Epsilon Energy Ltd. 10-K

ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK. Our earnings and cash flow are significantly affected by changes in the market price of commodities. The prices of oil and natural gas can fluctuate widely and are influenced by numerous factors such as demand, production levels, and world political and economic events and the strength of the US dollar relative to other currencies. Should the price of oil or natural gas decline substantially, the value of our assets could fall dramatically, impacting our future options and exploration and development activities, along with our gas gathering system revenues. In addition, our operations are exposed to market risks in the ordinary course of our business, including interest rate and certain exposure as well as risks relating to changes in the general economic conditions in the United States. Gathering System Revenue Risk The Auburn Gas Gathering System lies within the Marcellus Basin with historically high levels of recoverable reserves and low cost of production. We believe that a short-term low commodity price environment will not significantly impact the reserves produced and thus the revenue of our gas gathering system. Interest Rate Risk Market risk is estimated as the change in fair value resulting from a hypothetical 100-basis-point change in the interest rate on the outstanding balance under our credit agreement. The credit agreement allows us to fix the interest rate for all or a portion of the principal balance for a period up to three months. To the extent that the interest rate is fixed, interest rate changes affect the instrument’s fair market value but do not affect results of operations or cash flows. Conversely, for the portion of the credit agreement that has a floating interest rate, interest rate changes will not affect the fair market value but will affect future results of operations and cash flows. At December 31, 2021 and 2020, the outstanding principal balance under the credit agreement was nil. Derivative Contracts The Company’s financial results and condition depend on the prices received for natural gas production. Natural gas prices have fluctuated widely and are determined by economic and political factors. Supply and demand factors, including weather, general economic conditions, the ability to transport the gas to other regions, as well as conditions in other natural gas regions, impact prices. Epsilon has established a hedging strategy and may manage the risk associated with changes in commodity prices by entering into various derivative financial instrument agreements and physical contracts. Although these commodity price risk management activities could expose Epsilon to losses or gains, entering into these contracts helps to stabilize cash flows and support the Company’s capital spending program. ​