| Significant Accounting Policies [Text Block] | NOTE 1 – Merger with Matrix Oil Management Corporation On March 7, 2018, Royale Energy, Inc. (“Royale Energy, formerly known as Royale Energy Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation Energy Funds, Inc. (“REF,” formerly known as Royale Energy, Inc., a California corporation) REF Royale Energy Royale Energy REF Royale Energy Royale Energy Royale Energy Royale Energy Royale Energy Royale Energy The Merger had been previously approved by the respective holders of all outstanding capital stock of REF Royale Energy Royale Energy As a result of the Merger, REF Royale Energy REF Royale Energy Royale Energy Under FASB Topic ASC 805, Business Combinations, The preliminary allocation of the purchase price was determined in arms’ length negotiations between the parties. Substantially all of the value of the transaction was related to the value of the oil and gas assets acquired with minimal value ascribed to the other assets. The Company considered two valuation methods in its determination of fair value for the oil and natural gas properties; the discounted cash flow analysis and comparable transaction analysis. Assumptions for the discounted cash flow analysis include commodity price, operating costs and capital outlay for future development of the acquired properties, pricing differentials, reserve risking, and discount rates. NYMEX strip pricing, less applicable pricing differentials, was utilized in the discounted cash flow analysis. Risking levels in the discounted cash flow analysis are determined based on a variety of factors, such as existing well performance, offset production and analogue wells. Discount rates used in the discounted cash flow analysis were determined by using the estimated cost of capital, discount rates, as well as industry knowledge and experience. The comparable transaction analysis was performed to establish a range of fair values for similarly situated oil and gas properties that were recently bought or sold in arms-length, observable market transactions. The range of value observed from the Company’s analysis of recent market transactions was then utilized as a basis for evaluating the fair value determined via the discounted cash flow method. The Company’s fair value conclusion indicated that the discounted cash flow method valuation is in line with the same range as the comparable transactions reviewed, when considering the comparable transactions. Other current liabilities assumed in the acquisition, were carried over at historical carrying values because the assets and liabilities are short term in nature and their carrying values are estimated to represent the best estimate of fair value. Any changes to the estimates used in preparing this preliminary purchase price allocation could result in a corresponding change in the final purchase price allocation. The following table summarizes the consideration transferred, fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed:
March 7, 2018
Consideration:
Value of Royale Common Stock issued
$
9,546,068
Value of Series B Convertible Preferred Stock issued
20,124,000
Total consideration
$
29,670,068
Fair Value of Liabilities Assumed:
Current liabilities
19,624,592
Other liabilities
3,125,394
Asset Retirement obligations
1,419,544
Total fair value of liabilities assumed
24,169,530
Total consideration plus liabilities assumed
$
53,839,598
Fair Value of Assets Acquired:
Cash
$
548,805
Current assets
3,655,173
Proved and unproved crude oil and gas properties
48,632,870
Land
1,002,750
$
53,839,598 In accordance with FASB Topic ASC 805, the following unaudited supplemental pro forma condensed results of operations present combined information as though the business combination had been completed as of January 1, 2018. The unaudited supplemental pro forma financial information was derived from the historical revenues and direct operating expenses of Royale Energy, Inc. and Matrix Oil Management Corporation and its affiliates. These unaudited supplemental pro forma results of operations are provided for illustrative purposes only and do not purport to be indicative of the actual results that would have been achieved by the consolidated company for the periods presented or that may be achieved by the consolidated company in the future.
Three months ended March 31, 2018
Three months ended March 31, 2017
Royale Energy, Inc.
Matrix Oil Management Corp
Consolidated
Royale Energy, Inc.
Matrix Oil Management Corp
Consolidated
(Unaudited)
Revenue
$
119,473
$
1,798,531
$
1,918,004
$
274,398
$
1,120,427
$
1,394,825
Net Loss
$
(1,200,576
)
$
(751,111
)
$
(1,951,687
)
$
(987,644
)
$
(549,922
)
$
(1,537,566 )
Net Loss available to
$
(1,200,576
)
$
(751,111
)
$
(1,951,687
)
$
(987,644
)
$
(549,922
)
$
(1,537,566 )
Pro forma Loss per common share Basic and diluted
$
(0.04
)
$
(0.02
)
$
(0.06
)
$
(0.05
)
$
(0.02
)
$
(0.07 ) Consolidation The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Royale Energy, Inc. (sometimes called the “Company” “we,” “our,” “us,” or “Royale Energy”), REF, Royale Energy Use of Estimates The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America and requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. As reflected in the accompanying financial statements, the Company has negative working capital, losses from operations and negative cash flows from operations. Material estimates that are particularly susceptible to significant change relate to the estimate of Company oil and gas reserves prepared by an independent engineering consultant. Such estimates are subject to numerous uncertainties inherent in the estimation of quantities of proven reserves. Estimated reserves are used in the calculation of depletion, depreciation and amortization, unevaluated property costs, impairment of oil and natural gas properties, estimated future net cash flows, taxes, and contingencies. Liquidity and Going Concern The primary sources of liquidity have historically been issuances of common stock and operations. We believe that the completion of the contemplated merger with will enable us to return to positive cash flow. There is some doubt about the company’s ability to meet liquidity demands, and we anticipate that our primary sources of liquidity will be from the issuance of debt and/or equity, and the sale of oil and natural gas property participation interest. The Company’s consolidated financial statements reflect an accumulated deficit of $49,897,294, a working capital deficiency of $24,362,345 and a stockholders’ equity of $21,385,723. These factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. The accompanying consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary if the Company is unable to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans to alleviate the going concern include the completion of the second step of the merger with Matrix and additional financing through issuances of common stock and the reduction of overhead costs as more fully outlined in Note 5 – Subsequent Events and below. There is no assurance that additional financing will be available when needed or that management will be able to obtain financing on terms acceptable to the Company and whether the Company will become profitable and generate positive operating cash flow. On April 13, 2018, Royale Energy, consummated the second step in the Contribution Agreement that was described on Form 8-K/A and originally described on Form 8-K, both filed with the SEC on March 12, 2018. The merger, among other things, provides for the repayment of the secured loan with Arena Limited SPV, LLC in full, and a reduction in outstanding payables of both Royale and Matrix of approximately $8.0 million. The Agreement further provides for a true-up of certain payables of the contributed properties subsequent to closing and the payment on a monthly basis of $180,000 as a fee for providing the accounting and administration for the newly formed RMX joint venture. Revenue Recognition On January 1, 2018, we adopted the new ASC Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers and all the related amendments ("new revenue standard") using the modified retrospective method. We evaluated the effect of transition by applying the provisions of the new revenue standard to contracts with remaining obligations as of January 1, 2018. No cumulative adjustment to retained earnings was necessary as a result of adopting this standard. Results for reporting periods beginning after January 1, 2018 are presented under the new revenue standard, while prior period amounts are not adjusted and continue to be reported in accordance with our historic accounting policies. We concluded that the adoption of the new revenue standard did not result in any changes to our consolidated balance sheet or statement of cash flow. The majority of our revenues are derived from the sale of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids ("NGLs") and natural gas under spot and term agreements with our customers. The pricing in our hydrocarbon sales agreements are variable, determined using various published benchmarks which are adjusted for negotiated quality and location differentials. As a result, revenue collected under our agreements with customers is highly dependent on the market conditions and may fluctuate considerably as the hydrocarbon market prices rise or fall. Typically, our customers pay us monthly, within a short period of time after we deliver the hydrocarbon products. As such, we do not have any financing element associated with our contracts. We do not have any issues related to returns or refunds, as product specifications are standardized for the industry and are typically measured when transferred to a common carrier or midstream entity, and other contractual mechanisms (e.g., price adjustments) are used when products do not meet those specifications. In limited cases, we may also collect advance payments from customers as stipulated in our agreements; payments in excess of recognized revenue are recorded as contract liabilities on our consolidated balance sheet. Under our hydrocarbon sales agreements, the entire consideration amount is variable either due to pricing and/or volumes. We recognize revenue in the amount of variable consideration allocated to distinct units of hydrocarbons transferred to a customer. Such allocation reflects the amount of total consideration we expect to collect for completed deliveries of hydrocarbons and the terms of variable payment relate specifically to our efforts to satisfy the performance obligations under these contracts. Our performance obligations under our hydrocarbon sales agreements are to deliver either the entire production from the dedicated wells or specified contractual volumes of hydrocarbons. We often serve as the operator for jointly owned oil and gas properties. As part of this role, we perform activities to explore, develop and produce oil and gas properties in accordance with the joint operating arrangement and collective decisions of the joint parties. Other working interest owners reimburse us for costs incurred based on our agreements. We determined that these activities are not performed as part of customer relationships, in accordance with the new revenue standard, and such reimbursements will continue to not be recorded as revenues within the scope of the new revenue standard after the first quarter of 2018. Prior to this, such cost reimbursements were included in revenue. We commonly market the share of production belonging to other working interest owners as the operator of jointly owned oil and gas properties. We concluded that those marketing activities are carried out as part of the collaborative arrangement, and we do not purchase or otherwise obtain control of other working interest owners’ share of production. Therefore, we act as a principal only in regards to the sale of our share of production and recognize revenue for the volumes associated with our net production. The Company frequently sells a portion of the working interest in each well it drills or participates in to third party investors and retains a portion of the prospect for its own account. The Company typically guarantees a cost to drill to the third-party drilling participants and records a loss or gain on the difference between the guaranteed price and the actual cost to drill the well. When monies are received from third parties for future drilling obligations, the Company records the liability as Turnkey Drilling Obligations. Once the contracted depth for the drilling of the well is reached and a determination as to the commercial viability of the well (typically call “Casing Point Election” or “Logging Point”), the difference in the actual cost to drill and the guaranteed cost is recorded as income or expense depending on whether there was a gain or loss. Crude oil and condensate For the crude sales agreements, we satisfy our performance obligations and recognize revenue once customers take control of the crude at the designated delivery points, which include pipelines, trucks or vessels. Natural gas and NGLs When selling natural gas and NGLs, we engage midstream entities to process our production stream by separating natural gas from the NGLs. Frequently, these midstream entities also purchase our natural gas and NGLs under the same agreements. In these situations, we determined the performance obligation is complete and satisfied at the tailgate of the processing plant when the natural gas and NGLs become identifiable and measurable products. We determined the plant tailgate is the point in time where control, as defined in the new revenue standard, is transferred to midstream entities and they are entitled to significant risks and rewards of ownership of the natural gas and NGLs. The amounts due to midstream entities for gathering and processing services are recognized as shipping and handling cost and included as lease operating expense in our consolidated statement of operations, since we make those payments in exchange for distinct services with the exception of natural gas sold to PG&E where transportation is netted directly against revenue. Under some of our natural gas processing agreements, we have an option to take the processed natural gas and NGLs in-kind and sell to customers other than the processing company. In those circumstances, our performance obligations are complete after delivering the processed hydrocarbons to the customer at the designated delivery points, which may be the tailgate of the processing plant or an alternative delivery point requested by the customer. Turnkey Drilling Obligations These Turnkey Agreements are managed by the Company for the participants of the well. The collections of pre-drilling AFE amounts are segregated by the Company and the gains and losses on the Turnkey Agreements are recorded in income or expense at the time of the casing point election in accordance with ASC 932-323-25 and 932-360. The Company manages the performance obligation for the well participants and only records revenue or expense at the time the performance obligation of the Turnkey Agreement has been satisfied. Oil and Gas Property and Equipment Depreciation, depletion and amortization, based on cost less estimated salvage value of the asset, are primarily determined under either the unit-of-production method or the straight-line method, which is based on estimated asset service life taking obsolescence into consideration. Maintenance and repairs, including planned major maintenance, are expensed as incurred. Major renewals and improvements are capitalized and the assets replaced are retired. The project construction phase commences with the development of the detailed engineering design and ends when the constructed assets are ready for their intended use. Interest costs, to the extent they are incurred to finance expenditures during the construction phase, are included in property, plant and equipment and are depreciated over the service life of the related assets. Royale Energy uses the “successful efforts” method to account for its exploration and production activities. Under this method, Royale Energy accumulates its proportionate share of costs on a well-by-well basis with certain exploratory expenditures and exploratory dry holes being expensed as incurred and capitalizes expenditures for productive wells. Royale Energy amortizes the costs of productive wells under the unit-of-production method. Royale Energy carries, as an asset, exploratory well costs when the well has found a sufficient quantity of reserves to justify its completion as a producing well and where Royale Energy is making sufficient progress assessing the reserves and the economic and operating viability of the project. Exploratory well costs not meeting these criteria are charged to expense. Other exploratory expenditures, including geophysical costs and annual lease rentals, are expensed as incurred. Acquisition costs of proved properties are amortized using a unit-of-production method, computed on the basis of total proved oil and gas reserves. Capitalized exploratory drilling and development costs associated with productive depletable extractive properties are amortized using unit-of-production rates based on the amount of proved developed reserves of oil and gas that are estimated to be recoverable from existing facilities using current operating methods. Under the unit-of-production method, oil and gas volumes are considered produced once they have been measured through meters at custody transfer or sales transaction points at the outlet valve on the lease or field storage tank. Production costs are expensed as incurred. Production involves lifting the oil and gas to the surface and gathering, treating, field processing and field storage of the oil and gas. The production function normally terminates at the outlet valve on the lease or field production storage tank. Production costs are those incurred to operate and maintain Royale Energy’s wells and related equipment and facilities. They become part of the cost of oil and gas produced. These costs, sometimes referred to as lifting costs, include such items as labor costs to operate the wells and related equipment; repair and maintenance costs on the wells and equipment; materials, supplies and energy costs required to operate the wells and related equipment; and administrative expenses related to the production activity. Proved oil and gas properties held and used by Royale Energy are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts may not be recoverable. Royale Energy estimates the future undiscounted cash flows of the affected properties to judge the recoverability of carrying amounts. Cash flows used in impairment evaluations are developed using annually updated evaluation assumptions for crude oil commodity prices. Annual volumes are based on field production profiles, which are also updated annually. Prices for natural gas and other products are based on assumptions developed annually for evaluation purposes. Impairment analyses are generally based on proved reserves. An asset group would be impaired if the undiscounted cash flows were less than its carrying value. Impairments are measured by the amount the carrying value exceeds fair value. During the three months ended March 31, 2017, impairment losses of $37,369 were recorded on various capitalized lease and land costs that were no longer viable. During the same period in 2018, no impairment losses were recorded. Significant unproved properties are assessed for impairment individually, and valuation allowances against the capitalized costs are recorded based on the estimated economic chance of success and the length of time that Royale Energy expects to hold the properties. The valuation allowances are reviewed at least annually. Upon the sale or retirement of a complete field of a proved property, Royale Energy eliminates the cost from its books, and the resultant gain or loss is recorded to Royale Energy’s Statement of Operations. Upon the sale of an entire interest in an unproved property where the property has been assessed for impairment individually, a gain or loss is recognized in Royale Energy’s Statement of Operations. If a partial interest in an unproved property is sold, any funds received are accounted for as a recovery of the cost in the interest retained with any excess funds recognized as a gain. Should Royale Energy’s turnkey drilling agreements include unproved property, total drilling costs incurred to satisfy its obligations are recovered by the total funds received under the agreements. Any excess funds are recorded as a Gain on Turnkey Drilling Programs, and any costs not recovered are capitalized and accounted for under the “successful efforts” method. Royale Energy sponsors turnkey drilling agreement arrangements in unproved properties as a pooling of assets in a joint undertaking, whereby proceeds from participants are reported as Deferred Drilling Obligations, and then reduced as costs to complete its obligations are incurred with any excess booked against its property account to reduce any basis in its own interest. Gains on Turnkey Drilling Programs represent funds received from turnkey drilling participants in excess of all costs Royale incurs during the drilling programs (e.g., lease acquisition, exploration and development costs), including costs incurred on behalf of participants and costs incurred for its own account; and are recognized only upon making this determination after Royale’s obligations have been fulfilled. The contracts require the participants pay Royale Energy the full contract price upon execution of the agreement. Royale Energy completes the drilling activities typically between 10 and 30 days after drilling begins. The participant retains an undivided or proportional beneficial interest in the property and is also responsible for its proportionate share of operating costs. Royale Energy retains legal title to the lease. The participants purchase a working interest directly in the well bore. In these working interest arrangements, the participants are responsible for sharing in the risk of development, but also sharing in a proportional interest in rights to revenues and proportional liability for the cost of operations after drilling is completed and the interest is conveyed to the participant. A certain portion of the turnkey drilling participant’s funds received are non-refundable. The company holds all funds invested as Deferred Drilling Obligations until drilling is complete. Occasionally, drilling is delayed for various reasons such as weather, permitting, drilling rig availability and/or contractual obligations. At March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, Royale Energy had Deferred Drilling Obligations of $7,237,731 and $5,891,898, respectively. If Royale Energy is unable to drill the wells, and a suitable replacement well is not found, Royale would retain the non-refundable portion of the contact and return the remaining funds to the participant. Included in cash and cash equivalents are amounts for use in completion of turnkey drilling programs in progress. Losses on properties sold are recognized when incurred or when the properties are held for sale and the fair value of the properties is less than the carrying value. Other Receivables Our other receivables consist of joint interest billing receivables from direct working interest investors and industry partners. We provide for uncollectible accounts receivable using the allowance method of accounting for bad debts. Under this method of accounting, a provision for uncollectible accounts is charged directly to bad debt expense when it becomes probable the receivable will not be collected. The allowance account is increased or decreased based on past collection history and management’s evaluation of accounts receivable. All amounts considered uncollectible are charged against the allowance account and recoveries of previously charged off accounts are added to the allowance. At March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the Company established an allowance for uncollectable accounts of $1,965,076 and $1,975,660, respectively, for receivables from direct working interest investors whose expenses on non-producing wells were unlikely to be collected from revenue. Revenue Receivables Our revenue receivables consist of receivables related to the sale of our natural gas and oil. Once a production month is completed we receive payment approximately 15 to 30 days later. Equipment and Fixtures Equipment and fixtures are stated at cost and depreciated over the estimated useful lives of the assets, which range from three to seven years, using the straight-line method. Repairs and maintenance are charged to expense as incurred. When assets are sold or retired, the cost and related accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts and any resulting gain or loss is included in income. Maintenance and repairs, which neither materially add to the value of the property nor appreciably prolong its life, are charged to expense as incurred. Gains or losses on dispositions of property and equipment, other than oil and gas, are reflected in operations. Fair Value Measurements According to Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures Topic of the FASB Accounting Standards Codification, assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring and nonrecurring basis in period subsequent to initial recognition, the reporting entity shall disclose information that enable users of its financial statements to assess the inputs used to develop those measurements and for recurring fair value measurements using significant unobservable inputs, the effect of the measurements on earnings for the period. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. In determining fair value, the Company utilizes valuation techniques that maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs to the extent possible as well as considers counterparty credit risk in its assessment of fair value. Carrying amounts of the Company’s financial instruments, including cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable and accrued liabilities, approximate their fair values as of the balance sheet dates because of their generally short maturities. The fair value hierarchy distinguishes between (1) market participant assumptions developed based on market data obtained from independent sources (observable inputs) and (2) an entity’s own assumptions about market participant assumptions developed based on the best information available in the circumstances (unobservable inputs). The fair value hierarchy consists of three broad levels, which gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3). The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are described below: Level 1: Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets that are accessible at the measurement date for assets or liabilities. Level 2: Directly or indirectly observable inputs as of the reporting date through correlation with market data, including quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets and quoted prices in markets that are not active. Level 2 also includes assets and liabilities that are valued using models or other pricing methodologies that do not require significant judgment since the input assumptions used in the models, such as interest rates and volatility factors, are corroborated by readily observable data from actively quoted markets for substantially the full term of the financial instrument. Level 3: Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and reflect the use of significant management judgment. These values are generally determined using pricing models for which the assumptions utilize management’s estimates of market participant assumptions. At March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, Royale Energy did not have any financial assets measured and recognized at fair value on a recurring basis. The Company estimates asset retirement obligations pursuant to the provisions of FASB ASC Topic 410, “ Asset Retirement and Environmental Obligations” Accounts Payable and Accrued Expenses At March 31, 2018, the components of accounts payable and accrued expenses consisted of $9,472,050 in trade accounts payable due to various vendors, $970,055 in payables and accruals related to direct working interest investors revenues and operating costs, $273,216 in accrued expenses related to current drilling efforts, $438,667 in legal settlement payables related to Cash Advances on Pending Transactions, $266,110 for accrued liabilities for amounts set aside mainly for the plugging and abandonment of certain wells, $144,068 for employee related taxes and accruals, $181,333 related to interest payable on cash advances on pending transactions, $164,017 related to accrued interest on the secured term note, $34,548 in deferred rent and $16,523 in federal and state income taxes payable. At December 31, 2017, the components of accounts payable and accrued expenses consisted of $2,392,755 in trade accounts payable due to various vendors, $688,002 in payables and accruals related to direct working interest investors revenues and operating costs, $483,734 in accrued expenses related to current drilling efforts, $438,667 in legal settlement payables related to Cash Advances on Pending Transactions, $266,110 for accrued liabilities for amounts set aside mainly for the plugging and abandonment of certain wells, $93,619 for employee related taxes and accruals, $223,833 related to interest payable on cash advances on pending transactions, $35,036 in deferred rent and $17,123 in federal and state income taxes payable. Secured Term Debt In conjunction with the Purchase and Sale Agreement on June 15, 2016, Matrix Oil Management Corp entered into a term loan agreement with Arena Limited SPV, LLC (Term Loan) for approximately $12.4 million. The uses of the term loan will be used for the approximately 50% working interest purchase of the oil and gas properties noted above in the Purchase and Sale Agreement, the payoff of the existing Credit Facility, payment of legal and other loan costs, and other working capital needs of the Company as defined in the loan agreement. The original maturity date of the Term Loan was June 15, 2018, it was secured by the assets of Matrix, and contained financial covenants commencing June 30, 2016 and thereafter, as defined in the term loan agreement. The Term Loan contained preferential payment requirements in advance of the amounts outstanding under the subordinated notes payable to partners, as defined in the term loan agreement. This loan agreement was paid in full in April 2018, see Note 5 – Subsequent Events The Term Loan Agreement between Matrix and Arena Limited SPV, LLC called for interest at the rate of nine percent (9%) plus the adjusted LIBOR Rate computed on a daily basis. The loan balance as of March 31, 2018 was $11,140,749. The Company recognized $164,017 in interest expense for the period ended March 31, 2018. Cash Advances on Pending Transactions In July 2016, we received a cash investment of $1,580,000 from two investors to purchase convertible promissory notes of $1,280,000 and $300,000, with a conversion price of $0.40 per share, with warrants to purchase one share of common stock for every three shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the notes. The funds from these transactions were used to continue drilling activities, fund expenses incurred in connection with the completion of Royale Energy’s merger with Matrix Oil Corporation and for general corporate purposes. The notes originally matured on August 2, 2017, one year from the date of issuance, and carried a 10% interest rate, with a default rate of 25%. Shortly before completion of the Merger, the $300,000 note was converted into 750,000 shares of Royale common stock, and Roya |
