Excelerate Energy Inc

eral business information

Excelerate Energy, Inc. (“Excelerate” and together with its subsidiaries, “we,” “us,” “our” or the “Company”) offers flexible liquefied natural gas (“LNG”) solutions, providing integrated services along the LNG value chain. We offer a full range of flexible regasification services, from floating storage and regasification units (“FSRUs”) to infrastructure development, to LNG and natural gas supply. Excelerate was incorporated on September 10, 2021 as a Delaware corporation and formed as a holding company to own, as its sole material asset, a controlling equity interest in Excelerate Energy Limited Partnership (“EELP”), a Delaware limited partnership formed in December 2003 by George B. Kaiser (together with his affiliates other than the Company, “Kaiser”). On April 18, 2022, Excelerate closed its initial public offering (the “IPO”) of 18,400,000 shares of the Company’s Class A Common Stock,$0.001 par value per share (the “Class A Common Stock”), at an offering price of$24.00 per share, pursuant to the Company’s registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-262065), and its prospectus (the “Prospectus”), dated April 12, 2022 and filed on April 14, 2022 with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. The IPO generated gross proceeds of$441.6 million before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions of$25.4 million and IPO-related expenses of$7.6 million.

The proceeds of the IPO were used in part (a) to purchase an approximately 24.2% ownership interest in EELP at a per-interest price equal to the IPO price of$24.00 per share, and (b) to fund a$50.0 million cash payment as part of EELP’s purchase of all of the issued and outstanding membership interests in Excelsior, LLC and FSRU Vessel (Excellence), LLC (f/k/a Excellence, LLC), (collectively, the “Foundation Vessels”) ((a) and (b) collectively with the IPO, the “IPO Transaction”). See further discussion of the Foundation Vessels in Note 8 – Property and equipment, net. Following the IPO, Kaiser owned directly or indirectly the remaining approximately 75.8% of the ownership interests in EELP. As of December 31, 2023, Kaiser owned directly or indirectly approximately 75.7% of the ownership interests in EELP. The remaining 24.3% of the ownership interests were held by the Company as of December 31, 2023. The IPO Transaction, whereby Excelerate began to consolidate EELP in its consolidated financial statements, was accounted for as a reorganization of entities under common control. As a result, the consolidated financial statements of Excelerate recognized the assets and liabilities received from EELP in the reorganization at their historical carrying amounts and retroactively reflected them in the Company’s consolidated financial statements as of the earliest period presented.

In September 2021, as part of an anticipated reorganization in connection with the IPO, certain entities under common control of Kaiser were contributed to EELP (the “Northeast Gateway Contribution”). These entities include Excelerate New England GP, LLC, Northeast Gateway Energy Bridge, LP and Excelerate New England Lateral, LLC (“ENE Lateral” and, together with Excelerate New England GP, LLC and Northeast Gateway Energy Bridge, LP, the “Northeast Companies”). Since the Northeast Gateway Contribution is considered a transaction with entities under common control, EELP accounted for the Northeast Companies’ assets and liabilities received at their parent carrying values and retroactively reflected them in the Company’s consolidated financial statements as of the earliest period presented.

In October 2022, Excelerate Energy Holdings, LLC (“EE Holdings”), the indirect sole member of Excelerate New England Onshore, LLC (“ENE Onshore”), and EELP, the sole member of ENE Lateral, entered into a merger agreement, pursuant to which ENE Onshore was merged with and into ENE Lateral (the “ENE Onshore Merger”). ENE Lateral was the surviving entity and ENE Onshore ceased to exist as a separate entity. EE Holdings retained responsibility for all liabilities and obligations of ENE Onshore arising prior to the ENE Onshore Merger. Prior to the ENE Onshore Merger, Excelerate consolidated ENE Onshore as a variable interest entity (“VIE”) as Excelerate was determined to be the primary beneficiary of ENE Onshore. As a result of the ENE Onshore Merger, Excelerate no longer has a non-controlling interest related to ENE Onshore. See Note 19 – Related party transactions for more details on this merger.

Basis of Presentation

These consolidated financial statements and related notes include the assets, liabilities and results of operations of Excelerate and its consolidated subsidiaries and have been prepared in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”). All transactions among Excelerate and its consolidated subsidiaries have been eliminated in consolidation. In management’s opinion, all adjustments necessary for a fair statement are reflected. Certain amounts in prior periods have been reclassified to conform to the current year presentation.

Summary of significant accounting policies

Use of estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Significant estimates include useful lives of property and equipment, asset retirement obligations, and the allocation of the transaction price to performance obligations and lease components. Management evaluates its estimates and related assumptions regularly. Changes in facts and circumstances or additional information may result in revised estimates, and actual results may differ from these estimates.

During the fourth quarter of 2023, the Company performed a review of the estimated useful lives of our FSRU vessels. As a relatively new asset class, being first built in 2005, we initially estimated a useful life of 30 years with no salvage value. As the vessels approach almost 20 years of life, there has been improved visibility into the expected term of FSRU productive capabilities, demand, and salvage potential. As a result, the Company changed the useful lives of our FSRU vessel assets to 40 years and added an estimated salvage value. This change in accounting estimate resulted in a decrease in depreciation expense of$6.0 million, an increase in net incomeof $5.7 million, and an increase to basic and diluted earnings per share of $0.04 and $0.04, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Consolidation

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company, entities controlled by the Company through its direct or indirect ownership of a majority interest and any other entities in which the Company has a controlling financial interest. The Company eliminates all significant intercompany accounts and transactions in consolidation. The Company consolidates VIEs where the Company holds direct or implicit variable interests and is the primary beneficiary. The primary beneficiary of a VIE is the party that has both the power to direct the activities that most significantly impact the VIE’s economic performance and the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive benefits that could potentially be significant to the VIE. The primary beneficiary determination is both qualitative and quantitative and requires the Company to make judgments and assumptions about the entity’s total equity investment at risk, its forecasted financial performance, and the volatility inherent in those forecasted results. Events are considered for all existing entities to determine if they may result in an entity becoming a VIE or the Company becoming the primary beneficiary of an existing VIE. The ownership interest of other investors in consolidated subsidiaries and VIEs is recorded as non-controlling interests.

The Company had determined that ENE Onshore was a VIE based on the results of the analysis described above. As of December 31, 2020, one of our wholly owned subsidiaries, ENE Lateral, was the provider of a promissory note to ENE Onshore in the amount of$102.0 million and used capacity rights in a pipeline secured by ENE Onshore from a third party. As the Company and its related parties had the power to direct the activities related to the capacity rights and the obligation to absorb losses which could be significant to ENE Onshore, the Company determined that it was the primary beneficiary. As such, we consolidated the assets and liabilities of ENE Onshore and showed its net loss as non-controlling interest – ENE Onshore on our consolidated statements of comprehensive income for the year ended December 31, 2021 and through October 2022. In September 2021, the promissory note from ENE Onshore was repaid, and an agreement was entered into that significantly limited the ability of ENE Lateral to receive benefits from the use of the pipeline capacity. However, ENE Lateral still controlled the capacity rights, and therefore, ENE Lateral continued to be the primary beneficiary as of December 31, 2021. In October 2022, ENE Onshore was merged with and into ENE Lateral. For more details, see Note 1 – General business information.

In addition, these consolidated financial statements include accounts of the Northeast Companies consolidated on the basis of common control since prior to the contribution. All accounts of the Northeast Companies, including equity accounts, are consolidated with accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries. All intercompany transactions, balances, income, and expenses are eliminated, and accounting policies have been conformed to the Company’s accounting policy.

Investments in equity method investee

All investments in which the Company owns 20% to 50%, exercises significant influence over operating and financial policies, and does not consolidate are accounted for using the equity method. Under the equity method of accounting, investments are stated at initial cost and are adjusted for subsequent additional investments and the Company’s proportionate share of earnings or losses and distributions. The Company evaluates its equity method investments for impairment when events or circumstances indicate that the carrying values of such investments may have experienced an other-than-temporary decline in value below their carrying values. If an equity method investment experiences an other-than-temporary decline in value and if the estimated fair value is less than the carrying value, the carrying value is written down to its estimated fair value and the resulting impairment is recorded in the Company's consolidated statements of income.

In June 2018, the Company acquired a 45% interest in Nakilat Excelerate LLC, its equity method investment (the “Nakilat JV”), which is recorded using the equity method. For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, the Company’s share of net earnings in the Nakilat JV were$0.9 million,$2.7 million and$3.3 million, respectively.

Equity interests

Prior to the IPO, equity interests represented the contributions from and distributions to the general and limited partners of the Company and the Northeast Companies, the accumulated earnings of EELP and the Northeast Companies, and share-based compensation of EELP.

Non-controlling interest

Non-controlling interest is primarily comprised of Kaiser’s 75.7% ownership interest in EELP. In addition, it is also comprised of third-party equity interests in two of the Company’s other consolidated subsidiaries: 1) a 20% interest in Excelerate Energy Bangladesh LLC and 2) a 10% interest in Excelerate Albania Holding sphk. Net income attributable to non-controlling interests represents the Company’s net income (loss) that is not allocable to Excelerate shareholders.

Prior to the ENE Onshore Merger, we also separately presented a non-controlling interest related to ENE Onshore, which was consolidated as a VIE.

Foreign currency transactions and translation

The consolidated financial statements are presented in U.S. dollars, which is the Company’s reporting currency and the functional currency for all but one of the Company’s consolidated subsidiaries. The Company has one subsidiary that uses the euro as its functional currency.

For all international entities, foreign currency transactions are translated into U.S. dollars, using exchange rates at the dates of the transactions or using the average exchange rate prevailing during the period. Foreign exchange gains and losses resulting from the settlement of such transactions and from the translation at year-end exchange rates of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are recognized in the consolidated statements of income in other income, net. Foreign exchange gains/(losses) amounted to$(4.1) million,$(7.2) million and$0.1 million for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Fair value measurements

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 (exit price). The fair value measurement is based on the presumption that the transaction to sell the asset or transfer the liability takes place in either the principal market for the asset or liability, or, in the absence of a principal market, in the most advantageous market for the asset or liability. The Company utilized market data or assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability, including assumptions about risk and the risks inherent in the inputs to the valuation techniques. The Company uses estimates that are appropriate in the circumstances and for which sufficient data is available to measure fair value, maximizing the use of relevant observable inputs and minimizing the use of unobservable inputs. The Company categorizes its fair value estimates for all assets and liabilities for which fair value is measured or disclosed in the consolidated financial statements using a fair value hierarchy based on the transparency of inputs used to measure fair value.

The fair value hierarchy has three levels based on the reliability of the inputs used to determine fair value as follows:

Level 1: Observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities;

Level 2: Inputs include quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets and inputs, that are observable either directly or indirectly for substantially the full term of the contract; and

Level 3: Unobservable inputs in which there is little or no market data, which require the reporting entity to develop its own assumptions.

Categorization within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement.

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

Cash and cash equivalents include cash on hand, demand deposits, and other short-term highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less. Cash not available for general use by the Company due to loan restrictions are classified as restricted cash.

Restricted cash is cash restricted due to terms in certain debt agreements and is to be used to service the debt and for certain designated uses including payment of working capital, operations, and maintenance related expenses. Distributions of maintenance related expenses are subject to “waterfall” provisions that allocate cash flows from revenues to specific priorities of use in a defined order before equity distributions can be made in compliance with other debt service requirements. To the extent that restrictions on cash extend beyond one year, the Company has classified those balances as non-current in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets.

Derivative financial instruments

Derivative instruments are initially recorded at fair value as either assets or liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets and are subsequently remeasured to fair value, regardless of the purpose or intent for holding the derivative. To be considered a derivative an agreement would need to have a notional and an underlying, require little or no initial net investment and could be net settled. The method of recognizing the changes in fair value is dependent on whether the contract is designated as a hedging instrument and qualifies for hedge accounting. The changes in the fair values of derivative instruments that are not designated or that do not qualify for hedge accounting are recognized in other income, net, in the consolidated statements of income.

The Company uses interest rate swaps to manage its exposure to adverse fluctuations in interest rates by converting a portion of our debt from a floating rate to a fixed rate. The maximum length of time over which the Company is hedging the exposure to the variability in future cash flows is based on the duration of the loans. The interest rate swaps have been designated as cash flow hedges. The Company has formally documented the hedge relationships, including identification of the hedging instruments and the hedged items, as well as the risk management objectives and strategies for undertaking the hedge transactions. Effectiveness is evaluated using regression analysis at inception and over the course of the hedge as required, unless the hedge is designated utilizing the shortcut method. The interest rate swaps are recorded in the consolidated balance sheets on a gross basis at fair value.

For such designated cash flow hedges, the gain or loss resulting from fair value adjustments on cash flow hedges are recorded in accumulated other comprehensive income. In the periods when the hedged items affect earnings, the associated fair value changes on the hedging derivatives are transferred from total equity to interest expense, net in the consolidated statements of income. The Company performs periodic assessments of the effectiveness of the derivative contracts designated as hedges, including the possibility of counterparty default. Changes in the fair value of derivatives that are designated and qualify as hedges are recognized in other comprehensive income.

Accounts receivable

Accounts receivable is presented net of the allowance for doubtful accounts on the consolidated balance sheets. The allowance for doubtful accounts is management’s best estimate of the amount of probable credit losses in existing accounts receivable based on age of accounts past due, historical write-off experience and customer economic data. The Company has a limited number of customers and continuously reviews amounts owed to us. Account balances are charged off against the allowance when management believes that the receivable will not be recovered.

The allowance for doubtful accounts was$0.2 million and$0.6 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Inventories

LNG and natural gas inventories are recorded at the lower of cost or net realizable value, which is the known or estimated selling price less cost to sell. Cost for inventories is calculated using the first-in-first-out (FIFO) method and is comprised of the purchase price and other directly related costs. At each reporting date, inventories are assessed for impairment. If inventory is impaired, the carrying amount is reduced to its selling price less costs to complete and sell, and an impairment loss is recognized in the consolidated statements of income. For the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company recorded a lower of cost or net realizable value write-down of$1.0 million and$4.4 million, respectively, which is included in direct cost of gas sales on our consolidated statements of income. No impairment was recorded during the year ended December 31, 2021.

Capitalization of costs incurred during drydocking

Generally, the Company is required to drydock each of the vessels every five years, but vessels older than 15 years of age require a shorter duration drydocking or in place bottom survey everytwo and a half years. Costs incurred related to routine repairs and maintenance performed during drydocking are expensed. Costs incurred during drydocking out of convenience to appreciably extend the useful life, increase the earnings capacity, or improve the efficiency of vessels are capitalized as property and equipment and amortized over the remaining useful life of the vessels. Costs that are incurred on major repair work, which is non-routine in nature, are accounted for under the built-inoverhaul method and capitalized and amortized on a straight-line basis over the period from when the drydocking occurs until the next anticipated drydocking. Drydocking costs incurred to meet regulatory requirements are accounted for under the deferral method, whereby the actual costs incurred are deferred into other assets and amortized on a straight-line basis over the period from when the drydocking occurs until the next anticipated drydocking. If the vessel is drydocked earlier than originally anticipated, any remaining overhaul and regulatory capitalized costs that have not been amortized are accelerated. When a vessel is disposed, any unamortized capitalized costs are charged against income in the period of disposal. Capitalized costs are presented within either property and equipment, net or other assets on the consolidated balance sheets.

Property and equipment, net

Property and equipment, net are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is calculated on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives of the assets, less an estimated salvage value. Modifications to property and equipment, including the addition of new equipment, which improves or increases the operational efficiency, functionality, or safety of the assets, are capitalized. These expenditures are amortized over the estimated useful life of the modification. Expenditures covering recurring routine repairs and maintenance are expensed as incurred.

Useful lives applied in depreciation are as follows:

Gains and losses on disposals and retirements are determined by comparing the proceeds with the carrying amount and are recognized in the consolidated statements of income.

Asset retirement obligations (“ARO”)

The Company recognizes liabilities for retirement obligations associated with tangible long-lived assets when there is a legal obligation associated with the retirement of such assets and the amount can be reasonably estimated. The fair value of a liability for an ARO is recognized in the period in which it is incurred, if a reasonable estimate of fair value can be made. In order to estimate the fair value, we use judgments and assumptions for factors: including the existence of legal obligations for an ARO; technical assessments of the assets; discount rate; inflation rate; and estimated amounts and timing of settlements. The offsetting asset retirement cost is recorded as an increase to the carrying value of the associated property and equipment, net on the consolidated balance sheets and depreciated over the estimated useful life of the asset. In periods subsequent to the initial measurement of an ARO, the Company recognizes period-to-period changes in the liability resulting from the passage of time and revisions to either the timing or the amount of the original estimate of undiscounted cash flows. Increases in the ARO liability due to the passage of time impact net income as accretion expense.

Impairment of long-lived assets

The Company performs a recoverability assessment of each of its long-lived assets when indicators of impairment are present and the undiscounted cash flows estimated to be generated by those assets are less than their carrying amounts. Indicators may include, but are not limited to, adverse changes in the regulatory environment in a jurisdiction where the Company operates, unfavorable events impacting the Company’s operations, a decision to discontinue the development of a long-lived asset, early termination of a significant customer contract or the introduction of newer technology. If indicators of impairment are present, the Company performs an analysis of the anticipated undiscounted future net cash flows to be derived from the related long-lived assets. In the event that an asset does not meet the recoverability test, the carrying value of the asset will be adjusted to fair value resulting in an impairment charge. The Company did not record any material impairments during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 or 2021.

Long-term debt and debt issuance costs

Debt issuance costs, including arrangement fees and legal expenses related to long-term notes, are deferred and presented as a direct deduction from the outstanding principal of the related debt in the consolidated balance sheets and amortized using the effective interest rate method over the term of the relevant loan. Amortization of debt issuance costs is included as a component of interest expense. If a loan or part of a loan is repaid early, the unamortized portion of the deferred debt issuance costs is recognized as interest expense proportionate to the amount of the early repayment in the period in which the loan is repaid.

Financing costs incurred related to the Amended Credit Agreement (as defined herein) and the First Amendment (as defined herein) are reported as other current assets and other assets on the balance sheet. Financing costs related to the Term Loan Facility (as defined herein) are reported as current portion of long-term debt and long-term debt, net on the balance sheet. These costs will be amortized through March 2027, at which time the Amended Credit Agreement will mature. Amortization of these deferred financing costs is included as a component of interest expense.

Debt instruments are classified as current liabilities unless the Company has an unconditional right to defer the settlement of the liability for at least 12 months after the reporting date.

Segments

The chief operating decision maker allocates resources and assesses financial performance on a consolidated basis. As such, for purposes of financial reporting under GAAP during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, the Company operated as a single operating and reportable segment.

Revenue recognition

The Company accounts for revenue in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. The Company determines the amount of revenue to be recognized through application of the five-step model outlined in ASC 606 as follows: when (i) a customer contract is identified, (ii) the performance obligation(s) have been identified, (iii) the transaction price has been determined, (iv) the transaction price has been allocated to the performance obligation(s) in the contract, and (v) the performance obligation(s) are satisfied. The Company’s contracts with customers may contain one or several performance obligations usually consisting of FSRU and terminal services including time charter, regasification and other services and gas sales. The Company recognizes revenue when it transfers promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration the Company expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. Sales, value-added, and other taxes collected concurrently with the provision of goods or services are excluded from revenue when the customer is the primary obligor of such taxes.

Time charter, regasification and other services

The Company determined that its long-term time charter and terminal use contracts typically contain a lease. These contracts contain a lease component for the use of the vessel and/or terminal and may contain non-lease components relating to operating the assets (i.e., provision of time charter, regasification and other services). The Company allocated the contract consideration between the lease component and non-lease components on a relative standalone selling price basis. The Company utilizes a combination of approaches to estimate the standalone selling prices, when the directly observable selling price is not available, by utilizing information available such as market conditions and prices, entity-specific factors, and internal estimates when market data is not available. Given that there are no observable standalone selling prices for any of these components, judgment is required in determining the standalone selling price of each component. As lessor in our leases classified as operating leases, the Company applied the practical expedient to combine the lease component with our drydocking requirements (a non-lease component). Certain time charter party (“TCP”) agreements with customers allow an option to extend the contract. Agreements which include renewal and termination options are included in the lease term if we believe they are “reasonably certain” to be exercised by the lessee or if an option to extend is controlled by the Company.

The lease of the vessel represents the use of the asset without any associated performance obligations or warranties and is accounted for in accordance with the provisions of ASC 842, Leases (“ASC 842”). Leases are classified based upon defined criteria either as a sales-type, direct financing, or an operating lease.

For time charter contracts classified as operating leases, revenues from the lease component of the contracts are recognized on a straight-line basis over the term of the charter.

The lease component of time charter contracts that are accounted for as sales-type leases is recognized over the lease term using the effective interest rate method. The underlying asset is derecognized and the net investment in the lease is recorded. The net investment in the lease is increased by interest income and decreased by payments collected. As of December 31, 2023, the Company has two sales-type leases (for Summit LNG and Excellence).

The provision of time charter, regasification and other services on the time charter contracts is considered a non-lease component and is accounted for as a separate performance obligation in accordance with the provision of ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. Additionally, the Company has contracts with customers to provide time charter, regasification, and other services that do not contain a lease and are within the scope of ASC 606.

The provision of time charter, regasification and other services is considered a single performance obligation recognized evenly over time as our services are rendered or consistent with the customer’s proportionate right to use our assets. The Company considers our services as a series of distinct services that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer. The Company recognizes revenue when obligations under the terms of our contracts with our customers are satisfied. We have applied the practical expedient to recognize revenue in proportion to the amount that we have the right to invoice. Certain charges incurred by the Company associated with the provision of services are reimbursable. This variable consideration is recognized in revenue once the performance obligation is complete and the receivable amount is determinable.

For time charter and terminal use contracts that are accounted for as sales-type leases, the provision of time charter, regasification, and other services includes a performance obligation for drydocking that occurs every five years. The Company engages third parties to perform the drydocking, but the Company is deemed to be the principal of the transaction as it does not transfer any risk to the third parties, therefore the Company recognizes drydock revenue on a gross basis. The Company allocates a portion of the contract revenues to the performance obligation for future drydocking costs. Revenue allocated to drydocking is deferred and recognized when the drydocking service is complete. The deferred drydock revenue is presented within other long-term liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets.

Gas sales

As part of its operations, the Company sells natural gas and LNG generally through its use of its FSRU fleet and terminals. Gas sales revenues are recognized at the point in time each unit of natural gas or LNG is transferred to the control of the customer. Based on the contract, this typically occurs when the cargo is regasified and injected into a pipeline, when the LNG is transferred to another vessel, or when title and risk of loss of natural gas or LNG has otherwise transferred to a customer. Accommodation fees related to the diversion of cargos are recorded when the performance obligation is complete.

Contract assets and liabilities

The timing of revenue recognition, billings and cash collections results in the recognition of receivables, contract assets and contract liabilities. Receivables represent the unconditional right to payment for services rendered and goods provided. Unbilled receivables, accrued revenue, or contract assets represent services rendered that have not been invoiced and are reported within accounts receivable, net or other assets on the consolidated balance sheets. Contract liabilities arise from advanced payments and are recorded as deferred revenue on the consolidated balance sheets. The deferred revenue is either recognized as revenue when services are rendered or amortized over the life of the related lease, depending on the service. Contract assets and liabilities are reported in a net position for each customer contract or consolidated contracts at the end of each reporting period. Contract liabilities are classified as current and noncurrent based on the expected timing of recognition of the revenue.

We are a corporation for U.S. federal and state income tax purposes. EELP, is treated as a pass-through entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes and, as such, is generally not subject to U.S. federal income tax at the entity level. Accordingly, unless otherwise specified, our historical results of operations prior to the IPO do not include any provision for U.S. federal income tax for EELP.

We account for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740. Accounting for Income Taxes (“ASC 740”), under which deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts and the tax bases of assets and liabilities by applying the enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to reverse. Such net tax effects on temporary differences are reflected on the consolidated balance sheets as deferred tax assets and liabilities.

We record valuation allowances to reflect the estimated amount of certain deferred tax assets that, more likely than not, will not be realized. In making such a determination, we evaluate a variety of factors, including our operating history, accumulated deficit, and the existence of taxable or deductible temporary differences and reversal periods.

The effect of tax positions is recognized only if those positions are more likely than not of being sustained. Conclusions reached regarding tax positions are continually reviewed based on ongoing analyses of tax laws, regulations, and interpretations thereof. To the extent that our assessment of the conclusions reached regarding tax positions changes as a result of the evaluation of new information, such change in estimate will be recorded in the period in which such determination is made. Interest and penalties relating to an underpayment of income taxes, if applicable, are recognized as a component of income tax expense in the consolidated financial statements.

We recognize the tax benefit from an uncertain tax provision if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the tax position. Accrued interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions are recognized as a component of income tax expense in the consolidated financial statements.

Leases

The Company accounts for leases under the provisions of ASC 842.

Lessee accounting

The Company determines if an arrangement is, or contains, a lease at the inception of the arrangement. Once it has been determined an arrangement is, or contains, a lease, the Company determines if the lease qualifies as either an operating lease or a finance lease. At contract inception, the Company separates its lease and non-lease component, and the consideration in the contract is allocated to each separate lease component and non-lease component on a relative standalone selling price basis. As of the lease commencement date, the Company recognizes a liability for its lease obligation, initially measured at the present value of lease payments related to lease components not yet paid, and an asset for its right to use the underlying asset, initially measured equal to the lease liability and adjusted for lease payments made at or before lease commencement, lease incentives, and any initial direct costs. The discount rate used to determine the present value of the lease payments is the rate of interest that the Company would have to pay to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term for an amount equal to the lease payments in a similar economic environment.

The initial recognition of the lease obligation and right-of-use asset excludes short-term leases. Short-term leases are leases with an original term of one year or less, excluding those leases with an option to extend the lease for greater than one year or an option to purchase the underlying asset that the lessee is deemed reasonably certain to exercise. The Company has elected, as an accounting policy, not to apply the recognition requirements to short-term leases. Instead, the Company, may recognize the lease payments in the consolidated statements of income on a straight-line basis over the lease term. Additionally, leases may include variable lease payments such as escalation clauses based on a consumer price index, property taxes and maintenance costs. The non-lease components are generally expensed as incurred. Variable lease payments that depend on an index or a rate are included in the determination of right-of-use assets and lease liabilities using the index or rate at the lease commencement date, whereas variable lease payments that do not depend on an index or rate are recorded as lease expense in the period incurred. Short-term and variable lease expenses are presented within cost of revenue and vessel operating expenses and SG&A expenses in the consolidated statements of income.

For those leases classified as operating leases, the lease obligation and right-of-use asset are presented as operating lease liabilities and operating lease right-of-use assets in the consolidated balance sheets. For operating leases, lease interest and right-of-use asset amortization in aggregate result in a straight-line expense profile, or operating lease expense, that is presented in cost of revenue and vessel operating expenses or SG&A expenses in the consolidated statements of income, dependent on the use of the leased asset, unless the right of-use asset becomes impaired. The right-of-use asset is assessed for impairment when events or circumstances indicate the carrying amount of the asset or asset group may not be recoverable.

For leases classified as finance leases, the lease obligation is presented within finance lease liabilities and the right-of-use asset is presented within property and equipment, net on the consolidated balance sheets. For finance leases, the Company uses the effective interest rate method to subsequently account for the lease liability, whereby interest is recognized in interest expense in the Company's consolidated statements of income. For finance leases, the right-of-use asset is amortized on a straight-line basis over the shorter of the remaining life of the asset or the life of the lease, with such amortization included in depreciation and amortization in the Company's consolidated statements of income.

The Company has certain lease agreements that provide for the option to renew or terminate early, which was evaluated on each lease to arrive at the lease term. If the Company was reasonably certain to exercise a renewal or termination option, this period was factored into the lease term. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company did not have any lease agreements with residual value guarantees or material restrictions or covenants.

Sale leaseback arrangements

Vessels sold and leased back by the Company, where the Company has a fixed price repurchase obligation or the leaseback would be classified as a finance lease, are accounted for as a failed sale of the vessel and a failed purchase of the vessel by the buyer-lessor (a financing transaction). For such transactions, the Company doesnot derecognize the vessel legally sold and continues to depreciate the vessel as if it was the legal owner. Proceeds received from the sale of the vessel are recognized as a financial liability and payments made by the Company to the lessor are allocated between interest expense and principal repayments on the financial liability.

We incurred restructuring, transition and transaction expenses during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, related to consulting, legal, and audit costs incurred as part of and in preparation for the IPO Transaction. There wereno restructuring, transition or transaction expenses incurred during the year ended December 31, 2023.

Tax receivable agreement (“TRA”)

In connection with the IPO, we entered into the TRA for the benefit of EE Holdings and the George Kaiser Family Foundation (the “Foundation”) (or their affiliates) (together, the “TRA Beneficiaries”). The TRA will provide for payment by us to the TRA Beneficiaries of 85% of the amount of the net cash tax savings, if any, that we are deemed to realize as a result of our utilization of certain tax benefits resulting from (i) certain increases in the tax basis of assets of EELP and its subsidiaries resulting from exchanges of EELP partnership interests in the future, (ii) certain tax attributes of EELP and subsidiaries of EELP (including the existing tax basis of assets owned by EELP or its subsidiaries and the tax basis of certain assets purchased from the Foundation) that existed as of the time of the IPO or may exist at the time when Class B interests of EELP are exchanged for shares of Class A Common Stock, and (iii) certain other tax benefits related to us entering into the TRA, including tax benefits attributable to payments that we make under the TRA.

The actual future payments to the TRA Beneficiaries will vary and estimating the amount and timing of payments that may be made under the TRA is by its nature imprecise, as the calculation of amounts payable depends on a variety of factors and future events. Decisions made in the course of running our business, such as with respect to mergers and other forms of business combinations that constitute changes in control, may influence the timing and amount of payments we make under the TRA in a manner that does not correspond to our use of the corresponding tax benefits.

Earnings per share

Basic earnings per share is computed by dividing net income attributable to shareholders by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share is computed by dividing net income attributable to shareholders plus any tax affected net income amounts attributed to the Class B common shares by the weighted-average shares outstanding during the period after adjusting for the impact of potential securities that would have a dilutive effect on earnings per share.

As a result of the IPO Transaction, the presentation of earnings per share for the periods prior to the IPO Transaction is not meaningful and only earnings per share for periods subsequent to the IPO Transaction are presented herein. See Note 14 – Earnings per share for additional information.

Recent accounting pronouncements

New accounting standards implemented in this report

In March 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2020-04, “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Financial Reporting” (“ASU 2020-04”), which provides optional expedients and exceptions for applying GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by reference rate reform if certain criteria are met. The amendments apply only to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions that reference the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) or another reference rate expected to be discontinued because of reference rate reform. In January 2021, the FASB issued ASU 2021-01, “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848) – Scope” (“ASU 2021-01”), which permits entities to apply optional expedients in Topic 848 to derivative instruments modified because of discounting transition resulting from reference rate reform. ASU 2020-04 became effective upon issuance and may be applied prospectively to contract modifications made on or before December 31, 2022. ASU 2021-01 became effective upon issuance and may be applied on a full retrospective basis as of any date from the beginning of an interim period that includes or is subsequent to March 12, 2020, or prospectively for contract modifications made on or before December 31, 2022. In December 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-06, “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Deferral of the Sunset Date of Topic 848”, which extended the effective date of the original guidance to December 31, 2024.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company has transitioned all contracts which previously referenced LIBOR to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”), as described in Note 10 – Long-term debt, net. Our adoption of this standard has not had a material impact on our Consolidated Financial Statements.

Fair value of financial instruments

Recurring Fair Value Measurements

Assets and liabilities are classified in their entirety based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. The Company’s assessment of significance for a particular input to the fair value measurement requires judgment and may affect the valuation of fair value assets and liabilities and the placement within the fair value hierarchy levels.

The following table presents the Company’s financial assets and liabilities by level within the fair value hierarchy that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 (in thousands):

As of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, all derivatives were determined to be classified as Level 2 fair value instruments. No cash collateral has been posted or held as of December 31, 2023 or December 31, 2022. This table excludes cash on hand and assets and liabilities that are measured at historical cost or any basis other than fair value. The carrying amounts of other financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable and other accrued liabilities approximate fair value due to their short maturities. The carrying value of long-term debt approximates fair value due to the variable rate nature of these financial instruments.

The determination of the fair values above incorporate factors including not only the credit standing of the counterparties involved, but also the impact of the Company’s nonperformance risks on its liabilities.

The values of the Level 2 interest rate swaps were determined using expected cash flow models based on observable market inputs, including published and quoted interest rate data from public data sources. Specifically, the fair values of the interest rate swaps were derived from the implied forward SOFR yield curve for the same period as the future interest rate swap settlements. We have consistently applied these valuation techniques in all periods presented.

Non-Recurring Fair Value Measures

Certain non-financial assets and liabilities are measured at fair value on a non-recurring basis and are subject to fair value adjustments in certain circumstances, such as equity investments or long-lived assets subject to impairment. For assets and liabilities measured on a non-recurring basis during the year, separate quantitative disclosures about the fair value measurements would be required for each major category. The Company didnot record any material impairments on the equity investments or long-lived assets during theyears ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021.

Accounts receivable, net

As of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, accounts receivable, net consisted of the following (in thousands):

Derivative financial instruments

The following table summarizes the notional values related to the Company’s derivative instruments outstanding at December 31, 2023 (in thousands):

(1)

Number of open positions and gross notional values do not measure the Company’s risk of loss, quantify risk or represent assets or liabilities of the Company. Instead, they indicate the relative size of the derivative instruments and are used in the calculation of the amounts to be exchanged between counterparties upon settlements.

The following table presents the fair value of each classification of the Company’s derivative instruments designated as hedging instruments as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 (in thousands):

The current and non-current portions of derivative assets are included within other current assets and other assets, respectively, on the consolidated balance sheets. The current and non-current portions of derivative liabilities are included within accrued liabilities and other liabilities and other long-term liabilities, respectively, on the consolidated balance sheets.

Derivatives Accounted for as Cash Flow Hedges

The Company’s cash flow hedges include interest rate swaps that are hedges of variability in forecasted interest payments due to changes in the interest rate on SOFR-based borrowings, a summary which includes the following designations:

•

In 2018, the Company entered into two long-term interest rate swap agreements with a major financial institution. The swaps, which became effective in October 2018 and expire in April 2030, are used to hedge approximately 70% of the variability in interest payments/interest risk on the 2017 Bank Loans (as defined herein).

•

In 2023, the Company entered into long-term interest rate swap agreements with multiple major financial institutions. This arrangement is used to hedge the variability of the interest payments/interest risk on the Term Loan Facility (as defined herein) and will expire in March 2027. In the fourth quarter of 2023, we paid down a portion of the principal outstanding on the Term Loan Facility (as defined herein) and a proportionate amount of the interest rate swaps was settled.

The following tables present the gains and losses from the Company’s derivative instruments designated in a cash flow hedging relationship recognized in the consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income for theyears ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 (in thousands):

The amount of gain (loss) recognized in other comprehensive income as of December 31, 2023 and expected to be reclassified within the next 12 months is $2.7 million.

Inventories

As of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, inventories consisted of the following (in thousands):

For the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, we recorded a lower of cost or net realizable value write-down of$1.0 million and $4.4 million, respectively. These write-downs are included in direct cost of gas sales on our consolidated statements of income.

Other current assets

As of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, other current assets consisted of the following (in thousands):

Property and equipment, net

As of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the Company’s property and equipment, net consisted of the following (in thousands):

For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, depreciation expense was$110.8 million,$94.5 million and$103.0 million, respectively.

Sequoia Acquisition

In March 2023, we exercised our option to purchase Sequoia for a purchase price of $265.0 million (the “Sequoia Purchase”), which at December 31, 2022, was under a bareboat charter with a third party and accounted for as an operating lease. We closed the Sequoia Purchase in April 2023 using proceeds from the Term Loan Facility(as defined herein) and cash on hand.

Vessel Acquisition

As part of the IPO Transaction, in exchange for (i)7,854,167 shares of Class A Common Stock with a fair market value (based on the IPO price) of$188.5 million, (ii) a cash payment of$50.0 million and (iii)$21.5 million of estimated future payments under the TRA, EELP purchased from Maya Maritime LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Foundation, all of the issued and outstanding membership interests in the Foundation Vessels. The acquisition of both Excelsior and Excellence was accounted for as asset acquisitions in accordance with ASC 805, Business Combinations (“ASC 805”). In accordance with ASC 805, the accumulated cost of the vessel acquisitions, including Class A Common Stock and contingent consideration related to the TRA, were allocated to the assets acquired based on relative fair value. In 2018, EELP entered into an agreement with a customer to lease Excellence with the vessel transferring ownership to the customer at the conclusion of the agreement for no additional consideration. Historically, EELP, as a lessor, has accounted for Excellence contract with our customer as a sales-type lease in the consolidated balance sheet in accordance with ASC 842. Excellence continues to be accounted for as a sales-type lease and thus the acquisition did not result in an adjustment to property and equipment. The difference between the consideration given to acquire Excellence and the historical finance lease liability resulted in a$21.8 million early extinguishment of lease liability loss on our consolidated statements of income.

Newbuild FSRU

Effective October 4, 2022, Excelerate entered into a shipbuilding contract (“the Newbuild Agreement”) with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (“Builder”), a company organized and existing under the laws of the Republic of Korea. The Newbuild Agreement provides for the Builder to construct a 170,000 m 3 FSRU for a cost subject to adjustment and currently expected to be approximately $330.0 million. Payment is due in five installments with the final installment due concurrently with the delivery of the vessel. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we made the first installment payment of approximately $30.0 million. The Builder provided a refund guarantee to Excelerate to secure the refund of the purchase price installments prior to the delivery of the vessel if Excelerate becomes entitled to the same as a result of Builder default or other defined circumstances. The Builder is expected to deliver the vessel in 2026. Our future payment commitments related to the Newbuild Agreement are expected to be approximately $50.0 million in 2024 and $250.0 million in 2025-2026.

Accrued liabilities

As of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, accrued liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):

Long-term debt, net

The Company’s long-term debt, net consists of the following (in thousands):

The following table shows the range of interest rates and weighted average interest rates incurred on our variable-rate debt obligations during theyears ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021.

(1)

Weighted average interest rate, net of the impact of settled derivatives, was 6.4%,5.8% and 5.4% for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

(2)

Weighted average interest rate, net of the impact of settled derivatives, was 5.8% for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Experience Vessel Financing

In December 2016, the Company entered into a sale leaseback agreement with a third party to provide$247.5 million of financing for Experience(the “Experience Vessel Financing”). Due to the Company’s requirement to repurchase the vessel at the end of the term, the transaction was accounted for as a failed sale leaseback (a financing transaction). Under the Experience Vessel Financing agreement, the Company is deemed the owner of the vessel and continues to recognize the vessel on its consolidated balance sheets, with the proceeds received recorded as a financial obligation. The Company makes quarterly principal payments of$3.1 million and interest payments at the three-month SOFR plus 3.4%. The original loan had a maturity date in 2026 when the remaining balance of$49.5 million was payable. In December 2021, the agreement was amended to extend the original loan from December 2026 to December 2033, reduce the interest margin from 4.2% and reduce the quarterly principal payments from$5.0 million. After the final quarterly payment in December 2033, there will be no remaining balance due. The Company incurred debt issuance costs of$1.2 million related to the amendment, which will be amortized over the life of the loan. In the second quarter of 2023, the agreement was further amended to convert the reference rate in the Experience Vessel Financing from the LIBOR to the SOFR yield curve. Prior to the amendment, the Company made interest payments at the three-month LIBOR plus 3.25%. Debt issuance costs of$6.0 million related to the original loan are presented as a direct deduction from the debt and are being amortized over the life of the original loan. The agreement contains certain security rights related to Experience in the event of default.

The Company’s vessel financing loan has certain financial covenants as well as customary affirmative and negative covenants. The Company must maintain a minimum equity of$500.0 million, a maximum debt-to-equity ratio of 3.5 to 1 and a minimum cash and cash equivalents balance, including loan availability, of$20.0 million. The agreement also requires that a three-month debt service reserve be funded and that the value of the vessel equal or exceed 110% of the remaining amount outstanding, in addition to other affirmative and negative covenants customary for vessel financings. The financing also requires the vessel to carry the typical vessel marine insurances.

2017 Bank Loans

Under the Company's financing agreement for the Moheshkhali LNG terminal in Bangladesh (the “2017 Bank Loans”), the Company entered into two loan agreements with external banks. Under the first agreement, the Company borrowed$32.8 million, makes semi-annual payments and accrues interest at the six-month SOFR plus 2.85% through the loan maturity date of October 15, 2029. In the fourth quarter of 2023, the agreement was amended to convert the reference rate from the LIBOR to the SOFR yield curve effective on the first interest payment date occurring after June 30, 2023. Prior to the amendment, the Company made interest payments at the six-month LIBOR plus 2.42%. The debt issuance costs of$1.3 million are presented as a direct deduction from the debt and are amortized over the life of the loan.

Under the second agreement, the Company borrowed$92.8 million, makes quarterly payments and accrues interest at the three-month SOFR plus 4.76% through the loan maturity of October 15, 2029. In the fourth quarter of 2023, the agreement was amended to convert the reference rate from the LIBOR to the SOFR yield curve effective on the first interest payment date occurring after June 30, 2023. Prior to the amendment, the Company made interest payments at the three-month LIBOR plus 4.50%. Debt issuance costs of$4.8 million are presented as a direct deduction from the debt liability and are amortized over the life of the loan. The agreement contains certain security rights related to the Moheshkhali LNG (“MLNG”) terminal assets and project contracts in the event of default.

The 2017 Bank Loans require compliance with certain financial covenants, as well as customary affirmative and negative covenants associated with limited recourse project financing facilities. The loan agreements also require that a six-month debt service reserve amount be funded and that an off-hire reserve amount be funded monthly to cover operating expenses and debt service while the vessel is away during drydock major maintenance. The loan agreements also require that the MLNG terminal and project company be insured on a stand-alone basis with property insurance, liability insurance, business interruption insurance and other customary insurance policies. The respective project company must have a quarterly debt service coverage ratio of at least 1.10 to 1. In 2021, 2022 and 2023, waivers were obtained for immaterial non-financial covenants and are still in effect.

Revolving Credit Facility and Term Loan Facility

On April 18, 2022, EELP entered into a senior secured revolving credit agreement, by and among EELP, as borrower, Excelerate, as parent, the lenders party thereto, the issuing banks party thereto and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent, pursuant to which the lenders and issuing banks thereunder made available a revolving credit facility (the “EE Revolver”), including a letter of credit sub-facility, to EELP. The EE Revolver enabled us to borrow up to$350.0 million over athree-year term originally set to expire in April 2025.

Also, on April 18, 2022, the Company borrowed under the EE Revolver, on the closing day of such facility, and used the proceeds to repay the KFMC Note (as defined herein) in full. The KFMC Note was terminated in connection with such repayment. For more information regarding the KFMC Note, see Note 11 – Long-term debt – related party.

On March 17, 2023, EELP entered into an amended and restated senior secured credit agreement (“Amended Credit Agreement”), by and among EELP, as borrower, Excelerate, as parent, the lenders party thereto, the issuing banks party thereto and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as administrative agent. Under the Amended Credit Agreement, EELP obtained a new$250.0 million term loan facility (the “Term Loan Facility” and, together with the EE Revolver, as amended by the Amended Credit Agreement, the “EE Facilities”). The EE Facilities mature in March 2027. The Amended Credit Agreement requires EELP to maintain (i) a maximum consolidated total leverage of 3.50x, provided that, if the aggregate value of all unsecured debt is equal to or greater than$250.0 million, the maximum permitted consolidated total leverage increases to 4.25x, (ii) collateral vessel maintenance coverage to be not less than the greater of (a)$750.0 million and (b)130% of the sum of the total credit exposure under the Amended Credit Agreement and (iii) a minimum consolidated interest coverage ratio of 2.50x. Proceeds from the Term Loan Facility were used for the Sequoia Purchase in April 2023. Proceeds from the EE Revolver may be used for working capital and other general corporate purposes and up to $269.5 million of the EE Revolver may be used for letters of credit.

On September 8, 2023, EELP entered into an amendment to the Amended Credit Agreement (“First Amendment”). The First Amendment provides for, among other things (i) inclusion of commodity and foreign exchange swap termination value in the collateral vessel maintenance coverage test and (ii) an update to the ordering of payment applications in the event of default.

In December 2023, we paid off $55.2 million of the principal outstanding on our Term Loan Facility. We also unwound the same notional value of the interest rate swaps we had previously entered into to hedge the fluctuations in the SOFR rates associated with the variable interest rate on the loan.

Borrowings under the EE Facilities bear interest at a per annum rate equal to the term SOFR reference rate for such period plus an applicable margin, which applicable margin is based on EELP’s consolidated total leverage ratio as defined and calculated under the Amended Credit Agreement and can range from 2.75% to 3.50%. The unused portion of the EE Revolver commitments is subject to an unused commitment fee calculated at a rate per annum ranging from 0.375% to 0.50% based on EELP's consolidated total leverage ratio.

The Amended Credit Agreement contains customary representations, warranties, covenants (affirmative and negative, including maximum consolidated total leverage ratio, minimum consolidated interest coverage ratio, and collateral vessel maintenance coverage covenants), and events of default, the occurrence of which would permit the lenders to accelerate the maturity date of amounts borrowed under the EE Facilities.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company had issued$49.4 million in letters of credit under the EE Revolver. As a result of the EE Revolver’s financial ratio covenants and after taking into account the outstanding letters of credit issued under the facility, all of the$300.6 million of undrawn capacity was available for additional borrowings as of December 31, 2023.

Maturities

Future principal payments on long-term debt outstanding as of December 31, 2023 are as follows (in thousands):

During the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, interest expense for long-term debt was$34.6 million,$15.5 million and$17.5 million, respectively, and was included in interest expense in the consolidated statements of income. As of December 31, 2023, the Company was in compliance with the covenants under its debt facilities.

Long-term debt – related party

The Company’s related party long-term debt consists of the following (in thousands):

Exquisite Vessel Financing

In June 2018, the Company entered into a sale leaseback agreement with the Nakilat JV to provide$220.0 million of financing for Exquisite at 7.73% (the “Exquisite Vessel Financing”). The agreement was recognized as a failed sale leaseback transaction and was treated as financing due to the Company’s lease of the vessel. The term is for 15 years with a symmetrical put and call option at the end of the original term or two optional five-year extensions with symmetrical put and call options after each extension. The agreement contains certain security rights related to the vessel in the event of default.

KFMC Note

In November 2018, the Company entered into a promissory note (the “KFMC Note”) with Kaiser-Francis Management Company, L.L.C. (“KFMC”), an affiliate of Kaiser, as lender. The KFMC Note was amended in November 2020 to (a) extend the final payment date from December 31, 2020 to December 31, 2022, (b) increase the interest rate from LIBOR plus 1.50% to LIBOR plus 1.55% and (c) make certain revisions to prepayment conditions. The KFMC Note was further amended and restated in its entirety in September 2021 to (a) make certain changes to the final payment date, including removing KFMC’s ability to demand payment and extending the final payment date to December 31, 2023 and (b) allow EELP to draw funds at EELP’s discretion without prior approval by KFMC. The KFMC Note was further amended in October 2021 to increase the maximum aggregate principal amount from $100.0 million to $250.0 million. Upon consummation of the IPO, the KFMC Note was replaced by the EE Revolver, as discussed in Note 10 – Long-term debt, net.

KFMC-ENE Onshore Note

In September 2021, in connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution, ENE Lateral assigned to KFMC all of its rights, title and interest to receive payment under a note with ENE (the “KFMC-ENE Onshore Note”), which assignment was made in partial satisfaction of the amounts owed by ENE Lateral to KFMC under a promissory note it entered into with KFMC in December 2015 (as amended, restated, supplemented or otherwise modified, the “ENE Lateral Facility”). As a result of such assignment, ENE Onshore was obligated to pay to KFMC all amounts under the KFMC-ENE Onshore Note. In November 2021, ENE Onshore received an equity contribution sufficient to allow it to remit payment to KFMC of the then-outstanding KFMC-ENE Onshore Note balance, and KFMC and ENE Onshore subsequently entered into an amended and restated note allowing a maximum commitment of $25.0 million. The KFMC-ENE Onshore Note was settled in full and canceled in connection with the ENE Onshore Merger.

Maturities

Principal payments on related party long-term debt outstanding as of December 31, 2023 are as follows (in thousands):

During the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, interest expense for related party long-term debt was$14.3 million,$17.7 million, and$19.8 million, respectively, and was included in interest expense – related party in the consolidated statements of income.

TRA Liability

In connection with the IPO, we entered into the TRA with the TRA Beneficiaries. The TRA will provide for payment by us to the TRA Beneficiaries of 85% of the amount of the net cash tax savings, if any, that we are deemed to realize as a result of our utilization of certain tax benefits resulting from (i) certain increases in the tax basis of assets of EELP and its subsidiaries resulting from exchanges of EELP partnership interests in the future, (ii) certain tax attributes of EELP and subsidiaries of EELP (including the existing tax basis of assets owned by EELP or its subsidiaries and the tax basis of certain assets purchased from the Foundation) that exist as of the time of the IPO or may exist at the time when Class B interests of EELP are exchanged for shares of Class A Common Stock, and (iii) certain other tax benefits related to us entering into the TRA, including tax benefits attributable to payments that we make under the TRA.

The payments that we will be required to make under the TRA, including those made if we elected to terminate the agreement early, have the potential to be substantial. Based on certain assumptions, including no material changes in the relevant tax law and that we earn sufficient taxable income to realize the full tax benefits that are the subject of the TRA, we expect that future payments to the TRA Beneficiaries (not including Excelerate) will equal$73.1 million in the aggregate, although the actual future payments to the TRA Beneficiaries will vary based on the factors discussed in “Certain Relationships and Related Person Transactions—Proposed Transactions with Excelerate Energy, Inc—Tax Receivable Agreement” in the Prospectus and estimating the amount of payments that may be made under the TRA is by its nature imprecise, insofar as the calculation of amounts payable depends on a variety of factors and future events.

In December 2023, we made our first payment under the TRA of$3.4 million. The TRA payment forecasted to be made in 2024 as of December 31, 2023, is$6.1 million. In addition, payments we make under the TRA will be increased by any interest accrued from the due date (without extensions) of the corresponding tax return. If EE Holdings were to have exchanged all of its EELP interests as of the balance sheet date, we would recognize a liability for payments under the TRA of approximately $190.8 million, assuming (i) that EE Holdings exchanged all of its EELP interests using EE’s December 31, 2023 closing market price of$15.46 per share of Class A Common Stock, (ii) no material changes in relevant tax law, (iii) a constant combined effective income tax rate of 21.0%and (iv) that we have sufficient taxable income in each year to realize on a current basis the increased depreciation, amortization and other tax benefits that are the subject of the TRA. The actual future payments to the TRA Beneficiaries will vary, and estimating the amount and timing of payments that may be made under the TRA is by its nature imprecise, as the calculation of amounts payable depends on a variety of factors and future events.

Equity

Amended and Restated Limited Partnership Agreement

Prior to the IPO, EE Holdings was the limited partner of EELP, with a 99% ownership interest in EELP as of March 31, 2022. In connection with the IPO, EE Holdings amended and restated the limited partnership agreement of EELP (the “EELP Limited Partnership Agreement”) whereby all of the outstanding interests of EELP were recapitalized into Class B interests and EELP was authorized to issue Class A interests. Subject to certain limitations, (a) the EELP Limited Partnership Agreement permits Class B interests to be exchanged for shares of Class A Common Stock on aone-for-one basis or, at Excelerate’s election, for cash, and (b) Excelerate will hold Class A interests equivalent to the number of outstanding shares of its Class A Common Stock. Also in connection with the IPO, Excelerate became the general partner of EELP. In May 2023, the EELP Limited Partnership Agreement was amended to clarify certain non-material administrative items.

Excelerate Energy, LLC (“EELLC”) was the general partner of EELP prior to the IPO, with a 1% ownership interest in EELP as of March 31, 2022. In connection with the IPO, EELLC distributed to EE Holdings all of its interest in EELP. EE Holdings then contributed to EELP all of its interests in EELLC. As anticipated, EELLC was dissolved in October 2022.

Initial Public Offering

In connection with the IPO, in exchange for$441.6 million in gross proceeds before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions of$25.4 million and IPO-related expenses of$7.6 million, EELP issued 26,254,167 Class A interests to Excelerate, representing approximately 24.2% of the EELP interests, and 82,021,389 Class B interests to EE Holdings, representing approximately 75.8% of the EELP interests. In connection with the closing of the IPO, the Company amended and restated its certificate of incorporation in its entirety to, among other things: (i) authorize 300 million shares of Class A Common Stock; (ii)150 million shares of Class B Common Stock,$0.001 par value per share (the “Class B Common Stock”); and (iii)25 million shares of “blank check” preferred stock,$0.001 par value per share.

As of December 31, 2023, there were 26,263,403 shares of Class A Common Stock and 82,021,389 shares of Class B Common Stock outstanding.

Class A Common Stock

The Class A Common Stock outstanding represents 100% of the rights of the holders of all classes of our outstanding common stock to share in distributions from Excelerate, except for the right of Class B stockholders to receive the par value of the Class B Common Stock upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding up or an exchange of Class B interests of EELP.

Class B Common Stock

Following the completion of the IPO, EE Holdings, a company controlled directly and indirectly by Kaiser, holds all of the shares of our outstanding Class B Common Stock. The Class B Common Stock entitles the holder to one vote for each share of Class B Common Stock. Holders of shares of our Class B Common Stock vote together with holders of our Class A Common Stock as a single class on all matters on which stockholders are entitled to vote generally, except as otherwise provided in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or required by law.

As the only Class B stockholder following the completion of the IPO, EE Holdings had 75.7% and 75.8% of the combined voting power of our common stock as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 respectively. The EELP Limited Partnership Agreement entitles partners (and certain permitted transferees thereof) to exchange their Class B interests for shares of Class A Common Stock on a one-for-one basis or, at our election, for cash. When a Class B interest is exchanged for a share of Class A Common Stock, the corresponding share of Class B Common Stock will automatically be canceled. The EELP Limited Partnership Agreement permits the Class B limited partners to exercise their exchange rights subject to certain timing and other conditions. When a Class B interest is surrendered for exchange, it will not be available for reissuance.

EELP Distribution Rights

The Company, as the general partner of EELP, has the right to determine when distributions will be made to holders of interests and the amount of any such distributions. If a distribution is authorized, such distribution will be made to the holders of Class A interests and Class B interests on a pro rata basis in accordance with the number of interests held by such holder.

Dividends and Distributions

During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, EELP declared and paid distributions to all interest holders, including Excelerate. Excelerate has used and will continue to use proceeds from such distributions to pay dividends to holders of Class A Common Stock. The following table details the distributions and dividends for the periods presented:

Under the terms of the EELP Limited Partnership Agreement, we are also required to make pro rata income tax distributions to the owner of Class B Interests. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we made $6.0 million in tax distributions.

Albania Power Project

In April 2022, Excelerate established an entity to provide a temporary power solution in Albania (the “Albania Power Project”). Excelerate is a 90% owner of the project and has received$5.4 million in cash contributions from the minority owner as of December 31, 2023. The Albania Power Project is fully consolidated in our financial statements.

Earnings per share

The following table presents the computation of earnings per share for the periods shown below (in thousands, except share and per share amounts):

The following table presents the common stock share equivalents excluded from the calculation of diluted earnings per share for the periods shown below, as they would have had an antidilutive effect:

Leases

Lessee arrangements

Finance leases

Certain enforceable vessel charters and pipeline capacity agreements are classified as finance leases, and the right-of-use assets are included in property and equipment, net on the consolidated balance sheets. Lease obligations are recognized based on the rate implicit in the lease or the Company’s incremental borrowing rate at lease commencement.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company was a lessee in finance lease arrangements onone pipeline capacity agreement andone tugboat. These arrangements were determined to be finance leases as their terms represent the majority of the economic life of their respective assets.

In connection with the IPO, EELP purchasedtwo vessels previously leased and accounted for as related party finance leases. In 2018, EELP entered into an agreement with a customer to lease Excellence with the vessel transferring ownership to the customer at the conclusion of the agreement for no additional consideration. EELP, as a lessor, accounts for Excellence contract with our customer as a sales-type lease in the consolidated balance sheet in accordance with ASC 842. For more information regarding the purchase of the vessels, see Note 8 – Property and equipment, net.

Finance lease liabilities as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 consisted of the following (in thousands):

Operating leases

As of December 31, 2023, the Company was a lessee in a terminal use lease, which was accounted for as an operating lease. In January 2024, this agreement transitioned to a TCP agreement.

Additionally, the Company has operating leases for offices in various locations in which operations are performed. Such leases will often include options to extend the lease and the Company will include option periods that, on commencement date, it is reasonably certain the Company will exercise. Variable lease costs relate to certain lease agreements, which include payments that vary for items such as inflation adjustments, or common area charges. Variable lease costs that are not dependent on an index are excluded from the lease payments that comprise the operating lease liability and are expensed in the period in which they are incurred. None of the Company’s operating leases contain any residual value guarantees.

In March 2023, Excelerate exercised its option to purchase Sequoia and the purchase was executed in April 2023. As of December 31, 2022, Sequoia was recorded as an operating lease. See Note 8 – Property and equipment, net for further information about the purchase.

A maturity analysis of the Company’s operating and finance lease liabilities (excluding short-term leases) at December 31, 2023 is as follows (in thousands):

As of December 31, 2023, the Company’s weighted average remaining lease term for operating and finance leases was 4.3 years and 9.1 years, respectively, with a weighted average discount rate of 6.2% and 6.3%, respectively. As of December 31, 2022, the Company’s weighted average remaining lease term for operating and finance leases was 2.6 years and 10.1 years, respectively, with a weighted average discount rate of 5.9% and 6.3%, respectively.

The Company’s total lease costs for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 recognized in the consolidated statements of income consisted of the following (in thousands):

Other information related to leases for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 are as follows (in thousands):

Revenue

The following table presents the Company’s revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 (in thousands):

Lease revenue

The Company’s time charter contracts are accounted for as operating or sales-type leases. The Company’s revenue from leases is presented within revenues in the consolidated statements of income and for theyears ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 consists of the following (in thousands):

Sales-type leases

Sales-type lease income is interest income that is presented within lease revenues on the consolidated statements of income. The Company leasedtwo vessels anda terminal under sales-type leases as it is reasonably certain that the ownership of these assets will transfer to the customer at the end of the term. For theyears ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, the Company recorded lease income from the net investment in the leases within revenue from lease contracts of$64.3 million,$75.4 million and$77.4 million, respectively.

Operating leases

Revenue from time charter contracts accounted for as operating leases is recognized by the Company on a straight-line basis over the term of the contract. As of December 31, 2023, the Company is the lessor to time charter agreements with customers on seven of its vessels. In January 2024, Sequoia transitioned to a TCP agreement with Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. The following represents the amount of property and equipment that is leased to customers as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 (in thousands):

The future minimum revenues presented in the table below should not be construed to reflect total charter hire revenues for any of the years presented. Minimum future revenues included below are based on the fixed components and do not include variable or contingent revenue. Additionally, revenue generated from short-term charters is not included as the duration of each contract is less than a year. As of December 31, 2023, the minimum contractual future revenues to be received under the time charters during the next five years and thereafter are as follows (in thousands):

Revenue from contracts with customers

The following tables show disaggregated revenues from customers attributable to the country in which the revenues were derived (in thousands). Revenues from external customers are attributed to the country in which the party to the applicable agreement has its principal place of business. (in thousands)

Assets and liabilities related to contracts with customers

Under most gas sales contracts, invoicing occurs once the Company’s performance obligations have been satisfied, at which point payment is unconditional. Invoicing timing for TCP, regasification and other services varies and occurs according to the contract. As of December 31, 2023, and December 31, 2022, receivables from contracts with customers was$80.4 million and$14.9 million, respectively. These amounts are presented within accounts receivable, net on the consolidated balance sheets. In addition, revenue for services recognized in excess of the invoiced amounts, or accrued revenue, outstanding at December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, was$4.4 million and$5.3 million, respectively. Accrued revenue represents current contract assets that will turn into accounts receivable within the next 12 months and be collected during the Company’s normal business operating cycle. Accrued revenue is presented in accounts receivable, net on the consolidated balance sheets. Other items included in accounts receivable, net represent receivables associated with leases, which are accounted for in accordance with the leasing standard. There were no write-downs of trade receivables for lease or time charter services or contract assets for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021.

Contract liabilities from advance payments in excess of revenue recognized from services as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 were$1.1 million and$134.3 million, respectively. If the performance obligations are expected to be satisfied during the next 12 months, the contract liabilities are classified within current portion of deferred revenue on the consolidated balance sheets. Amounts to be recognized in revenue after 12 months are recorded in other long-term liabilities. The remaining portion of current deferred revenue relates to thelease component of the Company’s time charter contracts, which are accounted for in accordance with the leasing standard. Noncurrent deferred revenue presented in other long-term liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets represents payments allocated to the Company’s performance obligation for drydocking services within time charter contracts in which the lease component is accounted for as a sales-type lease. Revenue will be recognized once the performance obligation is complete and occurs every five years.

The following table reflects the changes in our liabilities related to long-term contracts with customers as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 (in thousands):

Some of the Company’s contracts are short-term in nature with a contract term of less than a year. The Company applied the optional exemption not to report any unfulfilled performance obligations related to these contracts.

In November 2023, Excelerate signed a 15-year LNG sale and purchase agreement (the “Petrobangla SPA”) with Bangladesh Oil, Gas & Mineral Corporation (“Petrobangla”). Under the agreement, Petrobangla has agreed to purchase LNG from Excelerate beginning in 2026. Excelerate will deliver 0.85 MTPA of LNG in 2026 and 2027 and 1.0 MT per annum from 2028 to 2040. The take-or-pay LNG volumes are expected to be delivered through Excelerate’s two existing FSRUs in Bangladesh, Excellence and Summit LNG.

The Company has long-term arrangements with customers in which the Company provides regasification and other services as part of TCP contracts. The price under these agreements is typically stated in the contracts. Beginning in 2026, will provide take-or-pay LNG volumes to Bangladesh through the Petrobangla SPA. The estimated fixed transaction price allocated to the remaining performance obligations under these arrangements is$8,043.5 million using commodity futures prices as of December 31, 2023. The Company expects to recognize revenue from contracts exceeding one year over the following time periods (in thousands):

Long-term incentive compensation

In April 2022, Excelerate adopted the Excelerate Long-Term Incentive Plan (the “LTI Plan”). The LTI Plan was adopted to promote and closely align the interests of Excelerate's employees, officers, non-employee directors and other service providers and its stockholders by providing stock-based compensation and other performance-based compensation. The LTI Plan allows for the grant of up to 10.8 million shares, stock options, stock appreciation rights, alone or in conjunction with other awards; restricted stock and restricted stock units including performance units; incentive bonuses, which may be paid in cash, stock or a combination thereof; and other stock-based awards. The share pool increases on January 1st of each calendar year by a number of shares equal to 4% of the outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock on the preceding December 31st. The LTI Plan is administered by the Compensation Committee of the Company’s board of directors.

The Company’s stock option and restricted stock unit awards both qualify as equity awards and are amortized into selling, general and administrative expenses and cost of revenue and vessel operating expenses on the consolidated statements of income on a straight-line basis. Stock options were granted to certain employees of Excelerate and vest over five years and expireten years from the date of grant. The Company also issued restricted stock units to directors and certain employees that vest ratably over eitherone orthree years. In 2023, the Company issued performance units to certain employees that cliff vest in three years. The performance units contain both a market condition related to Excelerate’s relative total shareholder return as compared to its peer group and a performance condition related to the Company’s EBITDA.

For theyears ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company recognized long-term incentive compensation expense for all of its awards as shown below (in thousands):

Stock options

The fair value of stock options is estimated on the date of the grant using a Black-Scholes valuation model, which requires management to make assumptions regarding the risk-free interest rates, expected dividend yields and the expected volatility of the Company’s stock calculated based on a period of time generally commensurate with the expected term of the award, the fair value of Excelerate’s common stock on the grant date, including the expected term of the award. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. The expected dividend yield is based on the expected dividend payout as a portion of total share value. Expected volatility is based on the median of the historical volatility of fifteen of the Company’s peers over the expected life of the granted options. The Company uses estimates of forfeitures to estimate the expected term of the options granted. The reversal of any expense due to forfeitures is accounted for as they occur. The table below describes the assumptions used to value the options granted in 2022. No options were granted in 2023.

The following table summarizes stock option activity for the year ended December 31, 2023 and provides information for outstanding and exercisable options as of December 31, 2023:

No options were granted in 2023. The fair value of the options granted in 2022 was$4.6 million. As of December 31, 2023, the Company had$2.7 million in unrecognized compensation costs related to its stock options that it expects to recognize over a weighted average period of 3.3 years. No options were exercised in 2023.

Restricted stock unit awards

The following table summarizes restricted stock unit activity for the year ended December 31, 2023 and provides information for unvested shares as of December 31, 2023:

The fair value of the awards granted in 2023 and 2022 was$6.5 million and$0.9 million, respectively. The fair value of awards that vested in 2023 was $0.7 million. No awards vested in 2022. As of December 31, 2023, the Company had$4.9 million in unrecognized compensation costs related to its restricted stock unit awards that it expects to recognize over a weighted average period of 2.2 years.

Performance units

In 2023, the Company granted performance units which entitle the holder to between zero and two shares of the Company’s Class A Common Stock based on results as compared to performance and market conditions. The performance condition relates to the Company’s EBITDA and the market condition relates to Excelerate’s relative total shareholder return as compared to its peer group. Changes in the Company’s expected EBITDA performance as compared to award metrics will be recorded to the consolidated statement of income over the vesting period.

The fair value of the Company’s performance units is calculated based on a Monte Carlo simulation of the grant’s market condition, which requires management to make assumptions regarding the risk-free interest rates, expected dividend yields and the expected volatility of the Company’s stock calculated based on a period of time generally commensurate with the expected term of the award. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. Expected volatility is based on the median of the historical volatility of the companies that comprise the Vanguard Energy ETF market index as of January 1, 2023 over the expected life of the granted units. The Company uses estimates of forfeitures to estimate the expected term of the grants. The reversal of any expense due to forfeitures is accounted for as they occur.

The following table summarizes performance unit activity for theyear ended December 31, 2023 and provides information for unvested performance units (reflected at target performance) as of December 31, 2023:

The fair value of the performance units granted in 2023 was$2.4 million. As of December 31, 2023, the Company had$1.8 million in unrecognized compensation costs related to its performance units that it expects to recognize over a weighted average period of 2.1 years.

The Company’s income before income taxes is comprised of the following for theyears ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 (in thousands):

Income tax expense (benefit) is comprised of the following for theyears ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 (in thousands):

The provision for income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 was$33.2 million,$28.3 million and$21.2 million, respectively. The increase was primarily attributable to the year-over-year change in the amount and geographical distribution of income.

A reconciliation of the U.S. federal statutory income tax rate to the Company’s effective tax rate is comprised of the following for the years ended years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021:

The effective tax rate for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 was 20.8%,26.1% and 33.9%, respectively. The decrease was primarily driven by the geographical distribution of income and the varying tax regimes of jurisdictions.

The tax effect of each type of temporary difference and carryforward that gives rise to a significant deferred tax asset or liability as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 are as follows (in thousands):

The Company has foreign and U.S. corporate subsidiaries for which it records deferred taxes. The Company has $2.7 million of net operating loss carryforwards as of December 31, 2023. Of these, $2.1 million will expire between 2024 and 2029. The remaining net operating loss carryforwards have an unlimited carryforward period.

The Company recorded a valuation allowance to reflect the estimated amount of certain deferred tax assets that, more likely than not, will not be realized. In making such a determination, the Company evaluates a variety of factors, including the Company's operating history, accumulated deficit, and the existence of taxable or deductible temporary differences and reversal periods. Total valuation allowances increased by $2.4 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, primarily due to the generation of net operating losses in foreign jurisdictions, which the Company believes, more likely than not, will not be realized. Total valuation allowances increased by$7.8 million during the year ended December 31, 2022, primarily due to the U.S. federal deferred tax assets related to the investment in partnership and foreign tax credit carryforward.

The Company recognizes the tax benefit from an uncertain tax provision only if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the tax position. The Company’s policy is to recognize accrued interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions in income tax expense in the consolidated financial statements. For the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company did not have any payments of interest and penalties associated with uncertain tax positions. The Company does not anticipate material changes in the total amount or composition of its unrecognized tax benefits within 12 months of the reporting date.

A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amount of unrecognized tax benefits as of is shown below (in thousands):

The Company and its subsidiaries file income tax returns in the U.S., various foreign, state and local jurisdictions. The Company is currently under income tax examination in Israel related to the 2020 and 2021 tax years. Tax years that remain subject to examination vary by legal entity but are generally open in the U.S. for the tax years ending after 2019 and outside the U.S. for the tax years ending after 2017.

Excelerate is a corporation for U.S. federal and state income tax purposes. Excelerate’s accounting predecessor, EELP, is treated as a pass-through entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes and, as such, has generally not been subject to U.S. federal income tax at the entity level. Accordingly, unless otherwise specified, our historical results of operations prior to the IPO do not include any provision for U.S. federal income tax for EELP.

The Company has international operations that are also subject to foreign income tax and U.S. corporate subsidiaries subject to U.S. federal tax. Therefore, its effective income tax rate is dependent on many factors, including the Company’s geographical distribution of income, a rate benefit attributable to the portion of the Company’s earnings not subject to corporate level taxes, and the impact of nondeductible items and foreign exchange impacts as well as varying tax regimes of jurisdictions. In one jurisdiction, the Company’s tax rate is significantly less than the applicable statutory rate as a result of a tax holiday that was granted. This tax holiday will expire in 2033 at the same time that our contract and revenue with our customer ends.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has established the Pillar Two Framework, which generally provides for a minimum effective tax rate of 15%. The Pillar Two Framework has been supported by over 130 countries worldwide. The effective dates are January 1, 2024, and January 1, 2025, for different aspects of the directive. The Company is evaluating the potential impact of the Pillar Two Framework on future periods, pending legislative adoption by additional individual countries.

Related party transactions

The Company had one debt instrument with related parties as of December 31, 2023 – the Exquisite Vessel Financing. For details on this debt instrument, see Note 11 – Long-term debt – related party. Prior to the ENE Onshore Merger, ENE Onshore and KFMC were party to the KFMC-ENE Onshore Note that was settled in full in connection with the ENE Onshore Merger. Prior to the IPO, EELP, certain of its subsidiaries and other affiliates of Kaiser were guarantors to the Kaiser Credit Line (as defined herein). For details on this facility, see Note 22 – Commitments and contingencies.

Kaiser has, over time, donated significant amounts of money to the Foundation. The Foundation has an independent board and Kaiser does not exert control over or have ownership in the Foundation. However, several of Kaiser’s close family members are on the board of directors of the Foundation and for the purposes of these accounts, where transactions with the Foundation occur, they are reported as related party transactions. As of December 31, 2023, and December 31, 2022, the Company had no outstanding balance with the Foundation. Interest expense in related party finance leases for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 amounted to$7.9 million and$29.1 million, respectively. The Company had no interest expense from related party finance leases for the year ended December 31, 2023. As part of the vessel management agreements, EELP provided bookkeeping and other back office administrative services for the Foundation Vessels. EELP purchased the Foundation Vessels from an affiliate of the Foundation in connection with the IPO. For further details on this purchase, see Note 8 – Property and equipment, net.

The following transactions with related parties are included in the accompanying consolidated statements of income (in thousands):

The following balances with related parties are included in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets (in thousands):

EELP and certain of its subsidiaries and affiliates are party to certain agreements with Kaiser and affiliates of Kaiser that had significant activity during the year ended December 31, 2023, as described below.

Kaiser and EELP are party to an ISDA Master Agreement dated February 15, 2008, as amended on February 15, 2011. Since January 1, 2018, there has been one transaction resulting in a net settlement cost to EELP of $0.7 million under such ISDA Master Agreement.

GBK Corporation, an affiliate of Kaiser, issued a guarantee dated August 19, 2011, in respect of all payment and performance obligations owed by Excelerate Energy Brazil, LLC and Excelerate Energy Servicos de Regaseficacao Ltda to Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. under an operation and services agreement and TCP agreement, which guarantee is subject to a cap of $55.0 million on certain indemnification obligations. This guarantee was terminated effective January 11, 2022, and EELP issued a new guarantee in respect of such obligations.

Prior to our IPO, as credit support for LNG cargo purchases, Kaiser obtained letters of credit of $27.3 million in 2022, none of which remained outstanding as of December 31, 2023 under a committed line of $600.0 million for which EELP and certain of its subsidiaries were guarantors (the “Kaiser Credit Line”), on behalf of Excelerate Gas Marketing Limited Partnership, a subsidiary of EELP, in favor of LNG suppliers. In connection with the IPO, the credit support previously provided for LNG cargo purchases under the Kaiser Credit Line was replaced by letters of credit obtained under the EE Revolver.

Kaiser issued an uncapped construction and operational guarantee dated May 14, 2007 in favor of the Secretary of Transportation, United States of America, as represented by the Maritime Administrator (“MARAD”), in respect of Northeast Gateway Energy Bridge, LP’s obligations related to the design, construction, operations and decommissioning under the deepwater port license issued by MARAD. In addition, Kaiser obtained a letter of credit in favor of MARAD to cover decommissioning costs in the amount of approximately $15.4 million (the “Kaiser – MARAD LOC”), which Kaiser – MARAD LOC was amended and increased to $16.3 million in December 2021. This was further amended in November 2022 to increase the borrowing limit to $17.6 million.

Kaiser obtained a letter of credit under the Kaiser Credit Line on behalf of Excelerate Energy Development DMCC for the benefit of Engro Elengy Terminal (Private) Limited in the amount of $20.0 million. In connection with the IPO, this letter of credit was replaced with a letter of credit obtained under the EE Revolver in April 2022.

Kaiser obtained a letter of credit under the Kaiser Credit Line on behalf of Excelerate Energy Bangladesh Ltd. for the benefit of Bangladesh Oil, Gas & Mineral Corporation in the amount of $20.0 million. In connection with the IPO, this letter of credit was replaced with a letter of credit obtained under the EE Revolver in April 2022.

Northeast Gateway Related Transactions

In September 2021, EE Holdings completed the Northeast Gateway Contribution as described in Note 1 – General business information.

On December 22, 2015, ENE Lateral entered into the ENE Lateral Facility with KFMC. The ENE Lateral Facility was amended and restated in each of 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2021 to increase the maximum aggregate principal amount of the note, with the 2021 amendment increasing the maximum aggregate principal amount to $285.0 million and, in 2018, to decrease the interest rate from LIBOR plus 3.5% to LIBOR plus 1.5%. The ENE Lateral Facility was most recently amended on August 31, 2021 to make certain changes to the final payment date, including removing KFMC’s ability to demand repayment. The $57.2 million remaining on the ENE Lateral Facility was repaid in full, and the ENE Lateral Facility terminated in connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution.

Prior to the Northeast Gateway Contribution, Kaiser issued guarantees dated December 1, 2015, in favor of all creditors and obligees of ENE Onshore and ENE Lateral under their third-party contracts. The Kaiser guarantees issued in favor of ENE Lateral and ENE Onshore were terminated in connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution.

Prior to the Northeast Gateway Contribution, Kaiser issued a guarantee dated September 11, 2013 (and reaffirmed on December 1, 2015) in favor of Algonquin Gas Transmission, LLC (“AGT”) and Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline, L.L.C. (each a wholly owned subsidiary of Enbridge, Inc.), in respect of all payment obligations owed by ENE Onshore and ENE Lateral (the “AGT Guarantee”). In addition, Kaiser obtained a letter of credit on behalf of ENE Onshore and ENE Lateral (the “AGT LOC”). As of December 31, 2023, there were no amounts remaining available for drawing under the AGT LOC. In connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution, EELP agreed to (i) indemnify Kaiser in respect of Kaiser’s obligations related to ENE Lateral under the AGT Guarantee and AGT LOC, (ii) pay an annual fee in the amount of $1.2 million (pro-rated based on the number of days such guarantee remains outstanding in any year (beginning September 17, 2021)) to Kaiser to maintain such AGT Guarantee and (iii) reimburse Kaiser for any fees actually incurred under the AGT LOC (the “Kaiser AGT Indemnity Agreement”). As discussed in the ENE Onshore Merger section below, the AGT Guarantee and the Kaiser AGT Indemnity Agreement were terminated in October 2022.

The Northeast Companies and ENE Onshore (all of which are Kaiser affiliates, and collectively, the “NEG Entities”) and EELP entered into that certain Northeast Gateway Services Agreement, dated January 1, 2016, pursuant to which EELP performs certain services on behalf of the NEG Entities (the “NEG Services Agreement”) in exchange for payment for such services and reimbursement of out-of-pocket, third-party expenses. In connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution, the NEG Services Agreement was amended on September 17, 2021 to remove and release ENE Onshore as a party. Under the NEG Services Agreement, the NEG Entities made payments to EELP of approximately $0.4 million in 2021. Following the Northeast Gateway Contribution, the NEG Services Agreement is no longer considered a related person transaction.

EE Holdings, EELP and the NEG Entities entered into that certain Northeast Gateway Matters Agreement dated January 1, 2016, pursuant to which the NEG Entities indemnified EELP in respect of liabilities arising from all activities at Northeast Gateway (the “Northeast Gateway Matters Agreement”). In connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution, the Northeast Gateway Matters Agreement was terminated and replaced with the Northeast Gateway Onshore Matters Agreement, dated September 17, 2021, by and among EE Holdings, ENE Onshore and EELP, pursuant to which EE Holdings and ENE Onshore indemnify EELP in respect of liabilities arising from all ENE Onshore activities at Northeast Gateway (the “Northeast Gateway Onshore Matters Agreement”). No payments were made under the Northeast Gateway Matters Agreement, and no payments have been made under the Northeast Gateway Onshore Matters Agreement. As discussed in the ENE Onshore Merger section below, the Northeast Gateway Onshore Matters Agreement was terminated in October 2022.

In March 2016, ENE Onshore released ENE Onshore’s capacity in AGT’s mainline facility (the “Onshore Release Capacity”) to ENE Lateral for no consideration. In connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution, ENE Lateral and ENE Onshore entered into a Capacity Release Payment Agreement dated September 17, 2021 (the “Capacity Release Payment Agreement”), whereby, if ENE Lateral releases the Onshore Release Capacity to a third party and receives funds in respect of such Onshore Release Capacity, ENE Lateral will pay to ENE Onshore the amount of such funds received. On November 30, 2021, ENE Lateral paid $0.9 million to ENE Onshore in respect of Onshore Release Capacity in September and October 2021. During 2022, ENE Lateral paid $7.0 million to ENE Onshore in respect of Onshore Release Capacity. As discussed in the ENE Onshore Merger section below, the Capacity Release Payment Agreement was terminated in October 2022.

In 2021, KFMC and EELP were party to a promissory note which allowed KFMC to borrow up to a maximum amount of $150.0 million at a per annum interest rate of LIBOR plus 1.55% (as amended, restated, supplemented or otherwise modified, the “Accounts Receivable Note”). In connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution on September 28, 2021, pursuant to an assignment and assumption of promissory note and accounts receivable agreement among KFMC, EELP, ENE Lateral and ENE Onshore, $88.5 million owed by KFMC to EELP under the Accounts Receivable Note was settled as partial payment of the amounts outstanding on the ENE Lateral Facility. No additional amounts were drawn on the Accounts Receivable Note and it was terminated on November 4, 2021.

In connection with the Northeast Gateway Contribution and in order to fund the continued operations of ENE Lateral, EE Holdings made a $16.5 million contribution in the form of a note receivable from Kaiser (the “Kaiser Note Receivable”) to provide for funding of certain amounts expected to be paid in the next twelve months. The Kaiser Note Receivable bore interest at 1.55% with $3.3 million payable each month by Kaiser to the Company. The Kaiser Note Receivable was presented as contra-equity in the consolidated financial statements. The Kaiser Note Receivable was repaid in full in February 2022.

ENE Onshore Merger

In October 2022, EE Holdings, the indirect sole member of ENE Onshore, and EELP, the sole member of ENE Lateral, entered into the ENE Onshore Merger, effective October 31, 2022. ENE Lateral was the surviving entity and ENE Onshore ceased to exist as a separate entity. Prior to the ENE Onshore Merger, Excelerate consolidated ENE Onshore as a VIE as Excelerate was determined to be the primary beneficiary of ENE Onshore. As a result of the ENE Onshore Merger, Excelerate ceased to have a non-controlling interest related to ENE Onshore.

In connection with the merger, certain related party transactions were terminated:

1. The Kaiser AGT Indemnity Agreement, under which Excelerate had agreed to pay $1.2 million in annual fees to Kaiser for his guarantee of certain obligations of ENE Lateral and ENE Onshore, was terminated, effective as of October 20, 2022.

2. The AGT Guarantee was terminated, effective as of October 20, 2022. At the same time, EELP issued a new guarantee in respect of all payment obligations owed by ENE Lateral to AGT.

3. The Northeast Gateway Onshore Matters Agreement, pursuant to which EE Holdings and ENE Onshore agreed to indemnify EELP in respect of liabilities arising from all ENE Onshore activities at Northeast Gateway, was terminated, effective as of October 31, 2022.

4. The Capacity Release Payment Agreement, pursuant to which ENE Lateral had agreed to pay ENE Onshore for sales of capacity on AGT’s mainline facility that were received by ENE Lateral, was terminated on October 31, 2022, by virtue of the ENE Onshore Merger.

In connection with the ENE Onshore Merger, ENE Onshore entered into a Contribution and Note Termination Agreement, pursuant to which ENE Onshore received an equity contribution sufficient to allow it to remit payment to (a) KFMC of the then-outstanding KFMC-ENE Onshore Note and (b) AGT of amounts owed for October 2022 net capacity payments. Subsequently, the KFMC-ENE Onshore Note was terminated. After the contribution, on October 31, 2022, ENE Onshore had no material net assets or liabilities. See the consolidated statements of changes in equity for the full effects of the ENE Onshore Merger.

Defined contribution plan

The Company’s full-time employees are eligible to participate in a 401(k) plan that is administered by a related party of Kaiser. The Company makes a safe harbor matching contribution equal to 100% of the employee’s salary deferrals that do not exceed 3% of compensation plus 50% of the employee’s salary deferrals between 3% and 5% of compensation. The safe harbor matching contribution is 100% vested. The Company has no further payment obligations once the contributions have been paid. The contributions are recognized as employee benefit expense when they are due. The Company recorded$1.0 million,$0.8 million and$0.7 million in compensation expense related to the plan during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Concentration risk

The Company is subject to concentrations of credit risk principally from cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, derivative financial instruments, and accounts receivable. The Company limits the exposure to credit risk with cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash by placing it with highly rated financial institutions. Additionally, the Company evaluates the counterparty risk of potential customers based on credit evaluations, including analysis of the counterparty’s established credit rating or assessment of the counterparty’s creditworthiness based on an analysis of financial condition when a credit rating is not available, historical experience, and other factors.

To manage credit risk associated with the interest rate hedges, the Company selected counterparties based on their credit ratings and limits the exposure to any single counterparty. The counterparties to our derivative contracts are major financial institutions with investment grade credit ratings. The Company periodically monitors the credit risk of the counterparties and adjusts the hedging position as appropriate. The impact of credit risk, as well as the ability of each party to fulfill its obligations under our derivative financial instruments, is considered in determining the fair value of the contracts. Credit risk has not had a significant effect on the fair value of our derivative instruments. The Company does not have any credit risk-related contingent features or collateral requirements associated with our derivative contracts.

The following table shows customers with revenues of 10% or greater of total revenues:

Certain customers of ours may purchase a high volume of LNG and/or natural gas from us. These purchases can significantly increase their percentage of our total revenues as compared to those customers who are only FSRU and terminal service customers. This increase in revenue from their purchases is exacerbated in periods of high market pricing of LNG and natural gas. In conjunction with these LNG and natural gas sales, our direct cost of gas sales also increases by a similar percent due to the increase in volume and market pricing of LNG incurred for such revenue. As such, the increase in revenues by customer may be disproportionate to the relative increase in concentration risk within our operations.

Substantially all of the net book value of our long-lived assets are located outside the United States. The Company’s fixed assets are largely comprised of vessels that can be deployed globally due to their mobile nature. As such, the Company is not subject to significant concentration risk of fixed assets.

Commitments and contingencies

The Company may be involved in legal actions in the ordinary course of business, including governmental and administrative investigations, inquiries and proceedings concerning employment, labor, environmental and other claims. The Company will recognize a loss contingency in the consolidated financial statements when it is probable a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. The Company will disclose any loss contingencies that do not meet both conditions if there is a reasonable possibility that a loss may have been incurred. Gain contingencies are not recorded until realized.

Venture Global SPA

In February 2023, we executed a 20-year LNG sale and purchase agreement with Venture Global LNG (the “Venture Global SPA”). Under the Venture Global SPA, Excelerate will purchase 0.7 MT per annum of LNG on a free-on-board basis from the Plaquemines LNG facility in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. Our purchase commitment will be based on the final settlement price of monthly Henry Hub natural gas futures contracts plus a contractual spread. Using Henry Hub natural gas futures pricing as of December 31, 2023, our average annual commitment is estimated to be approximately$249.0 million. The start of this commitment, however, is dependent on the LNG facility becoming operational, which is not expected in the next twelve months.

Asset retirement obligations

The Company’s asset retirement obligation represents the present value of estimated future costs associated with the decommissioning of the Northeast Gateway Deepwater LNG Port in the Massachusetts Bay. In accordance with the port's license and permits, the Company is legally required to decommission the port and estimates that this will occur at the end of the related pipeline capacity agreement in 2032.

The following table presents the balances for asset retirement obligations and the changes due to accretion expense (in thousands):

Supplemental noncash disclosures for consolidated statement of cash flows

Supplemental noncash disclosures for the consolidated statement of cash flows consist of the following (in thousands):

The following table provides a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash reported within the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 (in thousands):

Accumulated other comprehensive income

Changes in components of accumulated other comprehensive income were (in thousands):

Subsequent events

Dividend Declaration

On February 22, 2024, our board of directors approved a cash dividend, with respect to the quarter ended December 31, 2023, of$0.025 per share of Class A Common Stock. The dividend is payable on March 28, 2024, to Class A Common Stockholders of record as of the close of business on March 13, 2024. EELP will make a corresponding distribution of$0.025 per interest to holders of Class B interests on the same date of the dividend payment.

QatarEnergy SPA

In January 2024, Excelerate executed a 15-year SPA with QatarEnergy (the “QatarEnergy SPA”). Under the QatarEnergy SPA, Excelerate has agreed to purchase LNG from QatarEnergy beginning in 2026. QatarEnergy will deliver 0.85 MT per annum of LNG in 2026 and 2027 and 1.0 MT per annum from 2028 to 2040. These LNG volumes are intended to be used to supply sales under the Petrobangla SPA.

Repurchase of Equity Securities

On February 22, 2024, our board of directors approved a share repurchase program to purchase up to $50.0 million of our Class A Common Stock (the “Program”). The board of directors approved the Program because it believed that it (i) would be a prudent use of the Company’s available cash, (ii) would enhance the long-term value of the Class A Common Stock, (iii) would demonstrate management’s and the board of directors’ confidence in the business and (iv) is advisable and in the best interests of the Company. The Program does not obligate us to acquire any specific number of shares and will expire on February 28, 2026, and the Program may be suspended, extended, modified or discontinued at any time. Under the Program, repurchases can be made using a variety of methods, which may include open market purchases, block trades, privately negotiated transactions and/or a non-discretionary trading plan, all in compliance with the rules ofthe Securities and Exchange Commission and other applicable legal requirements. The timing, manner, price and amount of any Class A Common Stock repurchases under the Program are determined by us in our discretion and depend on a variety of factors, including legal requirements, price, and business, economic, and market conditions.