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Long-Term Water Assets
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]  
Long-Term Water Assets
LONG-TERM WATER ASSETS
Long-term water assets consist of water and water contracts held for future use or sale. The water is held at cost, which includes the price paid for the water and the cost to pump and deliver the water from the California aqueduct into the water bank. Water is currently held in a water bank on Company land in southern Kern County. Company-banked water costs also include costs related to the right to receive additional acre-feet of water in the future from the Antelope Valley East Kern Water Agency, or AVEK. The Company has also banked water within an AVEK-owned water bank.
We have also been purchasing water for future use or sale. In 2008, we purchased 8,393 acre-feet of transferable water and in 2009 we purchased an additional 6,393 acre-feet of transferable water, all of which is now stored in the Company's water bank. We also have secured State Water Project, or SWP, entitlement under long-term SWP water contracts within the Tulare Lake Basin Water Storage District and the Dudley-Ridge Water District, totaling 3,444 acre-feet of SWP entitlement annually, subject to SWP allocations. These contracts extend through 2035 and have been transferred to AVEK for our use in the Antelope Valley. In 2013, the Company acquired a contract to purchase water that obligates the Company to purchase 6,693 acre-feet of water each year from the Nickel Family, LLC, or Nickel, a California limited liability company that is located in Kern County.
The initial term of the water purchase agreement with Nickel runs to 2044 and includes a Company option to extend the contract for an additional 35 years. The purchase cost of water in 2018 is $738 per acre-foot. The purchase cost is subject to annual cost increases based on the greater of the consumer price index or 3%.
The water purchased above will ultimately be used in the development of the Company’s land for commercial/industrial real estate development, resort/residential real estate development, and farming. Interim uses may include the sale of portions of this water to third party users on an annual basis until this water is fully allocated to Company uses, as just described.
Water revenues and cost of sales were as follows as of December 31:
($ in thousands)
2018
 
2017
 
2016
 
 
 
 
 
 
Acre-Feet Sold
9,442

 
939

 
7,285

 
 
 
 
 
 
Revenues
$
9,142

 
$
1,254

 
$
9,601

Cost of sales
3,864

 
765

 
5,925

Profit
$
5,278

 
$
489

 
$
3,676


Costs assigned to water assets held for future use were as follows ($ in thousands):
 
December 31, 2018
 
December 31, 2017
Banked water and water for future delivery
$
24,597

 
$
5,220

Transferable water
36

 
13,351

Total water held for future use at cost
$
24,633

 
$
18,571


Intangible Water Assets
The Company's carrying amounts of its purchased water contracts were as follows ($ in thousands):
 
December 31, 2018
 
December 31, 2017
 
Costs
 
Accumulated Depreciation
 
Costs
 
Accumulated Depreciation
Dudley-Ridge water rights
$
12,203

 
$
(3,860
)
 
$
12,203

 
$
(3,377
)
Nickel water rights
18,740

 
(3,320
)
 
18,740

 
(2,678
)
Tulare Lake Basin water rights
5,857

 
(2,421
)
 
5,857

 
(2,186
)
 
$
36,800

 
$
(9,601
)
 
$
36,800

 
$
(8,241
)
Net cost of purchased water contracts
27,199

 
 
 
28,559

 
 
Total cost water held for future use
24,633

 
 
 
18,571

 
 
Net investments in water assets
$
51,832

 
 
 
$
47,130

 
 

Water contracts with the Wheeler Ridge Maricopa Water Storage District, or WRMWSD, and the Tejon-Castac Water District, or TCWD, are also in place, but were entered into with each district at inception of the contract and not purchased later from third parties, and do not have a related financial value on the books of the Company. Therefore, there is no amortization expense related to these contracts. Total water resources, including both recurring and one-time usage are:
(in acre feet, unaudited)
December 31, 2018
 
December 31, 2017
Water held for future use
 
 
 
   AVEK water bank
13,033

 
13,033

   Company water bank
35,793

 
31,497

   Transferable water *
500

 
6,169

Total water held for future use
49,326

 
50,699

Purchased water contracts
 
 
 
   Water Contracts (Dudley-Ridge, Nickel and Tulare)
10,137

 
10,137

   WRMWSD - Contracts with Company
15,547

 
15,547

   TCWD - Contracts with Company
5,749

 
5,749

   TCWD - Banked water contracted to Company
52,547

 
49,184

Total purchased water contracts
83,980

 
80,617

Total water held for future use and purchased water contracts
133,306

 
131,316

*of the 6,169 acre-feet of transferable water, 1,452 acre-feet was returned by AVEK to the Company at a 1.5 to 1 factor giving the Company use of a total of 2,137 (1,452 X 1.5) acre-feet as of December 31, 2017.

Tejon Ranchcorp, or Ranchcorp, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tejon Ranch Co., entered into a Water Supply Agreement with PEF in 2015. PEF is the current lessee under the power plant lease. Pursuant to the Water Supply Agreement, PEF may purchase from Ranchcorp up to 3,500 acre-feet of water per year from January 1, 2017 through July 31, 2030, with an option to extend the term. PEF is under no obligation to purchase water from Ranchcorp in any year, but is required to pay Ranchcorp an annual option payment equal to 30% of the maximum annual payment. The price of the water under the Water Supply Agreement for 2018 is $1,088 per acre-foot of annual water, subject to 3% annual increases over the life of the contract. The Water Supply Agreement contains other customary terms and conditions, including representations and warranties, which are typical for agreements of this type. The Company's commitments to sell water can be met through current water assets.