The Endangered Species Act (“ESA”) restricts activities that may affect endangered or threatened species or their habitats. Similar protections are offered to migratory birds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and bald and golden eagles under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. Some of our operations may be located in areas that are or may be designated as habitats for endangered or threatened species. Thespecies or that may attract migratory birds, bald eagles, or golden eagles.

In October 2015, the U.S. FishDepartment of Transportation Pipeline and Wildlife ServiceHazardous Materials Safety Administration proposed to expand its regulations in May 2014a number of ways, including increased regulation of gathering lines, even in rural areas, and proposed a ruleadditional standards to alter how it identifies critical habitat for endangeredrevise safety regulations applicable to onshore gas transmission and threatened species. It is unclear when this rule will be finalized.

In addition to factors affecting the price of crude oil, natural gas, and NGLs generally, the prices we receive for our production are affected by factors specific to us and to the local markets where the production occurs. The prices that we receive for our production are generally lower than the relevant benchmark prices that are used for calculating commodity derivative positions. These differences, or differentials, are difficult to predict and may widen or narrow in the future based on market forces. Differentials can be influenced by, among other things, local or regional supply and demand factors and the terms of our sales contracts. Over the longer term, differentials will be significantly affected by factors such as investment decisions made by providers of midstream facilities and services, refineries and other industry participants, and the overall regulatory and economic climate. For example, increases in U.S. domestic oil production generally, or in production from particular basins, may result in widening differentials, particularly for production from some basins.differentials. We may be materially and adversely impacted by widening differentials on our production.production and decreasing commodity prices.

also impactimpacted the associated NGLs. We are also dependent on the availability and capacity of crude oil purchasersWhile this has not been a problem for our production. For example, reductions in purchases by a local crude oil refinery beginning in late 2013 increased the amount of oil that we had to transport out of the Wattenberg area for sale. This increased our transportation costs and reduced the price we received for the affected production for much of 2014. We expect this situation could occur againus in the future. In addition,Delaware Basin to date, some operators in the Delaware Basin have also experienced similar issues from time to time, in part due to significant increases in production in the area. The use of alternative forms of transportation for oil production, such as trucks or rail, involve risks. For example, well-publicized accidents involving trains delivering crude oilrisks, including the risk that increased regulation could result inlead to increased levels of regulation and transportation costs and possiblyor shortages of railcars that meet new safety standards. We face similar risks in other areas, including our Utica operating area, as gathering/processing infrastructure is currently in the development phase and development activity has increased in recent years.trucks or rail-cars. In addition to causing p

For example, recent increases in activity in the Wattenberg Field have contributed to bottlenecks in processing and transportation that have occurred in some recent periods in the Wattenberg Field have negatively affected our results of operations, and these adverse effects may be disproportionately severe to us compared to our more geographically diverse competitors. Similarly, the concentration of our producing assets within a small number of producing formations exposes us to risks, such as changes in field-wide rules that could adversely affect development activities or production relating to those formations. Such an event could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, in areas where exploration and production activities are increasing, as has been the case in recent years in the Wattenberg Field and the Delaware Basin, the demand for, and cost of, drilling rigs, equipment, supplies, chemicals, personnel, and oilfield services increase. Shortages or the high cost of drilling rigs, equipment, supplies, chemicals, personnel, or oilfield services could delay or adversely affect our development and exploration operations or cause us to incur significant expenditures that are not provided for in our capital budget,forecast, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

A major risk inherent in our drilling plans is coordinating an administration-wide reviewthe possibility that we will be unable to obtain needed drilling permits from relevant governmental authorities in a timely manner. Our ability to obtain the permits needed to pursue our development plans may be impacted by a variety of hydraulic fracturing practices.factors, including opposition by landowners or interest groups. Delays in obtaining regulatory approvals or drilling permits, the failure to obtain a drilling permit for a well, or the receipt of a permit with

The regulatory environment in which we operate changes frequently, often through the imposition of new or more stringent environmental and certain storage vessels in August 2012. The standards require, among other things, userequirements. We cannot predict the nature, timing or effect of reduced emission completions, or green completions, to reduce volatile organic compound emissions during well completions as well as new controls applicable tosuch additional requirements, but they may have a wide variety of storage tanks and other equipment, including compressors, controllers, and dehydrators. Following administrative reconsiderationadverse effects on us. The types of a portion of the 2012 rules, EPA issued one set of final amendments to the rule in September 2013 related to storage tanks, and a second set of final amendments largely related to reduced emissions completion requirements in December 2014. Most key provisions in the new CAA standards become effective in 2015. The rules and associated amendments are substantial and will increase future costs ofregulatory changes that could impact our operations vary widely and will require us to make modifications to our operations and install new equipment. In January 2015, EPA announced a comprehensive strategy to further reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. EPA’s hybrid approach will rely partly on voluntary measures and partly on regulatory requirements. A proposed rule is expected in 2015, with a final rule to be issued in 2016. Potential new requirements under such rules could include, but are not limited to, new leak detection and repair standards, control requirements at oil well completions, replacement of certain pneumatic pumps, and additional control requirements for gathering,the following:

Seasonal weather conditions and lease stipulations designed to prohibit or limit operations during crop-growing seasons and to protect wildlife affect operations in some areas. In certain areas drilling and other activities may be restricted or prohibited by lease stipulations, or prevented by weather conditions, for significant periods of time. This limits our operations in those areas and can intensify competition during the active months for drilling rigs, equipment, supplies, chemicals, personnel, and oilfield services, which may lead to additional or increased costs or periodic shortages. These constraints, and the resulting high costs or shortages, could delay our operations and materially increase operating and capital costs and therefore adversely affect our profitability. Similarly, hot weather during some recent periods adversely impacted the operation of certain midstream facilities, and therefore our production. Similar events could occur in the future and could materiallynegatively impact our results of operations and cash flows.

Moreover, pursuant to the compromise that resulted in the withdrawalWe operate approximately 87 percent of the 2014 proposals, Governor Hickenlooper has createdwells in which we own an interest. If we do not operate a task force charged with crafting recommendationsproperty, we do not have control over normal operating procedures, expenditures or future development of the property. The success and timing of drilling and development activities on properties operated by others therefore depends upon a number of factors outside of our control, including the operator’s timing and amount of capital expenditures, expertise (including safety and environmental compliance) and financial resources, inclusion of other participants in drilling wells, and use of technology. The failure by an operator to help minimize land useadequately perform operations, or an operator’s breach of the applicable agreements, could reduce production and other conflicts relatingrevenues and adversely affect our profitability. These risks may be heightened during periods of depressed commodity prices as operators may propose operations that we believe to the locationbe economically unattractive, leading us to incur non-consent penalties. Our lack of control over non-operated properties also makes it more difficult for us to forecast capital expenditures, production and related matters

Our technologies, systems and networks, and those of our business partners, may become the target of cyber-attacks or information security breaches that could result in the unauthorized release, gathering, monitoring, misuse, loss or destruction of proprietary and other information, theft of property or other disruption of our business operations. In addition, certain cyber incidents, such as surveillance, may remain undetected for an extended period. Given the politically sensitive nature of hydraulic fracturing and the controversy generated by its opponents, our technologies, systems and networks may be of particular interest to certain groups with political agendas, which may seek to launch cyber-attacks as a method of promoting their message. A cyber incident involving our information systems and related infrastructure, or that of our business partners, could disrupt our business plans and negatively impact our operations. Although to date we have not experienced any significantsuffered material losses related to cyber-attacks there can be no assurance thatto date, if we will not bewere successfully attacked, we could incur substantial remediation and other costs or suffer other negative consequences, such as a loss of competitive information, critical infrastructure, personnel or capabilities essential to our operations. Events of this nature could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows. Moreover, as the targetsophistication of such attacks in the future. As cyber threats continuecyber-attacks continues to evolve, we may be required to expend significant additional resources to continue to modify orfurther enhance our protective measuresdigital security or to investigate and remediate any security vulnerabilities.

Our industry is capital intensive. We expect to continue to make substantial capital expenditures in our business and operations for the exploration, development, production and acquisition of crude oil, natural gas, and NGL reserves. To date, we have financed capital expenditures primarily with bank borrowings under our revolving credit facility, cash generated by operations and proceeds from capital markets transactions and the sale of properties. We intend to finance our future capital expenditures utilizing similar financing sources. Our cash flows from operations and access to capital are subject to a number of variables, including: