7. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Routine Legal Proceedings

We are subject to various routine legal proceedings in the normal conduct of our business, primarily involving commercial disputes and claims, workers’ compensation claims, and claims for personal injury under general maritime laws of the U.S. and the Jones Act. While the outcome of these legal proceedings cannot be predicted with certainty, we believe that the outcome of any such proceedings, even if determined adversely, would not have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

Resolution of MPSV Litigation

On March 19, 2018, our subsidiary, Gulf Island Shipyards, LLC (“GIS”), received termination notices from its customer, Hornbeck Offshore Services, LLC (“Hornbeck”), of the contracts for the construction of two MPSVs. GIS disputed the purported terminations and disagreed with Hornbeck’s reasons for such terminations. In connection with such purported terminations, Hornbeck also made claims against the performance bonds issued by Zurich in connection with the construction of the MPSVs, for which the face amount of the bonds totaled $50.0 million (“Performance Bonds”). On October 2, 2018, GIS filed a lawsuit against Hornbeck to enforce its rights and remedies under the applicable construction contracts for the two MPSVs. The lawsuit was filed in the Twenty-Second Judicial District Court for the Parish of St. Tammany, State of Louisiana and was styled Gulf Island Shipyards, LLC v. Hornbeck Offshore Services, LLC, bearing docket number 2018-14861 (“MPSV Litigation”). Hornbeck subsequently asserted counterclaims against GIS and Zurich seeking damages.

On October 4, 2023, the MPSV Litigation was dismissed in full with prejudice at the request of the parties after the parties reached an agreement in principle. In addition, on November 6, 2023, GIS and the Company entered into an agreement (“Settlement Agreement”) with Zurich pursuant to which Zurich released GIS and the Company from all of their obligations under the Performance Bonds and the associated general indemnity agreements relating to the Performance Bonds, and we agreed to release possession of the MPSVs to Zurich, which occurred in the fourth quarter 2023. Further, we entered into the Note Agreement. See Note 4 for further discussion of the Note Agreement.

As a result of the resolution of the MPSV Litigation, during the third quarter 2023, we recorded a charge of $32.5 million, consisting of (i) a $12.5 million non-cash charge associated with the write-off of a noncurrent net contract asset related to the MPSV construction contracts, and (ii) a $20.0 million charge associated with recording a liability resulting from the Settlement Agreement and Note Agreement. The charge was reflected as a reduction to previously recognized revenue on the MPSV construction contracts, resulting in a negative revenue amount for the Shipyard Division for 2023, and is included in the changes in noncurrent assets and liabilities, net on our Statement of Cash Flows. The liability was replaced with the Note Agreement in the fourth quarter 2023 and is reflected as current and long-term debt on our Balance Sheet at December 31, 2023.

Insurance

We maintain insurance coverage for various aspects of our business and operations. However, we may be exposed to future losses due to coverage limitations and our use of deductibles and self-insured retentions for our exposures related to property and equipment damage, builder’s risk, third-party liability and workers’ compensation and USL&H claims. In connection with our insurance coverage renewal for our property and equipment during 2023, we determined that the benefits of maintaining insurance coverage for our property and equipment were limited due to high premium costs and deductibles and increased coverage limitations. Accordingly, we did not renew all of our property and equipment coverage and are now generally self-insured for exposures resulting from any future damage to our property and equipment.

To the extent we have insurance coverage, we do not have an offset right for liabilities in excess of any deductibles and self-insured retentions. Accordingly, we have recorded a liability for estimated amounts in excess of our deductibles and retentions, and have recorded a corresponding asset related to estimated insurance recoveries, on our Balance Sheet. Further, to the extent we are self-insured, reserves are recorded based upon our estimates, with input from legal and insurance advisors. Changes in assumptions, as well as changes in actual experience, could cause these estimates to change. See Note 2 for discussion of the costs incurred associated with damage caused by Hurricanes Ida.

Letters of Credit and Surety Bonds

We obtain letters of credit under our LC Facility or surety bonds from financial institutions to provide to our customers in order to secure advance payments or guarantee performance under our contracts, or in lieu of retention being withheld on our contracts. Letters of credit under our LC Facility are subject to cash securitization of the full amount of the outstanding letters of credit. In the event of non-performance under a contract, our cash securitization with respect to the letter of credit supporting such contract would become the property of Whitney Bank. With respect to surety bonds, payments by a Surety pursuant to a bond in the event of non-performance are subject to reimbursement to such Surety by us under a general indemnity agreement relating to such bond. Such indemnification obligations may include the face amount of the surety bond, or portions thereof, as well as other reimbursable items such as interest and certain investigative expenses and legal fees of the Surety. Such indemnification obligations would require us to use our cash, cash equivalents or short-term investments, and we may not have sufficient liquidity to satisfy such indemnification obligations. When a contract is complete, the contingent obligation terminates, and letters of credit or surety bonds are returned. See Note 4 for further discussion of our LC Facility and surety bonds.

Environmental Matters

Our operations are subject to extensive and changing U.S. federal, state and local laws and regulations, as well as the laws of other countries, that establish health and environmental quality standards. These standards, among others, relate to air and water pollutants and the management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes. We are exposed to potential liability for personal injury or property damage caused by any release, spill, exposure or other accident involving such pollutants, substances or wastes. In connection with the historical operation of our facilities, including those associated with acquired operations, substances which currently are or might be considered hazardous were used or disposed of at some sites that will or may require us to make expenditures for remediation. We believe we are in compliance, in all material respects, with environmental laws and regulations and maintain insurance coverage to mitigate exposure to environmental liabilities. We do not believe any environmental matters will have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flow.

Leases

We maintain operating leases for our corporate office and certain operating facilities and equipment. See Note 3 for further discussion of our leases.