Williams Co (WMB) Risk Analysis

Williams may not have sufficient cash each quarter to pay dividends or maintain current or expected levels of dividends. The actual amount of cash Williams pays as a dividend may fluctuate from quarter to quarter and will depend on various factors, some of which are beyond Williams' control, including: - The amount of cash that Williams' subsidiaries distribute to it;- The amount of cash Williams generates from its operations, Williams' working capital needs, Williams' level of capital expenditures, and Williams' ability to borrow;- The restrictions contained in Williams' indentures and credit facility and Williams' debt service requirements;- The cost of acquisitions, if any. A failure either to pay dividends or to pay dividends at expected levels could result in a loss of investor confidence, reputational damage, and a decrease in the value of Williams' stock price.

The operations of Williams' current non-wholly owned subsidiaries are conducted in accordance with their organizational documents. Williams anticipates that it will enter into more such arrangements, including through new joint venture structures. Williams may have limited operational flexibility in such current and future arrangements and may not be able to control the timing or amount of cash distributions received. In certain cases: - Williams cannot control the amount of cash reserves determined to be necessary to operate the business, which reduces cash available for distributions;- Williams cannot control the amount of capital expenditures that it is required to fund, and Williams is dependent on third parties to fund their required share of capital expenditures;- Williams may be subject to restrictions or limitations on its ability to sell or transfer its interests in the jointly owned assets;- Williams may be forced to offer rights of participation to other joint venture participants in the area of mutual interest;- Williams has limited ability to influence or control certain day to day activities affecting the operations; and - Williams may have additional obligations, such as required capital contributions that are important to the success of the operations. In addition, conflicts of interest may arise between Williams, on the one hand, and other interest owners, on the other hand. If such conflicts of interest arise, Williams may not have the ability to control the outcome with respect to the matter in question. Disputes between Williams and other interest owners may also result in delays, litigation, or operational impasses. The risks described above or the failure to continue such arrangements could adversely affect Williams' ability to conduct the operations that are the subject of such arrangements which could, in turn, negatively affect Williams' business, growth strategy, financial condition, and results of operations.

Transco and NWP rely on a limited number of customers for a significant portion of their revenues. Although some of these customers are subject to long-term contracts, Transco and NWP may be unable to negotiate extensions or replacements of these contracts on favorable terms, or at all. For the year ended December 31, 2024, Transco's largest customer was Dominion Energy, Inc., which accounted for approximately 7 percent of its operating revenue, and NWP's largest customer was Puget Sound Energy, Inc., which accounted for approximately 31 percent of its operating revenue. The loss of all, or even a portion of, the revenues from contracted volumes supplied by Transco's and NWP's key customers, as a result of competition, creditworthiness, inability to negotiate extensions or replacements of contracts, or otherwise, could have a material adverse effect on their businesses, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. For more information regarding Transco's and NWP's customer revenues, please read Note 16 – Fair Value Measurements, Guarantees, and Concentration of Credit Risk.

Because Transco and NWP are indirect wholly owned subsidiaries of Williams, Williams exercises substantial control over their businesses and operations and makes determinations with respect to, among other things, the following: - Payment of distributions and repayment of advances;- Decisions on financings and capital raising activities;- Mergers or other business combinations;- Acquisition or disposition of assets. Williams could decide to increase distributions or advances to Transco's and NWP's member consistent with existing debt covenants. This could adversely affect Transco's or NWP's liquidity.

Given the volatile nature of the commodities Williams, Transco, and NWP transport, process, store, and sell, their assets and the assets of their customers and others in the industry may be targets of terrorist activities. Uncertainty surrounding the Russian invasion of Ukraine, conflicts in the Middle East, or other sustained military campaigns, may affect Williams', Transco's, and NWP's operations in unpredictable ways, including the possibility that infrastructure facilities could be direct targets of, or indirect casualties of, an act of terrorism. A terrorist attack could create significant price volatility, disrupt business, limit access to capital markets, or cause significant harm to operations, such as full or partial disruption to Williams', Transco's, and NWP's ability to produce, process, transport, or distribute natural gas, NGLs, or other commodities, as applicable. Acts of terrorism, as well as events occurring in response to or in connection with acts of terrorism, could cause environmental repercussions that could result in a significant decrease in revenues or significant reconstruction or remediation costs, which could have a material adverse effect on Williams', Transco's, and NWP's businesses, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

In addition to regulation by other federal, state, and local regulatory authorities, interstate pipeline transportation and storage services and related assets are subject to regulation by the FERC. Federal regulation extends to such matters as: - Transportation and sale for resale of natural gas in interstate commerce;- Rates, operating terms, types of services, and conditions of service;- Certification and construction of new interstate pipelines and storage facilities;- Acquisition, extension, disposition, or abandonment of existing interstate pipelines and storage facilities;- Accounts and records;- Depreciation and amortization policies;- Relationships with affiliated companies that are involved in marketing functions of the natural gas business;- Market manipulation in connection with interstate sales, purchases, or transportation of natural gas. Regulatory or administrative actions in these areas, including successful complaints or protests against the rates of the gas pipelines, can affect Williams', Transco's, and NWP's businesses in many ways, including decreasing tariff rates and revenues or setting future tariff rates to levels such that revenues are inadequate to recover increases in operating costs or to sustain an adequate return on capital investments, decreasing volumes in the pipelines, increasing costs, and otherwise altering the profitability of the pipeline business. Furthermore, Transco charges its transportation customers a separate fee to access its offshore facilities in the Gulf of America, unlike other interstate pipelines that own facilities offshore. The separate charge is referred to as an "IT feeder" charge. The "IT feeder" rate is charged only when gas is actually transported on the applicable facilities and typically it is paid by producers or marketers. Because the "IT feeder" rate is typically paid by producers and marketers, it generally results in netback prices to producers that are slightly lower than the netbacks realized by producers transporting on other interstate pipelines. This rate design disparity can result in producers bypassing Transco's offshore facilities in favor of alternative transportation facilities.

Williams', Transco's, and NWP's operations are subject to extensive federal, state, tribal, and local laws and regulations governing environmental protection, endangered and threatened species, the discharge of materials into the environment, and the security of chemical and industrial facilities. Substantial costs, liabilities, delays, and other significant issues related to environmental laws and regulations are inherent in the gathering, transportation, storage, processing, and treating of natural gas, fractionation, transportation, and storage of NGLs, and crude oil transportation and production handling as well as waste disposal practices and construction activities, as applicable. New or amended environmental laws and regulations can also result in significant increases in capital costs incurred to comply with such laws and regulations. Failure to comply with these laws, regulations, and permits may result in the assessment of administrative, civil and/or criminal penalties, the imposition of remedial obligations, the imposition of stricter conditions on or revocation of permits, the issuance of injunctions limiting or preventing some or all operations, and delays or denials in granting permits. Joint and several strict liability may be incurred without regard to fault under certain environmental laws and regulations, for the remediation of contaminated areas and in connection with spills or releases of materials associated with natural gas, oil, and wastes on, under, or from Williams', Transco's, and NWP's properties and facilities. Private parties, including the owners of properties through which Williams', Transco's, and NWP's pipeline and gathering systems pass and facilities where their wastes are taken for reclamation or disposal, may have the right to pursue legal actions to enforce compliance as well as to seek damages for noncompliance with environmental laws and regulations or for personal injury or property damage arising from their operations. Some sites at which Williams, Transco, and NWP operate are located near current or former third-party hydrocarbon storage and processing or oil and natural gas operations or facilities, and there is a risk that contamination has migrated from those sites. Williams, Transco, and NWP are generally responsible for all liabilities associated with the environmental condition of their facilities and assets, whether acquired or developed, regardless of when the liabilities arose and whether they are known or unknown. In connection with certain acquisitions and divestitures, Williams, Transco, and NWP could acquire, or be required to provide indemnification against, environmental liabilities that could expose them to material losses, which may not be covered by insurance. In addition, the steps Williams, Transco and NWP could be required to take to bring certain facilities into compliance could be prohibitively expensive, and Williams, Transco, and NWP might be required to shut down, divest, or alter the operation of those facilities, which might cause them to incur losses. In addition, climate change regulations and the costs that may be associated with such regulations and with the regulation of emissions of GHGs have the potential to affect the businesses of Williams, Transco, and NWP. Regulatory actions by the Environmental Protection Agency or the passage of new climate change laws or regulations could result in increased costs to operate and maintain facilities, install new emission controls on facilities, or administer and manage any GHG emissions program. Williams, Transco, and NWP believe it is possible that future governmental legislation and/or regulation may require them either to limit GHG emissions associated with operations or to purchase allowances for such emissions. Williams, Transco, and NWP could also be subjected to a carbon tax assessed on the basis of carbon dioxide emissions or otherwise. However, Williams, Transco, and NWP cannot predict precisely what form these future regulations might take, the stringency of any such regulations or when they might become effective. Several legislative bills have been introduced in the United States Congress that would require carbon dioxide emission reductions. Previously considered proposals have included, among other things, limitations on the amount of GHGs that can be emitted (so called "caps") together with systems of permitted emissions allowances. These proposals could require Williams, Transco, and NWP to reduce emissions or to purchase allowances for such emissions. In addition to activities on the federal level, state and regional initiatives could also lead to the regulation of GHG emissions sooner than and/or independent of federal regulation. These regulations could be more stringent than any federal legislation that may be adopted. Future legislation and/or regulation designed to reduce GHG emissions could make some of Williams', Transco's, and NWP's activities uneconomic to maintain or operate. Williams, Transco, and NWP continue to monitor legislative and regulatory developments in this area and otherwise take efforts to limit and reduce GHG emissions from their facilities. Although the regulation of GHG emissions may have a material impact on Williams', Transco's, and NWP's operations and rates, Williams, Transco, and NWP believe it is premature to attempt to quantify the potential costs of the impacts. If Williams, Transco, and NWP are unable to recover or pass through a significant level of costs related to complying with climate change regulatory requirements, it could have a material adverse effect on Williams', Transco's, and NWP's results of operations and financial condition.