Western Midstream Operating, LP

We expect our business to be affected by the below-described key trends and uncertainties. Our expectations are based on assumptions made by us and information currently available to us. To the extent our underlying assumptions about, or interpretations of, available information prove incorrect, our actual results may vary materially from expected results.

Impact of producer activity. Our business is primarily driven by the level of production of crude oil and natural gas by producers in our areas of operation. This activity, however, can be impacted negatively by, among other things, commodity-price fluctuations and operational challenges. Fluctuating crude-oil, natural-gas, and NGLs prices can reduce the level of our customers’ activities and change the allocation of capital within their own asset portfolios. Such fluctuations can also impact us directly to the extent we take ownership of and sell certain volumes at the tailgate of our plants for our own account. The New York Mercantile Exchange West Texas Intermediate crude-oil daily settlement prices during 2024 ranged from a low of $65.75 per barrel in September 2024 to a high of $86.91 per barrel in April 2024, and prices during the year ended December 31, 2025, ranged from a low of $55.27 per barrel in December 2025 to a high of $80.04 per barrel in January 2025. The Waha Hub natural-gas prices during 2024 ranged from a low of ($6.23) per MMBtu in August 2024 to a high of $8.27 per MMBtu in January 2024, and prices during the year ended December 31, 2025, ranged from a low of ($8.82) per MMBtu in October 2025 to a high of $7.50 per MMBtu in January 2025. The extent and duration of commodity-price volatility, and the associated direct and indirect impact on our business, cannot be predicted. To address the risks posed by fluctuating commodity prices, we intend to continue evaluating the relevant price environments and adjust our capital spending plans to reflect our customers’ anticipated activity levels, while maintaining appropriate liquidity and financial flexibility.

Additionally, even in favorable commodity-price environments, our customers face operational challenges such as severe weather disruptions, oil and gas takeaway constraints, produced water recycling and disposal limitations, seismicity concerns, new regulatory requirements, and optimizing large, complex drilling programs. Our producers’ ability to mitigate or manage such challenges can significantly impact the volumes available for us to service in the short term. For this reason, we strive to work proactively with our customers whenever possible to provide high levels of reliability on our systems and help them meet these operational challenges as they arise.

Liquidity and access to capital markets. In addition to cash and cash equivalents and cash flows generated from operations, we have historically accessed the debt and equity capital markets to raise money to fund capital expenditures, to refinance long-term debt, to fund unit repurchases, and to fund acquisitions. From time to time, capital market turbulence and investor sentiment towards MLPs, and the broader energy industry, have raised our cost of capital and, in some cases, temporarily made certain sources of capital unavailable. If we require funding beyond our sources of liquidity and are either unable to access the capital markets or find alternative sources of capital at reasonable costs, our strategy may become more challenging to execute.

Changes in regulations. Our operations and the operations of our customers have been, and will continue to be, affected by political developments and federal, state, tribal, local, and other laws and regulations that are becoming more numerous, more stringent, and more complex. These laws and regulations include, among other things, limitations on hydraulic fracturing and other oil and gas operations, pipeline safety and integrity requirements, permitting requirements, environmental protection measures such as limitations on methane and other GHG emissions, and restrictions on produced-water disposal wells. In addition, in certain areas in which we operate, public protests of oil and gas operations are not uncommon. The number and scope of the regulations with which we and our customers must comply has a meaningful impact on our and their businesses, and new or revised regulations, reinterpretations of existing regulations, and permitting delays or denials could adversely affect the throughput on and profitability of our assets. For examples of proposed regulations or other regulatory initiatives that could have a potentially material impact on us, see the Environmental Matters and Occupational Health and Safety Regulations section in Business and Properties under Part I, Items 1 and 2 of this Form 10-K.

Impact of inflation and tariffs. High inflation in the U.S. has raised our costs for steel products, automation components, power supply, labor, materials, fuel, and services, raising operating costs and capital expenditures. Additionally, the Trump administration has imposed significant import tariffs, including on imports of steel and aluminum, and may impose further tariffs on other U.S. trading partners. These tariffs could substantially increase our operating and capital costs. While future inflation and tariff impacts are uncertain, higher operating and capital costs could materially and negatively affect financial results. To the extent permitted by regulations and escalation provisions in certain of our existing agreements, we have the ability to recover a portion of increased costs in the form of higher fees.

Impact of interest rates. Interest rates can be volatile, affecting our interest expense on RCF and commercial paper borrowings. Future increased interest rates would likely result in additional increases in financing costs. As with other yield-oriented securities, our unit price could be impacted by our implied distribution yield relative to market interest rates. Therefore, changes in interest rates may affect investor yield requirements. A rising interest-rate environment could have an adverse impact on our unit price and ability to issue equity to make acquisitions, to reduce debt, or for other purposes. However, we expect our cost of capital to remain competitive, as our peers face similar interest-rate dynamics.