| Commitments and Contingencies | Commitments and Contingencies Concession Duty. Under KCSM’s 50-year railroad concession from the Mexican government (the “Concession”), which could expire in 2047 unless extended, KCSM pays annual concession duty expense of 1.25% of gross revenues. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2022, the concession duty expense, which is recorded within materials and other in operating expenses, was $5.6 million and $10.5 million, respectively, compared to $4.9 million and $9.4 million, for the same periods in 2021. Litigation. Occasionally, the Company is a party to various legal proceedings, regulatory examinations, investigations, administrative actions, and other legal matters, arising for the most part in the ordinary course of business, incidental to its operations. Included in these proceedings are various tort claims brought by current and former employees for job-related injuries and by third parties for injuries related to railroad operations. KCS aggressively defends these matters and has established liability provisions that management believes are adequate to cover expected costs. The outcome of litigation and other legal matters is always uncertain. KCS believes it has valid defenses to the legal matters currently pending against it, is defending itself vigorously, and has recorded accruals determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP, where appropriate. In making a determination regarding accruals, using available information, KCS evaluates the likelihood of an unfavorable outcome in legal or regulatory proceedings to which it is a party to and records a loss contingency when it is probable a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. These subjective determinations are based on the status of such legal or regulatory proceedings, the merits of KCS’s defenses and consultation with legal counsel. Actual outcomes of these legal and regulatory proceedings may materially differ from the current estimates. It is possible that resolution of one or more of the legal matters currently pending or threatened could result in losses material to KCS’s consolidated results of operations, liquidity or financial condition. Environmental Liabilities. The Company’s U.S. operations are subject to extensive federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations. The major U.S. environmental laws to which the Company is subject include, among others, the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (“CERCLA,” also known as the Superfund law), the Toxic Substances Control Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act. CERCLA can impose joint and several liabilities for cleanup and investigation costs, without regard to fault or legality of the original conduct, on current and predecessor owners and operators of a site, as well as those who generate, or arrange for the disposal of hazardous substances. The Company does not believe that compliance with the requirements imposed by the environmental legislation will impair its competitive capability or result in any material additional capital expenditures, operating or maintenance costs. The Company is, however, subject to environmental remediation costs as described in the following paragraphs. The Company’s Mexico operations are subject to Mexican federal and state laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment through the establishment of standards for water discharge, water supply, emissions, noise pollution, hazardous substances and transportation and handling of hazardous and solid waste. The Mexican government may bring administrative and criminal proceedings, impose economic sanctions against companies that violate environmental laws, and temporarily or even permanently close non-complying facilities. The risk of incurring environmental liability is inherent in the railroad industry. As part of serving the petroleum and chemicals industry, the Company transports hazardous materials and has a professional team available to respond to and handle environmental issues that might occur in the transport of such materials. The Company performs ongoing reviews and evaluations of the various environmental programs and issues within the Company’s operations, and, as necessary, takes actions intended to limit the Company’s exposure to potential liability. Although these costs cannot be predicted with certainty, management believes that the ultimate outcome of identified matters will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. Personal Injury. The Company’s personal injury liability is based on semi-annual actuarial studies performed on an undiscounted basis by an independent third party actuarial firm and reviewed by management. This liability is based on personal injury claims filed and an estimate of claims incurred but not yet reported. Actual results may vary from estimates due to the number, type and severity of the injury, costs of medical treatments and uncertainties in litigation. Adjustments to the liability are reflected within operating expenses in the period in which changes to estimates are known. Personal injury claims in excess of self-insurance levels are insured up to certain coverage amounts, depending on the type of claim and year of occurrence. The personal injury liability as of June 30, 2022, is based on an updated actuarial study of personal injury claims through April 30, 2022, and review of the last two months’ experience. Although these estimates cannot be predicted with certainty, management believes that the ultimate outcome will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. Tax Contingencies . Tax returns filed in the U.S. for periods after 2015 and in Mexico for periods after 2012 remain open to examination by the taxing authority. The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) has completed its examination of the 2017 deemed mandatory repatriation tax included in the 2017 U.S. federal tax return and the 2016 U.S. federal tax return with no material impact to the consolidated financial statements. The Servicio de Administración Tributaria (the “SAT”), the Mexican equivalent of the IRS, has initiated examinations of the KCSM 2013 through 2020 Mexico tax returns and the Financiera Inspira, S.A. de C.V. SOFOM, E.N.R. 2016 and 2017 Mexico tax returns. The Company does not expect that these examinations will have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements. During 2017, the Company received audit assessments from the SAT for the KCSM 2009 and 2010 Mexico tax returns. The Company commenced administrative actions with the SAT and the audit assessments were subsequently nullified. In the third quarter of 2018, the SAT issued new assessments and the Company filed administrative appeals with the SAT. During the first quarter of 2022, the Company received an audit assessment from the SAT for the KCSM 2013 Mexico tax return and filed an administrative appeal of the assessment in the second quarter of 2022. On April 13, 2022, the SAT used an electronic tax mailbox to deliver an audit assessment on the 2014 KCSM tax returns for Ps.5.5 billion (approximately $280 million USD) of tax, interest, penalties and inflation (the “2014 Audit Assessment”). In 2014, KCSM filed an amparo lawsuit with the district court, objecting to the SAT’s electronic accounting requirements, including the SAT’s use of the electronic tax mailbox, and KCSM was granted a permanent injunction in 2015 preventing the SAT from delivering any notification of assessments using the electronic tax mailbox. The permanent injunction remains in effect through the date of this filing. The Company became aware of the 2014 Audit Assessment on June 30, 2022 and based on the permanent injunction on the electronic accounting requirements, the Company believes it has thirty business days from that date, to file an appeal. On July 7, 2022, the Company filed an administrative appeal of the 2014 Audit Assessment with the SAT. The Company believes that it has strong legal arguments in its favor and it is more likely than not that the administrative appeal of the 2014 Audit Assessment was timely filed. The 2014 Audit Assessment includes tax positions where KCSM has prior favorable court decisions or strong legal arguments in its favor. Management believes it is more likely than not it will prevail in any challenge of the 2014 Audit Assessment. Historically, the Company has not been required to pay to settle previous SAT audit assessments or has settled SAT audit assessments for an immaterial amount. On July 1, 2022, the SAT froze KCSM’s Mexico bank account without any request for payment of the 2014 Audit Assessment or notification of the freeze. The Company filed an amparo lawsuit challenging the legality of the bank account freeze. The district court issued a permanent injunction requiring the SAT to remove the freeze subject to KCSM posting a performance bond or other collateral upon the SAT demonstrating a tax obligation exists. The freeze has not had and is not expected to have a significant impact on KCSM’s cash flows or operations. The provision of the performance bond or other collateral, if necessary, would not be an agreement or concession with regard to the 2014 Audit Assessment and in no way would impact KCSM’s ability to further defend its tax position. The Company believes that it has strong legal arguments in its favor and it is more likely than not that it will prevail in any challenge of the assessments. Contractual Agreements. In the normal course of business, the Company enters into various contractual agreements related to commercial arrangements and the use of other railroads’ or governmental entities’ infrastructure needed for the operations of the business. The Company is involved or may become involved in certain disputes involving transportation rates, product loss or damage, charges, and interpretations related to these agreements. While the outcome of these matters cannot be predicted with certainty, the Company believes that, when resolved, these disputes will not have a material effect on its consolidated financial statements. Credit Risk. The Company continually monitors risks related to economic changes and certain customer receivables concentrations. Significant changes in customer concentration or payment terms, deterioration of customer creditworthiness, bankruptcy, insolvency or liquidation of a customer, or weakening in economic trends could have a significant impact on the collectability of the Company’s receivables and its operating results. If the financial condition of the Company’s customers were to deteriorate and result in an impairment of their ability to make payments, additional allowances may be required. The Company has recorded provisions for credit losses based on its best estimate at June 30, 2022. Panama Canal Railway Company (“PCRC”) Guarantees and Indemnities. At June 30, 2022, the Company had issued and outstanding $5.7 million under a standby letter of credit to fulfill its obligation to fund fifty percent of the debt service reserve and liquidity reserve established by PCRC in connection with the issuance of the 7.0% Senior Secured Notes due November 1, 2026 (the “PCRC Notes”). Additionally, KCS has pledged its shares of PCRC as security for the PCRC Notes. |
