Xcel Energy 2013 Annual Report Download - page 108

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Benefit Plans and Other Postretirement Benefits — Xcel Energy maintains pension and postretirement benefit plans for eligible
employees. Recognizing the cost of providing benefits and measuring the projected benefit obligation of these plans under applicable
accounting guidance requires management to make various assumptions and estimates.
Based on the regulatory recovery mechanisms of Xcel Energy Inc.’s utility subsidiaries, certain unrecognized actuarial gains and
losses and unrecognized prior service costs or credits are recorded as regulatory assets and liabilities, rather than OCI.
See Note 9 for further discussion of benefit plans and other postretirement benefits.
Guarantees — Xcel Energy recognizes, upon issuance or modification of a guarantee, a liability for the fair market value of the
obligation that has been assumed in issuing the guarantee. This liability includes consideration of specific triggering events and other
conditions which may modify the ongoing obligation to perform under the guarantee.
The obligation recognized is reduced over the term of the guarantee as Xcel Energy is released from risk under the guarantee. See
Note 13 for specific details of issued guarantees.
Reclassifications — Certain previously reported amounts have been reclassified to conform to the current year presentation.
Subsequent Events — Management has evaluated the impact of events occurring after Dec. 31, 2013 up to the date of issuance of
these consolidated financial statements. These statements contain all necessary adjustments and disclosures resulting from that
evaluation.
2. Accounting Pronouncements
Recently Adopted
Balance Sheet Offsetting — In December 2011, the FASB issued Balance Sheet (Topic 210) — Disclosures about Offsetting Assets
and Liabilities (ASU No. 2011-11), which requires disclosures regarding netting arrangements in agreements underlying derivatives,
certain financial instruments and related collateral amounts, and the extent to which an entity’s financial statement presentation
policies related to netting arrangements impact amounts recorded to the financial statements. In January 2013, the FASB issued
Balance Sheet (Topic 210) – Clarifying the Scope of Disclosures about Offsetting Assets and Liabilities (ASU No. 2013-01) to clarify
the specific instruments that should be considered in these disclosures. These disclosure requirements do not affect the presentation of
amounts in the consolidated balance sheets, and were effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2013, and
interim periods within those annual reporting periods. Xcel Energy implemented the disclosure guidance effective Jan. 1, 2013, and
the implementation did not have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements. See Note 11 for the required disclosures.
Comprehensive Income Disclosures — In February 2013, the FASB issued Comprehensive Income (Topic 220) — Reporting of
Amounts Reclassified Out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (ASU No. 2013-02), which requires detailed disclosures
regarding changes in components of accumulated OCI and amounts reclassified out of accumulated OCI. These disclosure
requirements do not change how net income or comprehensive income are presented in the consolidated financial statements. These
disclosure requirements were effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after Dec. 15, 2012, and interim periods within
those annual reporting periods. Xcel Energy implemented the disclosure guidance effective Jan. 1, 2013, and the implementation did
not have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements. See Note 16 for the required disclosures.
3. Selected Balance Sheet Data
(Thousands of Dollars) Dec. 31, 2013 Dec. 31, 2012
Accounts receivable, net
Accounts receivable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 797,267 $ 769,440
Less allowance for bad debts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (53,107) (51,394)
$ 744,160 $ 718,046
(Thousands of Dollars) Dec. 31, 2013 Dec. 31, 2012
Inventories
Materials and supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 225,308 $ 213,739
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189,485 189,425
Natural gas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161,745 132,410
$ 576,538 $ 535,574