TRGP, §1A diff (2016 → 2017)

Item 1A. Risk Factors. The nature of our business activities subjects us to certain hazards and risks. You should consider carefully the following risk factors together with all the other information contained in this report. If any of the following risks were to occur, then our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. We have a substantial amount of indebtedness which may adversely affect our financial position. We have a substantial amount of indebtedness. As of December 31, 2017, we had $4,223.0 million outstanding under the Partnership’s senior unsecured notes and $54.6 million of outstanding senior notes of TPL, excluding $0.4 million of unamortized net discounts and premiums. We also had $350.0 million outstanding under the Partnership’s Securitization Facility. In addition, we had (i) $20.0 million of borrowings outstanding, $27.2 million of letters of credit outstanding and $1,552.8 million of additional borrowing capacity available under the TRP Revolver, (ii) $435.0 million of borrowings outstanding, and $235.0 million of additional borrowing capacity available under the TRC Revolver. For the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, our consolidated interest expense, net was $233.7 million, $254.2 million and $231.9 million. This substantial level of indebtedness increases the possibility that we may be unable to generate cash sufficient to pay, when due, the principal of, interest on or other amounts due in respect of indebtedness. This substantial indebtedness, combined with lease and other financial obligations and contractual commitments, could have other important consequences to us, including the following: • our ability to obtain additional financing, if necessary, for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions or other purposes may be impaired or such financing may not be available on favorable terms; • satisfying our obligations with respect to indebtedness may be more difficult and any failure to comply with the obligations of any debt instruments could result in an event of default under the agreements governing such indebtedness; • we will need a portion of cash flow to make interest payments on debt, reducing the funds that would otherwise be available for operations and future business opportunities; • our debt level will make us more vulnerable to competitive pressures or a downturn in our business or the economy generally; and • our debt level may limit flexibility in planning for, or responding to, changing business and economic conditions. Our long-term unsecured debt is currently rated by Standard & Poor’s Corporation (“S&P”) and Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”). As of December 31, 2017, the Partnership’s senior unsecured debt was rated “BB-” by S&P. As of December 31, 2017, the Partnership’s senior unsecured debt was rated “Ba3” by Moody’s. Any future downgrades in our credit ratings could negatively impact our cost of raising capital, and a downgrade could also adversely affect our ability to effectively execute aspects of our strategy and to access capital in the public markets. Our ability to service our debt will depend upon, among other things, our future financial and operating performance, which will be affected by prevailing economic conditions and financial, business, regulatory and other factors, some of which are beyond our control. If our operating results are not sufficient to service our current or future indebtedness, we will be forced to take actions such as reducing or delaying business activities, acquisitions, investments or capital expenditures, selling assets, restructuring or refinancing debt, or seeking additional equity capital, and such results may adversely affect our ability to make cash dividends. We may not be able to affect any of these actions on satisfactory terms, or at all. Despite current indebtedness levels, we may still be able to incur substantially more debt. This could increase the risks associated with compliance with our financial covenants. We may be able to incur substantial additional indebtedness in the future. The TRP Revolver and TRC Revolver allow us to request increases in commitments up to an additional $500 million and $200 million, respectively. Although our debt agreements contain restrictions on the incurrence of additional indebtedness, these restrictions are subject to a number of significant qualifications and exceptions, and any indebtedness incurred in compliance with these restrictions could be substantial. If we incur additional debt, this could increase the risks associated with compliance with our financial covenants. Increases in interest rates could adversely affect our business and may cause the market price of our common stock to decline. We have significant exposure to increases in interest rates. As of December 31, 2017, our total indebtedness was $5,082.6 million, excluding $0.4 million of net premiums and $30.0 million of net debt issuance costs, of which $4,277.6 million was at fixed interest rates and $805.0 million was at variable interest rates. A one percentage point increase in the interest rate on our variable interest rate debt would have increased our consolidated annual interest expense by approximately $8.1 million. As a result of this amount of variable interest rate debt, our financial condition could be negatively affected by increases in interest rates. Additionally, like all equity investments, an investment in our common stock is subject to certain risks. In exchange for accepting these risks, investors may expect to receive a higher rate of return than would otherwise be obtainable from lower-risk investments. Accordingly, as interest rates rise, the ability of investors to obtain higher risk-adjusted rates of return by purchasing government-backed debt securities may cause a corresponding decline in demand for riskier investments generally, including yield-based equity investments. Reduced demand for our common stock resulting from investors seeking other more favorable investment opportunities may cause the trading price of our common stock to decline. The terms of our debt agreements may restrict our current and future operations, particularly our ability to respond to changes in business or to take certain actions, including to pay dividends to our stockholders The agreements governing our outstanding indebtedness contain, and any future indebtedness we incur will likely contain, a number of restrictive covenants that impose significant operating and financial restrictions, including restrictions on our ability to engage in acts that may be in our best long-term interests. These agreements include covenants that, among other things, restrict our ability to: • incur or guarantee additional indebtedness or issue additional preferred stock; • pay dividends on our equity securities or to our equity holders or redeem, repurchase or retire our equity securities or subordinated indebtedness; • make investments and certain acquisitions; • sell or transfer assets, including equity securities of our subsidiaries; • engage in affiliate transactions, • consolidate or merge; • incur liens; • prepay, redeem and repurchase certain debt, subject to certain exceptions; • enter into sale and lease-back transactions or take-or-pay contracts; and • change business activities conducted by us. In addition, certain of our debt agreements require us to satisfy and maintain specified financial ratios and other financial condition tests. Our ability to meet those financial ratios and tests can be affected by events beyond our control, and we cannot assure you that we will meet those ratios and tests. A breach of any of these covenants could result in an event of default under our debt agreements. Upon the occurrence of such an event of default, all amounts outstanding under the applicable debt agreements could be declared to be immediately due and payable and all applicable commitments to extend further credit could be terminated. For example, if we are unable to repay the accelerated debt under the TRP Revolver, the lenders under the TRP Revolver could proceed against the collateral granted to them to secure that indebtedness. If we are unable to repay the accelerated debt under the Securitization Facility, the lenders under the Securitization Facility could proceed against the collateral granted to them to secure the indebtedness. We have pledged the assets and equity of certain of the Partnership’s subsidiaries as collateral under the TRP Revolver and the accounts receivables of Targa Receivables LLC under the Securitization Facility. If the indebtedness under our debt agreements is accelerated, we cannot assure you that we will have sufficient assets to repay the indebtedness. The operating and financial restrictions and covenants in these debt agreements and any future financing agreements may adversely affect our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage in other business activities. Our cash flow is affected by supply and demand for natural gas and NGL products and by natural gas, NGL, crude oil and condensate prices, and decreases in these prices could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. Our operations can be affected by the level of natural gas and NGL prices and the relationship between these prices. The prices of crude oil, natural gas and NGLs have been volatile and we expect this volatility to continue. Beginning in the third quarter of 2014, crude oil and natural gas prices significantly declined and continued to decline during 2015 and remained depressed in 2016 before starting to recover in 2017. Our future cash flow may be materially adversely affected if we experience significant, prolonged price deterioration. The markets and prices for crude oil, natural gas and NGLs depend upon factors beyond our control. These factors include supply and demand for these commodities, which fluctuates with changes in market and economic conditions, and other factors, including: • the impact of seasonality and weather; • general economic conditions and economic conditions impacting our primary markets; • the economic conditions of our customers; • the level of domestic crude oil and natural gas production and consumption; • the availability of imported natural gas, liquefied natural gas, NGLs and crude oil; • actions taken by foreign oil and gas producing nations; • the availability of local, intrastate and interstate transportation systems and storage for residue natural gas and NGLs; • the availability and marketing of competitive fuels and/or feedstocks; • the impact of energy conservation efforts; • stockholder activism and activities by non-governmental organizations to limit certain sources of funding for the energy sector or restrict the exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas; and • the extent of governmental regulation and taxation. Our primary natural gas gathering and processing arrangements that expose us to commodity price risk are our percent-of-proceeds arrangements. For the year ended December 31, 2017, our percent-of-proceeds arrangements accounted for approximately 59.9% of our gathered natural gas volume. Under these arrangements, we generally process natural gas from producers and remit to the producers an agreed percentage of the proceeds from the sale of residue gas and NGL products at market prices or a percentage of residue gas and NGL products at the tailgate of our processing facilities. In some percent-of-proceeds arrangements, we remit to the producer a percentage of an index-based price for residue gas and NGL products, less agreed adjustments, rather than remitting a portion of the actual sales proceeds. Under these types of arrangements, our revenues and cash flows increase or decrease, whichever is applicable, as the prices of natural gas, NGLs and crude oil fluctuate, to the extent our exposure to these prices is unhedged. See “Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.” In the future, we may not have sufficient cash to pay estimated dividends. Factors such as reserves established by our board of directors for our estimated general and administrative expenses as well as other operating expenses, reserves to satisfy our debt service requirements, if any, and reserves for future dividends by us may affect the dividends we make to our stockholders. The actual amount of cash that is available for dividends to our stockholders will depend on numerous factors, many of which are beyond our control. Our cash dividend policy limits our ability to grow. Because we may distribute a substantial amount of our cash flow, our growth may not be as fast as the growth of businesses that reinvest their available cash to expand ongoing operations. If we issue additional shares of common or preferred stock or we incur debt, the payment of dividends on those additional shares or interest on that debt could increase the risk that we will be unable to maintain or increase our cash dividend levels. If dividends on our shares of common stock are not paid with respect to any fiscal quarter, our stockholders will not be entitled to receive that quarter’s payments in the future. Dividends to our common stockholders are not cumulative. Consequently, if dividends on our shares of common stock are not paid with respect to any fiscal quarter, our stockholders will not be entitled to receive that quarter’s payments in the future. Changes in future business conditions could cause recorded goodwill to become further impaired, and our financial condition and results of operations could suffer if there is an additional impairment of goodwill or other intangible assets with indefinite lives, intangible assets with definite lives, or property, plant and equipment assets. We evaluate goodwill for impairment at least annually, as of November 30, as well as whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate it is more likely than not the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. During 2015, global oil and natural gas commodity prices, particularly crude oil, significantly decreased as compared to 2014, and such prices remained depressed in 2016 with some recovery in 2017. This decrease in commodity prices has had, and could continue to have, a negative impact on the demand for our services and our market capitalization. Should energy industry conditions further deteriorate, there is a possibility that goodwill may be impaired in a future period. Any additional impairment charges that we may take in the future could be material to our financial statements. We cannot accurately predict the amount and timing of any impairment of goodwill. For a further discussion of our goodwill impairments, see Note 7 - Goodwill of the “Consolidated Financial Statements” included in this Annual Report. We are exposed to credit risks of our customers, and any material nonpayment or nonperformance by our key customers could adversely affect our cash flow and results of operations. Many of our customers may experience financial problems that could have a significant effect on their creditworthiness, especially in a depressed commodity price environment. A decline in natural gas, NGL and crude oil prices may adversely affect the business, financial condition, results of operations, creditworthiness, cash flows and prospects of some of our customers. Severe financial problems encountered by our customers could limit our ability to collect amounts owed to us, or to enforce performance of obligations under contractual arrangements. In addition, many of our customers finance their activities through cash flow from operations, the incurrence of debt or the issuance of equity. The combination of reduction of cash flow resulting from a decline in commodity prices, a reduction in borrowing bases under reserve-based credit facilities and the lack of availability of debt or equity financing may result in a significant reduction of our customers’ liquidity and limit their ability to make payment or perform on their obligations to us. Additionally, a decline in the share price of some of our public customers may place them in danger of becoming delisted from a public securities exchange, limiting their access to the public capital markets and further restricting their liquidity. Furthermore, some of our customers may be highly leveraged and subject to their own operating and regulatory risks, which increases the risk that they may default on their obligations to us. To the extent one or more of our key customers is in financial distress or commences bankruptcy proceedings, contracts with these customers may be subject to renegotiation or rejection under applicable provisions of the United States Bankruptcy Code. Financial problems experienced by our customers could result in the impairment of our assets, reduction of our operating cash flows and may also reduce or curtail their future use of our products and services, which could reduce our revenues. Any material nonpayment or nonperformance by our key customers or our derivative counterparties could reduce our ability to pay cash dividends to our stockholders. Because of the natural decline in production in our operating regions and in other regions from which we source NGL supplies, our long-term success depends on our ability to obtain new sources of supplies of natural gas, NGLs and crude oil, which depends on certain factors beyond our control. Any decrease in supplies of natural gas, NGLs or crude oil could adversely affect our business and operating results. Our gathering systems are connected to crude oil and natural gas wells from which production will naturally decline over time, which means that the cash flows associated with these sources of natural gas and crude oil will likely also decline over time. Our logistics assets are similarly impacted by declines in NGL supplies in the regions in which we operate as well as other regions from which we source NGLs. To maintain or increase throughput levels on our gathering systems and the utilization rate at our processing plants and our treating and fractionation facilities, we must continually obtain new natural gas, NGL and crude oil supplies. A material decrease in natural gas or crude oil production from producing areas on which we rely, as a result of depressed commodity prices or otherwise, could result in a decline in the volume of natural gas or crude oil that we process, NGL products delivered to our fractionation facilities or crude oil that we gather. Our ability to obtain additional sources of natural gas, NGLs and crude oil depends, in part, on the level of successful drilling and production activity near our gathering systems and, in part, on the level of successful drilling and production in other areas from which we source NGL and crude oil supplies. We have no control over the level of such activity in the areas of our operations, the amount of reserves associated with the wells or the rate at which production from a well will decline. In addition, we have no control over producers or their drilling or production decisions, which are affected by, among other things, prevailing and projected energy prices, demand for hydrocarbons, the level of reserves, geological considerations, governmental regulations, the availability of drilling rigs, other production and development costs and the availability and cost of capital. Fluctuations in energy prices can greatly affect production rates and investments by third parties in the development of new oil and natural gas reserves. Drilling and production activity generally decreases as crude oil and natural gas prices decrease. Prices of crude oil and natural gas have been historically volatile, and we expect this volatility to continue. Beginning in the third quarter of 2014, crude oil and natural gas prices significantly declined and continued to decline during 2015 and remained depressed in 2016 before starting to recover in 2017. Consequently, even if new natural gas or crude oil reserves are discovered in areas served by our assets, producers may choose not to develop those reserves. For example, current low prices for natural gas combined with relatively high levels of natural gas in storage could result in curtailment or shut-in of natural gas production. Reductions in exploration and production activity, competitor actions or shut-ins by producers in the areas in which we operate may prevent us from obtaining supplies of natural gas or crude oil to replace the natural decline in volumes from existing wells, which could result in reduced volumes through our facilities and reduced utilization of our gathering, treating, processing and fractionation assets. If we do not make acquisitions or develop growth projects for expanding existing assets or constructing new midstream assets on economically acceptable terms or fail to efficiently and effectively integrate acquired or developed assets with our asset base, our future growth will be limited. In addition, any acquisitions we complete (including the Permian Acquisition and our recently announced Grand Prix and GCX joint ventures) are subject to substantial risks that could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations and reduce our ability to pay dividends to stockholders. In addition, we may not achieve the expected results of the Permian Acquisition and any adverse conditions or developments related to the Permian Acquisition may have a negative impact on our operations and financial condition. Our ability to grow depends, in part, on our ability to make acquisitions or develop growth projects that result in an increase in cash generated from operations. We will need to focus on third-party acquisitions and organic growth. If we are unable to make accretive acquisitions or develop accretive growth projects because we are (1) unable to identify attractive acquisition candidates and negotiate acceptable acquisition agreements or develop growth projects economically, (2) unable to obtain financing for these acquisitions or projects on economically acceptable terms, or (3) unable to compete successfully for acquisitions or growth projects, then our future growth and ability to increase dividends will be limited. Any acquisition (including the Permian Acquisition) or growth project (including Grand Prix and GCX) involves potential risks, including, among other things: • operating a significantly larger combined organization and adding new or expanded operations; • difficulties in the assimilation of the assets and operations of the acquired businesses or growth projects, especially if the assets acquired are in a new business segment and/or geographic area; • the risk that crude oil and natural gas reserves expected to support the acquired assets may not be of the anticipated magnitude or may not be developed as anticipated; • the failure to realize expected volumes, revenues, profitability or growth; • the failure to realize any expected synergies and cost savings; • coordinating geographically disparate organizations, systems and facilities; • the assumption of environmental and other unknown liabilities; • limitations on rights to indemnity from the seller in an acquisition or the contractors and suppliers in growth projects; • the failure to attain or maintain compliance with environmental and other governmental regulations; • inaccurate assumptions about the overall costs of equity or debt; • the diversion of management’s and employees’ attention from other business concerns; • challenges associated with joint venture relationships and minority investments, including dependence on joint venture partners, controlling shareholders or management who may have business interests, strategies or goals that are inconsistent with ours; and • customer or key employee losses at the acquired businesses or to a competitor. If these risks materialize, any acquired assets or growth project may inhibit our growth, fail to deliver expected benefits and/or add further unexpected costs. Challenges may arise whenever businesses with different operations or management are combined, and we may experience unanticipated delays in realizing the benefits of an acquisition or growth project. If we consummate any future acquisition or growth project, our capitalization and results of operations may change significantly and you may not have the opportunity to evaluate the economic, financial and other relevant information that we will consider in evaluating future acquisitions or growth projects. Our acquisition and growth strategy is based, in part, on our expectation of ongoing divestitures of energy assets by industry participants and new opportunities created by industry expansion. A material decrease in such divestitures or in opportunities for economic commercial expansion would limit our opportunities for future acquisitions or growth projects and could adversely affect our operations and cash flows available to pay cash dividends to our stockholders. Acquisitions may significantly increase our size and diversify the geographic areas in which we operate and growth projects may increase our concentration in a line of business or geographic region. We may not achieve the desired effect from any future acquisitions or growth projects. Our expansion or modification of existing assets or the construction of new assets may not result in revenue increases and is subject to regulatory, environmental, political, legal and economic risks, which could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. The construction of additions or modifications to our existing systems and the construction of new midstream assets involve numerous regulatory, environmental, political and legal uncertainties beyond our control and may require the expenditure of significant amounts of capital. If we undertake these projects, they may not be completed on schedule, at the budgeted cost or at all. Moreover, our revenues may not increase immediately upon the expenditure of funds on a particular project. For instance, if we build a new pipeline, fractionation facility or gas processing plant, the construction may occur over an extended period of time and we will not receive any material increases in revenues until the project is completed. Moreover, we may construct pipelines or facilities to capture anticipated future growth in production in a region in which such growth does not materialize. Since we are not engaged in the exploration for and development of natural gas and oil reserves, we do not possess reserve expertise and we often do not have access to third-party estimates of potential reserves in an area prior to constructing pipelines or facilities in such area. To the extent we rely on estimates of future production in any decision to construct additions to our systems, such estimates may prove to be inaccurate because there are numerous uncertainties inherent in estimating quantities of future production. As a result, new pipelines or facilities may not be able to attract enough throughput to achieve our expected investment return, which could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, the construction of additions to our existing gathering and transportation assets may require us to obtain new rights of way prior to constructing new pipelines. We may be unable to obtain such rights of way to connect new natural gas supplies to our existing gathering lines or capitalize on other attractive expansion opportunities. Additionally, it may become more expensive for us to obtain new rights of way or to renew existing rights of way. If the cost of renewing or obtaining new rights of way increases, our cash flows could be adversely affected. Our acquisition and growth strategy requires access to new capital. Tightened capital markets or increased competition for investment opportunities could impair our ability to grow through acquisitions or growth projects. We continuously consider and enter into discussions regarding potential acquisitions and growth projects. Any limitations on our access to capital will impair our ability to execute this strategy. If the cost of such capital becomes too expensive, our ability to develop or acquire strategic and accretive assets will be limited. We may not be able to raise the necessary funds on satisfactory terms, if at all. The primary factors that influence our initial cost of equity include market conditions, fees we pay to underwriters and other offering costs, which include amounts we pay for legal and accounting services. The primary factors influencing our cost of borrowing include interest rates, credit spreads, covenants, underwriting or loan origination fees and similar charges we pay to lenders. These factors may impair our ability to execute our acquisition and growth strategy. In addition, we are experiencing increased competition for the types of assets we contemplate purchasing or developing. Current economic conditions and competition for asset purchases and development opportunities could limit our ability to fully execute our acquisition and growth strategy. Demand for propane is significantly impacted by weather conditions and therefore seasonal and requires increases in inventory to meet seasonal demand. Weather conditions have a significant impact on the demand for propane because domestic end-users principally utilize propane for heating purposes. Warmer-than-normal temperatures in one or more regions in which we operate can significantly decrease the total volume of propane we sell. Lack of consumer domestic demand for propane may also adversely affect the retailers with which we transact our wholesale propane marketing operations, exposing us to retailers’ inability to satisfy their contractual obligations to us. If we lose any of our named executive officers, our business may be adversely affected. Our success is dependent upon the efforts of the named executive officers. Our named executive officers are responsible for executing our business strategies. There is substantial competition for qualified personnel in the midstream natural gas industry. We may not be able to retain our existing named executive officers or fill new positions or vacancies created by expansion or turnover. We have not entered into employment agreements with any of our named executive officers. In addition, we do not maintain “key man” life insurance on the lives of any of our named executive officers. A loss of one or more of our named executive officers could harm our business and prevent us from implementing our business strategies. If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal controls, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud. In addition, potential changes in accounting standards might cause us to revise our financial results and disclosure in the future. Effective internal controls are necessary for us to provide timely and reliable financial reports and effectively prevent fraud. If we cannot provide timely and reliable financial reports or prevent fraud, our reputation and operating results would be harmed. We continue to enhance our internal controls and financial reporting capabilities. These enhancements require a significant commitment of resources, personnel and the development and maintenance of formalized internal reporting procedures to ensure the reliability of our financial reporting. Our efforts to update and maintain our internal controls may not be successful, and we may be unable to maintain adequate controls over our financial processes and reporting now or in the future, including future compliance with the obligations under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Any failure to maintain effective controls or difficulties encountered in the effective improvement of our internal controls could prevent us from timely and reliably reporting our financial results and may harm our operating results. Ineffective internal controls could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information. In addition, the Financial Accounting Standards Board or the SEC could enact new accounting standards that might impact how we are required to record revenues, expenses, assets and liabilities. Any significant change in accounting standards or disclosure requirements could have a material effect on our results of operations, financial condition and ability to comply with our debt obligations. If we fail to balance our purchases and sales of the commodities we handle, our exposure to commodity price risk will increase. We may not be successful in balancing our purchases and sales of the commodities we handle. In addition, a producer could fail to deliver promised volumes to us or deliver in excess of contracted volumes, or a purchaser could purchase less than contracted volumes. Any of these actions could cause an imbalance between our purchases and sales. If our purchases and sales are not balanced, we will face increased exposure to commodity price risks and could have increased volatility in our operating income. Our hedging activities may not be effective in reducing the variability of our cash flows and may, in certain circumstances, increase the variability of our cash flows. Moreover, our hedges may not fully protect us against volatility in basis differentials. Finally, the percentage of our expected equity commodity volumes that are hedged decreases substantially over time. We have entered into derivative transactions related to only a portion of our equity volumes and future commodity purchases and sales. As a result, we will continue to have direct commodity price risk to the unhedged portion. Our actual future volumes may be significantly higher or lower than we estimated at the time we entered into the derivative transactions for that period. If the actual amount is higher than we estimated, we will have greater commodity price risk than we intended. If the actual amount is lower than the amount that is subject to our derivative financial instruments, we might be forced to satisfy all or a portion of our derivative transactions without the benefit of the cash flow from our sale of the underlying physical commodity. The percentages of our expected equity volumes that are covered by our hedges decrease over time. To the extent we hedge our commodity price risk, we may forego the benefits we would otherwise experience if commodity prices were to change in our favor. The derivative instruments we utilize for these hedges are based on posted market prices, which may be higher or lower than the actual natural gas, NGL and condensate prices that we realize in our operations. These pricing differentials may be substantial and could materially impact the prices we ultimately realize. Market and economic conditions may adversely affect our hedge counterparties’ ability to meet their obligations. Given volatility in the financial and commodity markets, we may experience defaults by our hedge counterparties. In addition, our exchange traded futures are subject to margin requirements, which creates variability in our cash flows as commodity prices fluctuate. As a result of these and other factors, our hedging activities may not be as effective as we intend in reducing the variability of our cash flows, and in certain circumstances may actually increase the variability of our cash flows. See “Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.” If third-party pipelines and other facilities interconnected to our natural gas and crude oil gathering systems, terminals and processing facilities become partially or fully unavailable to transport natural gas, NGLs and crude oil, our revenues could be adversely affected. We depend upon third-party pipelines, storage and other facilities that provide delivery options to and from our gathering and processing facilities. Since we do not own or operate these pipelines or other facilities, their continuing operation in their current manner is not within our control. If any of these third-party facilities become partially or fully unavailable, or if the quality specifications for their facilities change so as to restrict our ability to utilize them, our revenues could be adversely affected. Our industry is highly competitive, and increased competitive pressure could adversely affect our business and operating results. We compete with similar enterprises in our respective areas of operation. Some of our competitors are large crude oil, natural gas and NGL companies that have greater financial resources and access to supplies of natural gas, NGLs and crude oil than we do. Some of these competitors may expand or construct gathering, processing, storage, terminaling and transportation systems that would create additional competition for the services we provide to our customers. In addition, customers who are significant producers of natural gas may develop their own gathering, processing, storage, terminaling and transportation systems in lieu of using those operated by us. Our ability to renew or replace existing contracts with our customers at rates sufficient to maintain current revenues and cash flows could be adversely affected by the activities of our competitors and our customers. All of these competitive pressures could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. We typically do not obtain independent evaluations of natural gas or crude oil reserves dedicated to our gathering pipeline systems; therefore, supply volumes on our systems in the future could be less than we anticipate. We typically do not obtain independent evaluations of natural gas or crude oil reserves connected to our gathering systems due to the unwillingness of producers to provide reserve information as well as the cost of such evaluations. Accordingly, we do not have independent estimates of total reserves dedicated to our gathering systems or the anticipated life of such reserves. If the total reserves or estimated life of the reserves connected to our gathering systems is less than we anticipate and we are unable to secure additional sources of supply, then the volumes of natural gas or crude oil transported on our gathering systems in the future could be less than we anticipate. A decline in the volumes on our systems could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. A reduction in demand for NGL products by the petrochemical, refining or other industries or by the fuel or export markets, or a significant increase in NGL product supply relative to this demand, could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. The NGL products we produce have a variety of applications, including as heating fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and refining blend stocks. A reduction in demand for NGL products, whether because of general or industry-specific economic conditions, new government regulations, global competition, reduced demand by consumers for products made with NGL products (for example, reduced petrochemical demand observed due to lower activity in the automobile and construction industries), reduced demand for propane or butane exports whether for price or other reasons, increased competition from petroleum-based feedstocks due to pricing differences, mild winter weather for some NGL applications or other reasons, could result in a decline in the volume of NGL products we handle or reduce the fees we charge for our services. Also, increased supply of NGL products could reduce the value of NGLs handled by us and reduce the margins realized. Our NGL products and their demand are affected as follows: Ethane. Ethane is typically supplied as purity ethane and as part of an ethane-propane mix. Ethane is primarily used in the petrochemical industry as feedstock for ethylene, one of the basic building blocks for a wide range of plastics and other chemical products. Although ethane is typically extracted as part of the mixed NGL stream at gas processing plants, if natural gas prices increase significantly in relation to NGL product prices or if the demand for ethylene falls, it may be more profitable for natural gas processors to leave the ethane in the natural gas stream, thereby reducing the volume of NGLs delivered for fractionation and marketing. Propane. Propane is used as a petrochemical feedstock in the production of ethylene and propylene, as a heating, engine and industrial fuel, and in agricultural applications such as crop drying. Changes in demand for ethylene and propylene could adversely affect demand for propane. The demand for propane as a heating fuel is significantly affected by weather conditions. The volume of propane sold is at its highest during the six-month peak heating season of October through March. Demand for our propane may be reduced during periods of warmer-than-normal weather. Normal Butane. Normal butane is used in the production of isobutane, as a refined petroleum product blending component, as a fuel gas (either alone or in a mixture with propane) and in the production of ethylene and propylene. Changes in the composition of refined petroleum products resulting from governmental regulation, changes in feedstocks, products and economics, and demand for heating fuel, ethylene and propylene could adversely affect demand for normal butane. Isobutane. Isobutane is predominantly used in refineries to produce alkylates to enhance octane levels. Accordingly, any action that reduces demand for motor gasoline or demand for isobutane to produce alkylates for octane enhancement might reduce demand for isobutane. Natural Gasoline. Natural gasoline is used as a blending component for certain refined petroleum products and as a feedstock used in the production of ethylene and propylene. Changes in the mandated composition of motor gasoline resulting from governmental regulation, and in demand for ethylene and propylene, could adversely affect demand for natural gasoline. NGLs and products produced from NGLs also compete with products from global markets. Any reduced demand or increased supply for ethane, propane, normal butane, isobutane or natural gasoline in the markets we access for any of the reasons stated above could adversely affect both demand for the services we provide and NGL prices, which could negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition. The duties of our officers and directors may conflict with those owed to the Partnership. Substantially all of our officers and all the members of our board of directors are officers and/or directors of the general partner and, as a result, have separate duties that govern their management of the Partnership’s business. These officers and directors may encounter situations in which their obligations to us, on the one hand, and the Partnership, on the other hand, are in conflict. The resolution of these conflicts may not always be in our best interest or that of our stockholders. For a discussion of our officers and directors that will serve in the same capacity for the general partner and the amount of time we expect them to devote to our business, please read “Management.” The Preferred Shares give the holders thereof liquidation and distribution preferences, certain rights relating to our business and management, and the ability to convert such shares into our common stock, potentially causing dilution to our common stockholders. In March 2016, we issued 965,100 Preferred Shares, which rank senior to the common stock with respect to distribution rights and rights upon liquidation. Subject to certain exceptions, so long as any Preferred Shares remain outstanding, we may not declare any dividend or distribution on our common stock unless all accumulated and unpaid dividends have been declared and paid on the Preferred Shares. In the event of our liquidation, winding-up or dissolution, the holders of the Preferred Shares would have the right to receive proceeds from any such transaction before the holders of the common stock. The payment of the liquidation preference could result in common stockholders not receiving any consideration if we were to liquidate, dissolve or wind up, either voluntarily or involuntarily. Additionally, the existence of the liquidation preference may reduce the value of the common stock, make it harder for us to sell shares of common stock in offerings in the future, or prevent or delay a change of control. In connection with the issuance of the Preferred Shares, we entered into an agreement with Stonepeak Target Holdings, LP pursuant to which we granted them the right to appoint an observer to our Board of Directors, such observer having the right to become a member of our Board of Directors under certain circumstances. In addition, the Certificate of Designations governing the Preferred Shares provides the holders of the Preferred Shares with the right to vote, under certain conditions, on an as-converted basis with our common stockholders on matters submitted to a stockholder vote. The holders of the Preferred Shares do not currently have such right to vote. Also, so long as any Preferred Shares are outstanding, subject to certain exceptions, the affirmative vote or consent of the holders of at least a majority of the outstanding Preferred Shares, voting together as a separate class, will be necessary for effecting or validating, among other things: (i) any issuance of stock senior to the Preferred Shares, (ii) any issuance or increase by any of our consolidated subsidiaries of any issued or authorized amount of, any specific class or series of securities, (iii) any issuance by us of parity stock, subject to certain exceptions and (iv) any incurrence of indebtedness by us and our consolidated subsidiaries for borrowed monies, other than under our existing credit agreement and the Partnership’s existing credit agreement (or replacement commercial bank credit facilities) in an aggregate amount up to $2.75 billion, or indebtedness that complies with a specified fixed charge coverage ratio. These restrictions may adversely affect our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage in other business activities. Furthermore, the conversion of the Preferred Shares into common stock twelve years after the issuance of the Preferred Shares, pursuant to the terms of the Certificate of Designations, may cause substantial dilution to holders of the common stock. Because our Board of Directors is entitled to designate the powers and preferences of preferred stock without a vote of our shareholders, subject to NYSE rules and regulations, our shareholders will have no control over what designations and preferences our future preferred stock, if any, will have. The tax treatment of the Partnership depends on its status as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes as well as its not being subject to a material amount of entity-level taxation by individual states. If, upon an audit of the Partnership, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) were to treat the Partnership as a corporation for federal income tax purposes now or with respect to a tax period prior to the TRC/TRP Merger, or the Partnership becomes subject to a material amount of entity-level taxation for state tax purposes, then its cash available for distribution to us would be substantially reduced. A publicly traded partnership such as the Partnership may be treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes unless it satisfies a “qualifying income” requirement. Based on the Partnership’s current operations we believe that the Partnership satisfies the qualifying income requirement and will be treated as a partnership. Failing to meet the qualifying income requirement or a change in current law could cause the Partnership to be treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes or otherwise subject the Partnership to taxation as an entity. The Partnership has not requested and does not plan to request a ruling from the IRS with respect to its treatment as a partnership for federal income tax purposes. If the Partnership were treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes, it would pay federal income tax on its taxable income at the corporate tax rate, which is 21% for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017, and would likely pay state income tax at varying rates. Distributions from the Partnership would generally be taxed again as corporate distributions and no income, gains, losses or deductions would flow through to us. If such tax were imposed upon the Partnership as a corporation now or with respect to a tax period prior to the TRC/TRP Merger, its cash available for distribution would be substantially reduced. Therefore, treatment of the Partnership as a corporation would result in a material reduction in the anticipated cash flow and after-tax return to us and could cause a substantial reduction in the value of our shares. At the state level, because of widespread state budget deficits and other reasons, several states are evaluating ways to subject partnerships to entity-level taxation through the imposition of state income and franchise taxes and other forms of taxation. For example, the Partnership is subject to the Texas franchise tax at a maximum effective rate of 0.75% of its gross income apportioned to Texas in the prior year. Imposition of any similar tax on the Partnership by additional states would reduce the cash available for distribution to us. The tax treatment of publicly traded partnerships or our investment in the Partnership could be subject to potential legislative, judicial or administrative changes and differing interpretations, possibly on a retroactive basis. The present U.S. federal income tax treatment of publicly traded partnerships, including the Partnership, or an investment in the Partnership may be modified by administrative, legislative or judicial changes or differing interpretations at any time. For example, from time to time, members of Congress propose and consider such substantive changes to the existing federal income tax laws that affect publicly traded partnerships. One such legislative proposal would have eliminated the qualifying income exception to the treatment of all publicly traded partnerships as corporations, upon which the Partnership relies for its treatment as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Any modification to the U.S. federal income tax laws may be applied retroactively and could make it more difficult or impossible for the Partnership to meet the exception for certain publicly traded partnerships to be treated as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes. We are unable to predict whether any of these changes or other proposals will ultimately be enacted. Any such changes could negatively impact the value of our shares. On January 24, 2017, final regulations regarding which activities give rise to qualifying income within the meaning of Section 7704 of the Code (the “Final Regulations”) were published in the Federal Register. The Final Regulations are effective as of January 19, 2017, and apply to taxable years beginning on or after January 19, 2017. We do not believe the Final Regulations affect the Partnership’s ability to be treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes. We do not own most of the land on which our pipelines, terminals and compression facilities are located, which could disrupt our operations. We do not own most of the land on which our pipelines, terminals and compression facilities are located, and we are therefore subject to the possibility of more onerous terms and/or increased costs to retain necessary land use if we do not have valid rights of way or leases or if such rights of way or leases lapse or terminate. We sometimes obtain the rights to land owned by third parties and governmental agencies for a specific period of time. Additionally, following a recent decision issued in May 2017 by the federal Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, tribal ownership of even a very small fractional interest in an allotted land, that is, tribal land owned or at one time owned by an individual Indian landowner, bars condemnation of any interest in the allotment. Consequently, the inability to condemn such allotted lands under circumstances where an existing pipeline rights of way may soon lapse or terminate serves as an additional impediment for pipeline operators. We cannot guarantee that we will always be able to renew existing rights of way or obtain new rights of way without experiencing significant costs. Any loss of rights with respect to our real property, through our inability to renew rights of way contracts or leases, or otherwise, could cause us to cease operations on the affected land, increase costs related to continuing operations elsewhere and reduce our revenue. We may be unable to cause our majority-owned joint ventures to take or not to take certain actions unless some or all of our joint venture participants agree. We participate in several majority-owned joint ventures whose corporate governance structures require at least a majority in interest vote to authorize many basic activities and require a greater voting interest (sometimes up to 100%) to authorize more significant activities. Examples of these more significant activities include, among others, large expenditures or contractual commitments, the construction or acquisition of assets, borrowing money or otherwise raising capital, making distributions, transactions with affiliates of a joint venture participant, litigation and transactions not in the ordinary course of business. Without the concurrence of joint venture participants with enough voting interests, we may be unable to cause any of our joint ventures to take or not take certain actions, even though taking or preventing those actions may be in our best interests or the particular joint venture. In addition, subject to certain conditions, any joint venture owner may sell, transfer or otherwise modify its ownership interest in a joint venture, whether in a transaction involving third parties or the other joint owners. Any such transaction could result in our partnering with different or additional parties. We may operate a portion of our business with one or more joint venture partners where we own a minority interest and/or are not the operator, which may restrict our operational and corporate flexibility. Actions taken by the other partner or third-party operator may materially impact our financial position and results of operations, and we may not realize the benefits we expect to realize from a joint venture. As is common in the midstream industry, we may operate one or more of our properties with one or more joint venture partners where we own a minority interest and/or contract with a third-party to control operations. These relationships could require us to share operational and other control, such that we may no longer have the flexibility to control completely the development of these properties. If we do not timely meet our financial commitments in such circumstances, our rights to participate may be adversely affected. If a joint venture partner is unable or fails to pay its portion of development costs or if a third-party operator does not operate in accordance with our expectations, our costs of operations could be increased. We could also incur liability as a result of actions taken by a joint venture partner or third-party operator. Disputes between us and the other party may result in litigation or arbitration that would increase our expenses, delay or terminate projects and distract our officers and directors from focusing their time and effort on our business. Weather may limit our ability to operate our business and could adversely affect our operating results. The weather in the areas in which we operate can cause disruptions and in some cases suspension of our operations. For example, unseasonably wet weather, extended periods of below freezing weather, or hurricanes may cause disruptions or suspensions of our operations, which could adversely affect our operating results. Some forecasters expect that potential climate changes may have significant physical effects, such as increased frequency and severity of storms, floods and other climatic events and could have an adverse effect on our operations. Our business involves many hazards and operational risks, some of which may not be insured or fully covered by insurance. If a significant accident or event occurs for which we are not fully insured, if we fail to recover all anticipated insurance proceeds for significant accidents or events for which we are insured, or if we fail to rebuild facilities damaged by such accidents or events, our operations and financial results could be adversely affected. Our operations are subject to many hazards inherent in gathering, compressing, treating, processing and selling natural gas; storing, fractionating, treating, transporting and selling NGLs and NGL products; gathering, storing and terminaling crude oil; and storing and terminaling refined petroleum products, including: • damage to pipelines and plants, related equipment and surrounding properties caused by hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, fires and other natural disasters, explosions and acts of terrorism; • inadvertent damage from third parties, including from motor vehicles and construction, farm or utility equipment; • damage that is the result of our negligence or any of our employees’ negligence; • leaks of natural gas, NGLs, crude oil and other hydrocarbons or losses of natural gas or NGLs as a result of the malfunction of equipment or facilities; • spills or other unauthorized releases of natural gas, NGLs, crude oil, other hydrocarbons or waste materials that contaminate the environment, including soils, surface water and groundwater, and otherwise adversely impact natural resources; and • other hazards that could also result in personal injury, loss of life, pollution and/or suspension of operations. These risks could result in substantial losses due to personal injury, loss of life, severe damage to and destruction of property and equipment, and pollution or other environmental damage, and may result in curtailment or suspension of our related operations. A natural disaster or other hazard affecting the areas in which we operate could have a material adverse effect on our operations. We are not fully insured against all risks inherent to our business. Additionally, while we are insured for pollution resulting from environmental accidents that occur on a sudden and accidental basis, we may not be insured against all environmental accidents that might occur, some of which may result in toxic tort claims. If a significant accident or event occurs that is not fully insured, if we fail to recover all anticipated insurance proceeds for significant accidents or events for which we are insured, or if we fail to rebuild facilities damaged by such accidents or events, our operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. In addition, we may not be able to maintain or obtain insurance of the type and amount we desire at reasonable rates. As a result of market conditions, premiums and deductibles for certain of our insurance policies have increased substantially, and could escalate further. For example, following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, insurance premiums, deductibles and co-insurance requirements increased substantially, and terms were generally less favorable than terms that could be obtained prior to such hurricanes. Insurance market conditions worsened as a result of the losses sustained from Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. As a result, we experienced further increases in deductibles and premiums, and further reductions in coverage and limits, with some coverage unavailable at any cost. During 2017, we had minimal direct losses as a result of Hurricane Harvey. We may incur significant costs and liabilities resulting from performance of pipeline integrity programs and related repairs. Pursuant to the authority under the NGPSA and HLPSA, as amended from time to time, PHMSA has established a series of rules requiring pipeline operators to develop and implement integrity management programs for certain natural gas and hazardous liquids pipelines that, in the event of a pipeline leak or rupture could affect “high consequence areas,” which are areas where a release could have the most significant adverse consequences, including high-population areas, certain drinking water sources and unusually sensitive ecological areas. Among other things, these regulations require operators of covered pipelines to: • perform ongoing assessments of pipeline integrity; • identify and characterize applicable threats to pipeline segments that could impact a high consequence area; • improve data collection, integration and analysis; • repair and remediate the pipeline as necessary; and • implement preventive and mitigating actions. In addition, states have adopted regulations similar to existing PHMSA regulations for certain intrastate natural gas and hazardous liquids pipelines. We currently estimate an average annual cost of $3.3 million between 2018 and 2020 to implement pipeline integrity management program testing along certain segments of our natural gas and hazardous liquids pipelines. This estimate does not include the costs, if any, of repair, remediation or preventative or mitigative actions that may be determined to be necessary as a result of the testing program, which costs could be substantial. At this time, we cannot predict the ultimate cost of compliance with applicable pipeline integrity management regulations, as the cost will vary significantly depending on the number and extent of any repairs found to be necessary as a result of the pipeline integrity testing. We will continue our pipeline integrity testing programs to assess and maintain the integrity of our pipelines. The results of these tests could cause us to incur significant and unanticipated capital and operating expenditures for repairs or upgrades deemed necessary to ensure the continued safe and reliable operation of our pipelines. Moreover, changes to pipeline safety laws by Congress and regulations by PHMSA that result in more stringent or costly safety standards could have a significant adverse effect on us and similarly situated midstream operators. For example, in January 2017, PHMSA issued a final rule for hazardous liquid pipelines that significantly extends and expands the reach of certain PHMSA integrity management requirements, such as, for example, periodic assessments, leak detection and repairs, regardless of the pipeline’s proximity to a high consequence area. The final rule also requires all pipelines in or affecting a high consequence area to be capable of accommodating in-line inspection tools within the next 20 years. In addition, the final rule extends annual and accident reporting requirements to gravity lines and all gathering lines and also imposes inspection requirements on pipelines in areas affected by extreme weather events and natural disasters, such as hurricanes, landslides, floods, earthquakes or other similar events that are likely to damage infrastructure. The timing for implementation of this rule has been delayed and remains uncertain at this time due to the change in U.S. Presidential administrations. In a second example, in March 2016, PHMSA announced a proposed rulemaking that would impose new or more stringent requirements for certain natural gas lines and gathering lines, including, among other things, the imposition of increased integrity management requirements. PHMSA has not yet finalized the March 2016 proposed rulemaking. Such legislative and regulatory changes could have a material effect on our operations and costs of transportation services. Unexpected volume changes due to production variability or to gathering, plant or pipeline system disruptions may increase our exposure to commodity price movements. We sell processed natural gas at plant tailgates or at pipeline pooling points. Sales made to natural gas marketers and end-users may be interrupted by disruptions to volumes anywhere along the system. We attempt to balance sales with volumes supplied from processing operations, but unexpected volume variations due to production variability or to gathering, plant or pipeline system disruptions may expose us to volume imbalances which, in conjunction with movements in commodity prices, could materially impact our income from operations and cash flow. Failure to comply with environmental laws or regulations or an accidental release into the environment may cause us to incur significant costs and liabilities. Our operations are subject to numerous federal, tribal, state and local environmental laws and regulations governing the discharge of pollutants into the environment or otherwise relating to environmental protection. These laws and regulations may impose numerous obligations that are applicable to our operations including acquisition of a permit or other approval before conducting regulated activities, restrictions on the types, quantities and concentration of materials that can be released into the environment; limitation or prohibition of construction and operating activities in environmentally sensitive areas such as wetlands, urban areas, wilderness regions and other protected areas; requiring capital expenditures to comply with pollution control requirements and imposition of substantial liabilities for pollution resulting from our operations. Numerous governmental authorities, such as the EPA and analogous state agencies, have the power to enforce compliance with these laws and regulations and the permits issued under them, which can often require difficult and costly actions. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations or any newly adopted laws or regulations may result in assessment of sanctions including administrative, civil and criminal penalties, the imposition of investigatory, remedial and corrective action obligations or the incurrence of capital expenditures; the occurrence of delays in the permitting or performance of projects, and the issuance of orders enjoining or conditioning performance of some or all of our operations in a particular area. Certain environmental laws impose strict, joint and several liability for costs required to clean up and restore sites where hazardous substances, hydrocarbons or waste products have been released, even under circumstances where the substances, hydrocarbons or waste have been released by a predecessor operator or the activities conducted and from which a release emanated complied with applicable law. The risk of incurring environmental costs and liabilities in connection with our operations is significant due to our handling of natural gas, NGLs, crude oil and other petroleum products, because of air emissions and product-related discharges arising out of our operations, and as a result of historical industry operations and waste disposal practices. For example, an accidental release from one of our facilities could subject us to substantial liabilities arising from environmental cleanup and restoration costs, claims made by neighboring landowners and other third parties for personal injury, natural resource and property damages and fines or penalties for related violations of environmental laws or regulations. Moreover, stricter laws, regulations or enforcement policies could significantly increase our operational or compliance costs and the cost of any remediation that may become necessary. The adoption of any laws, regulations or other legally enforceable mandates that result in more stringent air emission limitations or that restrict or prohibit the drilling of new oil or natural gas wells for any extended period of time could increase our oil and natural gas customers’ operating and compliance costs as well as reduce the rate of production of natural gas or crude oil from operators with whom we have a business relationship, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and cash flows. See “Item 1. Business -Regulation of Operations-Environmental and Operational Health and Safety Matters” for additional information regarding regulatory developments with respect to environmental regulations. Increased regulation of hydraulic fracturing could result in reductions or delays in drilling and completing new oil and natural gas wells, which could adversely impact our revenues by decreasing the volumes of natural gas, NGLs or crude oil through our facilities and reducing the utilization of our assets. While we do not conduct hydraulic fracturing, many of our customers do perform such activities. Hydraulic fracturing is a process used by oil and natural gas exploration and production operators in the completion of certain oil and natural gas wells whereby water, sand or alternative proppant, and chemical additives are injected under pressure into subsurface formations to stimulate the flow of certain oil and natural gas, increasing the volumes that may be recovered. The process is typically regulated by state oil and gas commissions, but several federal agencies have asserted regulatory authority over, proposed or promulgated regulations governing, and conducted investigations relating to certain aspects of the process, including the EPA and the BLM. For example, in December 2016, the EPA released its final report on the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources, concluding that “water cycle” activities associated with hydraulic fracturing may impact drinking water resources under certain circumstances. In addition, Congress has from time to time considered the adoption of legislation to provide for federal regulation of hydraulic fracturing. Moreover, some states have adopted, and others are considering adopting, legal requirements that could impose more stringent permitting, disclosure or well construction requirements on hydraulic fracturing activities, assess more taxes, fees or royalties on natural gas production, or otherwise limit the use of the technique. States could elect to prohibit high volume hydraulic fracturing altogether, following the approach taken by the State of New York. Local governments may also seek to adopt ordinances within their jurisdictions regulating the time, place and manner of drilling activities in general or hydraulic fracturing activities in particular. New or more stringent laws or regulations relating to the hydraulic fracturing process could lead to our customers reducing crude oil and natural gas drilling activities using hydraulic fracturing techniques, while increased public opposition to activities using such techniques may result in operational delays, restrictions, or increased litigation. Any one or more of such developments could reduce demand for our gathering, processing and fractionation services and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. A change in the jurisdictional characterization of some of our assets by federal, state, tribal or local regulatory agencies or a change in policy by those agencies may result in increased regulation of our assets, which may cause our revenues to decline and operating expenses to increase or delay or increase the cost of expansion projects. With the exception of the Driver Residue Pipeline, TPL SouthTex Transmission pipeline, and Tarzan 311 residue line, which are each subject to limited FERC regulation, our natural gas pipeline operations are generally exempt from FERC regulation under the NGA, but FERC regulation still affects our non-FERC jurisdictional businesses and the markets for products derived from these businesses, including certain FERC reporting and posting requirements in a given year. We believe that the natural gas pipelines in our gathering systems meet the traditional tests FERC has used to establish a pipeline’s status as a gatherer not subject to regulation as a natural gas company. However, the distinction between FERC-regulated transmission services and federally unregulated gathering services is the subject of substantial, ongoing litigation, so the classification and regulation of our gathering facilities are subject to change based on future determinations by FERC, the courts or Congress. We also operate natural gas pipelines that extend from some of our processing plants to interconnections with both intrastate and interstate natural gas pipelines. Those facilities, known in the industry as “plant tailgate” pipelines, typically operate at transmission pressure levels and may transport “pipeline quality” natural gas. Because our plant tailgate pipelines are relatively short, we treat them as “stub” lines, which are exempt from FERC’s jurisdiction under the Natural Gas Act. In addition, the courts have determined that certain pipelines that would otherwise be subject to the ICA are exempt from regulation by FERC under the ICA as proprietary lines. The classification of a line as a proprietary line is a fact-based determination subject to FERC and court review. Accordingly, the classification and regulation of some of our gathering facilities and transportation pipelines may be subject to change based on future determinations by FERC, the courts or Congress, in which case, our operating costs could increase and we could be subject to enforcement actions under the EP Act of 2005. Various federal agencies within the U.S. Department of the Interior, particularly the BLM, Office of Natural Resources Revenue (formerly the Minerals Management Service) and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, along with the Three Affiliated Tribes, promulgate and enforce regulations pertaining to operations on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, on which we operate a significant portion of our Badlands gathering and processing assets. The Three Affiliated Tribes is a sovereign nation having the right to enforce certain laws and regulations independent from federal, state and local statutes and regulations. These tribal laws and regulations include various taxes, fees and other conditions that apply to lessees, operators and contractors conducting operations on Native American tribal lands. Lessees and operators conducting operations on tribal lands can generally be subject to the Native American tribal court system. One or more of these factors may increase our costs of doing business on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation and may have an adverse impact on our ability to effectively transport products within the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation or to conduct our operations on such lands. Other FERC regulations may indirectly impact our businesses and the markets for products derived from these businesses. FERC’s policies and practices across the range of its natural gas regulatory activities, including, for example, its policies on open access transportation, gas quality, ratemaking, capacity release and market center promotion, may indirectly affect the intrastate natural gas market. In recent years, FERC has pursued pro-competitive policies in its regulation of interstate natural gas pipelines. However, we cannot assure you that FERC will continue this approach as it considers matters such as pipeline rates and rules and policies that may affect rights of access to transportation capacity. For more information regarding the regulation of our operations, see “Item 1. Business-Regulation of Operations.” Should we fail to comply with all applicable FERC-administered statutes, rules, regulations and orders, we could be subject to substantial penalties and fines. Under the EP Act of 2005, FERC has civil penalty authority under the NGA to impose penalties for current violations of up to $1 million per day for each violation and disgorgement of profits associated with any violation. While our systems other than the Driver Residue Pipeline, TPL SouthTex Transmission pipeline, and Tarzan 311 residue line have not been regulated by FERC as a natural gas company under the NGA, FERC has adopted regulations that may subject certain of our otherwise non-FERC jurisdictional facilities to FERC annual reporting and daily scheduled flow and capacity posting requirements. Additional rules and legislation pertaining to those and other matters may be considered or adopted by FERC from time to time. Failure to comply with those regulations in the future could subject us to civil penalty liability. For more information regarding regulation of our operations, see “Item 1. Business-Regulation of Operations.” The adoption and implementation of climate change legislation or regulations restricting emissions of GHGs could result in increased operating costs and reduced demand for the products and services we provide. Climate change continues to attract considerable public and scientific attention. As a result, numerous proposals have been made and could continue to be made at the international, national, regional and state levels of government to monitor and limit emissions of GHGs. These efforts have included consideration of cap-and-trade programs, carbon taxes, GHG reporting and tracking programs, and regulations that directly limit GHG emissions from certain sources. At the federal level, no comprehensive climate change legislation has been implemented to date. However, the EPA has adopted rules under authority of the CAA that, among other things, establish Potential for Significant Deterioration (PSD) construction and Title V operating permit reviews for GHG emissions from certain large stationary sources that are also potential major sources of certain principal, or criteria, pollutant emissions, which reviews could require securing PSD permits at covered facilities emitting GHGs and meeting "best available control technology" standards for those GHG emissions. The EPA has also adopted rules requiring the monitoring and annual reporting of GHG emissions from certain petroleum and natural gas system sources in the United States, including, among others, onshore processing, transmission, storage and distribution facilities. In October 2015, the EPA amended and expanded the GHG reporting requirements to all segments of the oil and natural gas industry, including gathering, compression and boosting facilities as well as blowdowns of natural gas transmission pipelines, and in January 2016, the EPA proposed additional revisions to leak detection methodology to align the reporting rules with the new source performance standards. Federal agencies also have begun directly regulating emissions of methane, a GHG, from oil and natural gas operations. For example, in June 2016, the EPA published New Source Performance Standards, known as Subpart OOOOa, that require certain new, modified or reconstructed facilities in the oil and natural gas sector to reduce these methane gas and volatile organic compound emissions. These Subpart OOOOa standards will expand previously issued New Source Performance Standards published by the EPA in 2012 and known as Subpart OOOO, by using certain equipment-specific emissions control practices, requiring additional controls for pneumatic controllers and pumps as well as compressors, and imposing leak detection and repair requirements for natural gas compressor and booster stations. However, the EPA proposed rulemaking in June 2017 to stay certain requirements of Subpart OOOOa for a period of two years and revisit implementation of Subpart OOOOa in its entirety. The EPA has not yet published a final rule but, as a result of these developments, future implementation of the 2016 Subpart OOOOa standards is uncertain. Because of the long-term trend toward increasing regulation, however, future federal GHG regulations of the oil and natural gas industry remain a possibility. On the international level, in December 2015, the U.S. joined the international community at the 21st Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris, France that prepared an agreement requiring member countries to review and “represent a progression” in their intended nationally determined contributions, which set GHG emission reduction goals every five years beginning in 2020. This “Paris Agreement” was signed by the United States in April 2016 and entered into force in November 2016; however, this agreement does not create any binding obligations for nations to limit their GHG emissions, but does include pledges to voluntarily limit or reduce future emissions. However, in August 2017, the U.S. State Department officially informed the United Nations of the intent of the United States to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement provides for a four-year exit process beginning when it took effect in November 2016, which would result in an effective exit date of November 2020. The United States’ adherence to the exit process and/or the terms on which the United States may re-enter the Paris Agreement or a separately negotiated agreement are unclear at this time. The adoption and implementation of any international, federal or state legislation or regulations that require reporting of GHGs or otherwise restrict emissions of GHGs could result in increased compliance costs, such as costs to purchase and operate emissions control systems, to acquire emissions allowances or comply with new regulatory or reporting requirements. Any such legislation or regulatory programs could also increase the cost of consuming, and thereby reduce demand for, oil and natural gas, which could reduce demand for our products and services. One or more of these developments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operation. Recently, activists concerned about the potential effects of climate change have directed their attention at sources of funding for fossil-fuel energy companies, which has resulted in certain financial institutions, funds and other sources of capital restricting or eliminating their investment in oil and natural gas activities. Ultimately, this could make it more difficult to secure funding for exploration and production or midstream activities. Notwithstanding potential risks related to climate change, the International Energy Agency estimates that global energy demand will continue to rise and will not peak until after 2040 and that oil and natural gas will continue to represent a substantial percentage of global energy use over that time. Finally, some scientists have concluded that increasing concentrations of GHG in the atmosphere may produce climate changes that have significant physical effects, such as increased frequency and severity of storms, droughts, and floods and other climate events. Federal and state legislative and regulatory initiatives relating to pipeline safety that require the use of new or more stringent safety controls or result in more stringent enforcement of applicable legal requirements could subject us to increased capital costs, operational delays and costs of operation. In June 2016, President Obama signed the 2016 Pipeline Safety Act that extends PHMSA’s statutory mandate regarding pipeline safety through 2019 and requires PHMSA to complete certain of its outstanding mandates under the 2011 Pipeline Safety Act. The 2011 Pipeline Safety Act had directed the promulgation of regulations relating to such matters as expanded integrity management requirements, automatic or remote-controlled valve use, excess flow valve use, leak detection system installation, testing to confirm the material strength of certain pipelines and operator verification of records confirming the maximum allowable pressure of certain intrastate gas transmission pipelines. The 2016 Pipeline Safety Act also called for the development of new safety standards for natural gas storage facilities by June 22, 2018, and empowered PHMSA to address imminent hazards by imposing emergency restrictions, prohibitions and safety measures on owners and operators of gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facilities without prior notice or an opportunity for a hearing. The imposition of new safety enhancement requirements pursuant to the 2016 Pipeline Safety Act and the 2011 Pipeline Safety Act or any issuance or reinterpretation of guidance by PHMSA or any state agencies with respect thereto could require us to install new or modified safety controls, pursue additional capital projects or conduct maintenance programs on an accelerated basis, any or all of which tasks could result in our incurring increased operating costs that could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial position. For example, in March 2016, PHMSA announced a proposed rulemaking that would impose new or more stringent requirements for certain natural gas lines and gathering lines including, among other things, expanding certain of PHMSA’s current regulatory safety programs for natural gas pipelines in newly defined “moderate consequence areas” that contain as few as 5 dwellings within a potential impact area; requiring natural gas pipelines installed before 1970 and thus excluded from certain pressure testing obligations to be tested to determine their maximum allowable operating pressures (“MAOP”); requiring certain onshore and offshore gathering lines in Class I areas to comply with damage prevention, corrosion control, public education, MAOP limits, line markers and emergency planning standards; and requiring consideration of seismicity in evaluating threats to pipelines. In another example, effective April 2017, PHMSA adopted a final rule increasing the maximum administrative civil penalties for violation of the pipeline safety laws and regulations to $209,002 per violation per day and up to $2,090,022 for a related series of violations. Federal and state legislative and regulatory initiatives relating to pipeline safety that require the use of new or more stringent safety controls or result in more stringent enforcement of applicable legal requirements could subject us to increased capital costs, operational delays and costs of operation. The safety enhancement requirements and other provisions of the 2016 Pipeline Safety Act as well as any implementation of PHMSA rules thereunder could require us to install new or modified safety controls, pursue additional capital projects, or conduct maintenance programs on an accelerated basis, any or all of which tasks could result in our incurring increased operating costs or operational delays that could have a material adverse effect on our results of operation or financial position. Additionally, PHMSA and one or more state regulators, including the RRC, have in recent years expanded the scope of their regulatory inspections to include certain in-plant equipment and pipelines found within NGL fractionation facilities and associated storage facilities, to assess compliance with hazardous liquids pipeline safety requirements. To the extent that PHMSA and/or state regulatory agencies are successful in asserting their jurisdiction in this manner, midstream operators of NGL fractionation facilities and associated storage facilities may be required to make operational changes or modifications at their facilities to meet standards beyond current OSHA PSM and EPA RMP requirements, which changes or modifications may result in additional capital costs, possible operational delays and increased costs of operation that, in some instances, may be significant. The implementation of derivatives legislation could have an adverse effect on our ability to use derivative instruments to reduce the effect of commodity price, interest rate and other risks associated with our business. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act"), enacted on July 21, 2010, established federal oversight and regulation of the over-the-counter derivatives market and entities, such as us, that participate in that market. The Dodd-Frank Act required the CFTC and the SEC to promulgate rules and regulations implementing the Dodd-Frank Act. Although the CFTC has finalized most of these regulations, others remain to be finalized or implemented and it is not possible at this time to predict when this will be accomplished. In November 2013, the CFTC proposed new rules that would place limits on positions in certain core futures and equivalent swaps contracts for or linked to certain physical commodities, subject to exceptions for certain bona fide hedging transactions. The rules were re-proposed in December 2016. As these new position limit rules are not yet final, the impact of those provisions on us is uncertain at this time. The CFTC has designated certain interest rate swaps and credit default swaps for mandatory clearing and the associated rules also will require us, in connection with covered derivative activities, to comply with clearing and trade-execution requirements or take steps to qualify for an exemption to such requirements. Although we qualify for the end-user exception from the mandatory clearing requirements for swaps entered to hedge our commercial risks, the application of the mandatory clearing and trade execution requirements to other market participants, such as swap dealers, may change the cost and availability of the swaps that we use for hedging. In addition, for uncleared swaps, the CFTC or federal banking regulators may require end-users to enter into credit support documentation and/or post initial and variation margin in the future, although current rules do not result in requirements for our swap dealer counterparties to collect margin from us for our hedging transactions. Posting of collateral could impact liquidity and reduce cash available to us for capital expenditures, therefore reducing our ability to execute hedges to reduce risk and protect cash flows. The Dodd-Frank Act also may require the counterparties to our derivative instruments to spin off some of their derivatives activities to a separate entity, which may not be as creditworthy as the current counterparty. The full impact of the Dodd-Frank Act and related regulatory requirements upon our business will not be known until all of the regulations are implemented and the market for derivatives contracts has adjusted. The Dodd-Frank Act and any new regulations could significantly increase the cost of derivative contracts, materially alter the terms of derivative contracts, reduce the availability of derivatives to protect against risks we encounter, reduce our ability to monetize or restructure our existing derivative contracts or increase our exposure to less creditworthy counterparties. If we reduce our use of derivatives as a result of the Dodd-Frank Act and regulations implementing the Dodd-Frank Act, our results of operations may become more volatile and our cash flows may be less predictable, which could adversely affect our ability to plan for and fund capital expenditures. Finally, the Dodd-Frank Act was intended, in part, to reduce the volatility of oil and natural gas prices, which some legislators attributed to speculative trading in derivatives and commodity instruments related to oil and natural gas. Our revenues could therefore be adversely affected if a consequence of the Dodd-Frank Act and implementing regulations is to lower commodity prices. Any of these consequences could have a material adverse effect on us, our financial condition and our results of operations. Our interstate common carrier liquids pipelines are regulated by the FERC. Targa NGL has interstate NGL pipelines that are considered common carrier pipelines subject to regulation by FERC under the ICA. More specifically, Targa NGL owns a twelve-inch diameter pipeline that runs between Lake Charles, Louisiana and Mont Belvieu, Texas. This pipeline can move mixed NGL and purity NGL products. Targa NGL also owns an eight-inch diameter pipeline and a twenty-inch diameter pipeline, each of which run between Mont Belvieu, Texas and Galena Park, Texas. The eight-inch and the twenty-inch pipelines are part of an extensive mixed NGL and purity NGL pipeline receipt and delivery system that provides services to domestic and foreign import and export customers. In 2018, Targa NGL will complete another pipeline for exports at Targa’s Galena Park dock. Additionally, we expect to begin operating portions of the Grand Prix pipeline in 2018, which would transport mixed NGLs from the Permian Basin, including points in New Mexico and Texas, to intermediate points in Texas, and beginning in 2019, to Mont Belvieu, Texas. The ICA requires that we maintain tariffs on file with FERC for each of these pipelines. Those tariffs set forth the rates we charge for providing transportation services as well as the rules and regulations governing these services. The ICA requires, among other things, that rates on interstate common carrier pipelines be “just and reasonable” and nondiscriminatory. Several of these pipelines would qualify for a waiver of filing of the FERC tariffs. Targa NGL also owns a twelve-inch diameter pipeline that runs between Mont Belvieu, Texas, and Galena Park, Texas, that transports NGLs and that has qualified for a waiver of applicable FERC regulatory requirements under the ICA based on current circumstances. The crude oil pipeline system that is part of the Badlands assets also qualifies for such a waiver. Although we do not presently make any interstate movements on our Texas crude oil pipeline system, in the future we could construct new pipelines that connect to interstate crude pipelines and, thus, make interstate movements of crude oil. We presently anticipate such movements would also qualify for a waiver. All such waivers are subject to revocation, however, and should a particular pipelines’ circumstances change, FERC could, either at the request of other entities or on its own initiative, assert that some or all of the transportation on these pipelines is within its jurisdiction. In the event that FERC were to determine that one or both of these pipelines no longer qualified for a waiver, the Partnership would likely be required to file a tariff with FERC for one or both of these pipelines, as applicable, provide a cost justification for the transportation charge, and provide service to all potential shippers without undue discrimination. Such a change in the jurisdictional status of transportation on these pipelines could adversely affect our results of operations. Terrorist attacks and the threat of terrorist attacks have resulted in increased costs to our business. Continued hostilities in the Middle East or other sustained military campaigns may adversely impact our results of operations. The long-term impact of terrorist attacks, such as the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, and the threat of future terrorist attacks on our industry in general and on us in particular is not known at this time. However, resulting regulatory requirements and/or related business decisions associated with security are likely to increase our costs. Increased security measures taken by us as a precaution against possible terrorist attacks have resulted in increased costs to our business. Uncertainty surrounding continued hostilities in the Middle East or other sustained military campaigns may affect our operations in unpredictable ways, including disruptions of crude oil supplies and markets for our products, and the possibility that infrastructure facilities could be direct targets, or indirect casualties, of an act of terror. Changes in the insurance markets attributable to terrorist attacks may make certain types of insurance more difficult for us to obtain. Moreover, the insurance that may be available to us may be significantly more expensive than our existing insurance coverage or coverage may be reduced or unavailable. Instability in the financial markets as a result of terrorism or war could also affect our ability to raise capital. We are subject to cyber security risks. A cyber incident could occur and result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss. The oil and natural gas industry has become increasingly dependent on digital technologies to conduct certain processing activities. For example, we depend on digital technologies to perform many of our services and to process and record financial and operating data. At the same time, cyber incidents, including deliberate attacks, have increased. The U.S. government has issued public warnings that indicate that energy assets might be specific targets of cyber security threats. Our technologies, systems and networks, and those of our vendors, suppliers and other business partners, may become the target of cyberattacks or information security breaches that could result in the unauthorized release, gathering, monitoring, misuse, loss or destruction of proprietary and other information, or other disruption of business operations. In addition, certain cyber incidents, such as surveillance, may remain undetected for an extended period. Our systems and insurance coverage for protecting against cyber security risks may not be sufficient. As cyber incidents continue to evolve, we will likely be required to expend additional resources to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures or to investigate and remediate any vulnerability to cyber incidents. Our insurance coverage for cyberattacks may not be sufficient to cover all the losses we may experience as a result of such cyberattacks. Future sales of our common stock in the public market could lower our stock price, and any additional capital raised by us through the sale of equity or convertible securities may dilute your ownership in us. We or our stockholders may sell shares of common stock in subsequent public offerings. We may also issue additional shares of common stock or convertible securities. As of December 31, 2017, we had 217,566,980 outstanding shares of common stock. We cannot predict the size of future issuances of our common stock or the effect, if any, that future issuances and sales of shares of our common stock will have on the market price of our common stock. Sales of substantial amounts of our common stock (including shares issued in connection with an acquisition), or the perception that such sales could occur, may adversely affect prevailing market prices of our common stock. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws, as well as Delaware law, contain provisions that could discourage acquisition bids or merger proposals, which may adversely affect the market price of our common stock. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes our board of directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval. If our board of directors elects to issue preferred stock, it could be more difficult for a third-party to acquire us. In addition, some provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws could make it more difficult for a third-party to acquire control of us, even if the change of control would be beneficial to our stockholders, including provisions which require: • a classified board of directors, so that only approximately one-third of our directors are elected each year; • limitations on the removal of directors; and • limitations on the ability of our stockholders to call special meetings and establish advance notice provisions for stockholder proposals and nominations for elections to the board of directors to be acted upon at meetings of stockholders. Delaware law prohibits us from engaging in any business combination with any “interested stockholder,” meaning generally that a stockholder who beneficially owns more than 15% of our stock cannot acquire us for a period of three years from the date this person became an interested stockholder, unless various conditions are met, such as approval of the transaction by our board of directors. Please read “Description of Our Capital Stock-Anti-Takeover Effects of Provisions of Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, Our Amended and Restated Bylaws and Delaware Law.” Item 1B.