of operations in the period in which

they are recognized. The company does not expect these costs will have a material effect on its consolidated financial position or liquidity. Also, the company does not believe its obligations to make such expenditures have had, or will have, any significant impact on the company’s competitive position relative to other U.S. or international petroleum or chemical companies.

Other Contingencies On April 26, 2010, a California appeals court issued a ruling related to the adequacy of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) supporting the issuance of certain permits by the city of Richmond, California, to replace and upgrade certain facilities at Chevron's refinery in Richmond. Settlement discussions with plaintiffs in the case ended late fourth quarter 2010, and on March 3, 2011, the trial court entered a final judgment and peremptory writ ordering the City to set aside the project EIR and conditional use permits and enjoining Chevron from any further work. On May 23, 2011, the company filed an application with the City Planning Department for a conditional use permit for a revised project to complete construction of the hydrogen plant, certain sulfur removal facilities and related infrastructure. On June 10, 2011, the City published its Notice of Preparation of the revised EIR for the project. The revised and recirculated EIR is intended to comply with the appeals court decision. Management believes the outcomes associated with the project are uncertain. Due to the uncertainty of the company's future course of action, or potential outcomes of any action or combination of actions, management does not believe an estimate of the financial effects, if any, can be made at this time.

Chevron receives claims from and submits claims to customers; trading partners; U.S. federal, state and local regulatory bodies; governments; contractors; insurers; and suppliers. The amounts of these claims, individually and in the aggregate, may be significant and take lengthy periods to resolve.

The company and its affiliates also continue to review and analyze their operations and may close, abandon, sell, exchange, acquire or restructure assets to achieve operational or strategic benefits and to improve competitiveness and profitability. These activities, individually or together, may result in gains or losses in future periods.