Significant Accounting Policies (Policies) |
6 Months Ended |
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Jun. 30, 2025 | |
Accounting Policies [Abstract] | |
Basis of Presentation | Basis of Presentation Flame was initially formed as a special purpose acquisition company for the purpose of entering into a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. On February 14, 2024, Flame completed the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement and the Sable-EM Purchase Agreement, with Flame surviving the transactions and changing its name to Sable Offshore Corp. thereafter. The Company was deemed the accounting acquirer in the Business Combination based on an analysis of the criteria outlined in Accounting Standards Codification 805, Business Combinations, with such transactions being accounted for as a forward merger, and SYU was deemed the Predecessor entity for accounting purposes. As a result of the Business Combination, the results of operations, financial position and cash flows of the Predecessor and Successor are not directly comparable. Since SYU was deemed to be the Predecessor entity, the historical financial statements of SYU became the historical financial statements of the combined Company, upon the consummation of the Business Combination. As a result, the financial statements included in this report reflect (i) the historical operating results of SYU prior to the Business Combination and (ii) the unaudited condensed consolidated results of the Company, including SYU, following the Closing Date. The accompanying unaudited condensed financial statements include a Predecessor period, which includes the period January 1, 2024 through February 13, 2024 concurrent with the Business Combination, and a Successor period from February 14, 2024 through March 31, 2024, and thereafter. A black line between the Successor and Predecessor periods has been placed in the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and in the tables to the notes to the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements to highlight the lack of comparability between these two periods. The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 8 of Regulation S-X of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Certain information or footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC for interim financial reporting. Accordingly, they do not include all the information and footnotes necessary for a complete presentation of financial position, results of operations, or cash flows. In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include all adjustments, consisting of a normal recurring nature, which are necessary for a fair presentation of the financial position, operating results and cash flows for the periods presented. Financial presentation in prior periods has been adjusted to conform with current period presentation. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2025 may not be representative of the financial results for the full year 2025. The Predecessor financial statements reflect the carve-out assets, liabilities, revenues, expenses, and cash flows of SYU. SYU had not previously been separately accounted for as a stand-alone legal entity. The accounts are presented on a combined basis because SYU was under common control of EM. The accompanying Predecessor financial statements also include a portion of indirect costs for general and administrative expenses. In addition to the allocation of indirect costs, the Predecessor financial statements reflect certain agreements executed by EM for the benefit of SYU. The allocations methodologies for significant allocated items include: •General and administrative expenses that were not specifically identifiable to SYU were allocated to SYU as a portion of certain other operating costs based on aggregated historical benchmarking data for the period from January 1, 2022 to February 13, 2024. The total amounts allocated to SYU for the period from January 1, 2024 to February 13, 2024, which are recorded in general and administrative expenses, are $1.7 million. •Long-term debt was not allocated to SYU as it was a legal obligation of EM, which was not directly impacted by the sale of SYU to Sable. Management believes the allocation methodologies used in the Predecessor financial statements are reasonable and result in an allocation of EM’s indirect costs of operating SYU as a stand-alone entity. These Predecessor financial statements may not be indicative of the future performance of SYU and do not necessarily reflect what the results of operations, financial position and cash flows would have been had SYU been operated as an independent company during the periods presented.
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Use of Estimates | Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period. Significant estimates made by management include, among others, allocation assumptions and the carrying amount of asset retirement obligations, which are based on the timing and cost of future abandonments, inputs utilized to fair value warrant liabilities, and assumptions used to estimate deferred taxes. While management believes these estimates are reasonable, changes in facts and assumptions or the discovery of new information may result in revised estimates. Actual results could differ from these estimates, and it is at least reasonably possible these estimates could be revised in the near term, and these revisions could be material.
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Segment Reporting | Segment Reporting Sable operates in a single reportable segment, oil and gas. The oil and gas segment is defined based on the way in which internally reported financial information is regularly reviewed by the chief operating decision maker (“CODM”), our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, to analyze financial performance and allocate resources. The CODM assesses performance and decides how to allocate resources based on net income (loss) presented in the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations.
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Fair Value Measurements | Fair Value Measurements Fair value is defined as the price that would be received for sale of an asset or paid for transfer of a liability, in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. GAAP establishes a three-tier fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in measuring fair value. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). These tiers include: •Level 1, defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices (unadjusted) for identical instruments in active markets; •Level 2, defined as inputs other than quoted prices in active markets that are either directly or indirectly observable such as quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets or quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active; and •Level 3, defined as unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions, such as valuations derived from valuation techniques in which one or more significant inputs or significant value drivers are unobservable.
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Cash and Cash Equivalents / Restricted Cash | Cash and Cash Equivalents The Company considers all short-term investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. Restricted Cash The Company considers cash or cash equivalents that are legally restricted from use or withdrawal as restricted cash. In March of 2024, the Company entered into the Settlement Agreement (as defined below) in regards to the Grey Fox Matter (as defined below) (refer to Note 8 — Commitments and Contingencies for additional details regarding the Grey Fox Matter). Pursuant to the Settlement Agreement, the Company was required to deliver a irrevocable direct pay letter of credit (the “Letter of Credit”) in the amount of $35.0 million to the plaintiffs' counsel (the "Plaintiffs") in the Grey Fox Matter. The Letter of Credit was issued by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (“JPMorgan”) and required the Company to enter into a cash collateral agreement (the “Collateral Agreement”) with JPMorgan on May 7, 2024. Pursuant to the Collateral Agreement, the Company deposited $35.0 million into a collateral account (the “Collateral Account”), which is pledged as collateral to JPMorgan as the issuer of the Letter of Credit. Pursuant to the terms of the Settlement Agreement, the Plaintiffs in the Grey Fox Matter may draw upon the Letter of Credit at a future date upon satisfaction of certain conditions, and the funds held in the Collateral Account are legally restricted to reimburse JPMorgan for such draws, in addition to any related fees and expenses. Additionally, pursuant to the Settlement Agreement, the Company will pay interest on the $35.0 million to the Plaintiffs at the rate earned on the Collateral Account (the “Interest Payable”); provided however that the Company is entitled to reduce the Interest Payable by the ordinary and customary expenses charged to the Company from JPMorgan as the issuer of the Letter of Credit, capped at $0.4 million (1%) per annum. On September 17, 2024, the Court approved the Settlement Agreement, requiring the $35.0 million deposit in the Collateral Account and the related Interest Payable to be paid upon the final payment date. On June 30, 2025, the Plaintiffs submitted a draw statement on the Letter of Credit in the amount of $35.0 million, and the Company paid the Plaintiffs directly the interest owed. On July 7, 2025, in accordance with the Settlement Agreement, J.P. Morgan & Co. processed the $35.0 million draw statement and wired the funds to Plaintiffs pursuant to the Letter of Credit. J.P. Morgan & Co. subsequently accepted the $35.0 million restricted cash as settlement in full of the obligations created by the draw of the Letter of Credit, all as contemplated by the Settlement Agreement. Prior to payment, the related Interest Payable was not legally restricted and was available for the Company's use. However, the Company has adopted an accounting policy to consider interest that is both (i) earned on cash that is legally restricted in relation to a legal settlement and (ii) payable as a part of such settlement, such as the Interest Payable, restricted for presentation purposes. Accordingly, the $35.0 million deposit in the Collateral Account and the related Interest Payable are presented within the restricted cash balance presented on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheets as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024.
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Concentration of Credit Risk | Concentration of Credit Risk Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist of cash and restricted cash deposits with a financial institution, which, at times, may exceed the Federal Depository Insurance Coverage of $0.3 million. At June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, the Company did not experience losses on this account.
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Related Parties | Related Parties Transactions between related parties are considered to be related party transactions even though they may not be given accounting recognition. Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 850, Related Party Disclosures (“ASC Topic 850”), requires transactions with related parties that would make a difference in decision making to be disclosed so that users of the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements can evaluate their significance.
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Property, Plant and Equipment | Property, Plant and Equipment Cost Basis. The Company's oil, natural gas and NGL producing activities are accounted for under the successful efforts method of accounting. Under this method, costs are accumulated on a field-by-field basis. Costs incurred to purchase, lease, or otherwise acquire a property (whether unproved or proved) are capitalized when incurred. Exploratory well costs are carried as an asset when the well has found a sufficient quantity of reserves to justify its completion as a producing well and where sufficient progress assessing the reserves and the economic and operating viability of the project is being made. Exploratory well costs not meeting these criteria are charged to expense. Other exploratory expenditures, including geophysical costs and annual lease rentals, are expensed as incurred. Development costs, including costs of productive wells and development dry holes, are capitalized. Other Property and Equipment. Other property and equipment primarily consist of onshore midstream facilities and transportation assets. Due to the nature of such assets, the onshore midstream facilities are presented within oil and gas properties, while the transportation assets are presented within other assets on the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheets.
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Depreciation, Depletion, and Amortization | Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization. Depreciation, depletion and amortization are primarily determined under the unit-of-production method, which is based on estimated asset service life taking obsolescence into consideration. Acquisition costs of proved properties are to be amortized using a unit-of-production method, computed on the basis of total proved oil and natural gas reserve volumes. Capitalized exploratory drilling and development costs associated with productive depletable extractive properties are amortized using the unit-of-production rates based on the amount of proved developed reserves of oil and gas that are estimated to be recoverable from existing facilities using current operating methods. Under the unit-of-production method, oil and natural gas volumes are considered produced once they have been measured through meters at custody transfer or sales transaction points at the outlet valve on the lease or field storage tank. Due to the nature of our investments in midstream equipment, the cost of such assets are also to be amortized using the unit-of-production rates based on the amount of proved developed reserves of oil and gas that are estimated to be recoverable from existing facilities using current operating methods. Maintenance and repairs, including planned major maintenance, are expensed as incurred. Major renewals and improvements are capitalized and the assets replaced are retired.
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Impairment Assessment | Impairment Assessment. Oil and gas properties are tested for recoverability on an ongoing basis whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts may not be recoverable. Among the events or changes in circumstances which could indicate that the carrying value of an asset or asset group may not be recoverable are the following: a.a significant decrease in the market price of a long-lived asset; b.a significant adverse change in the extent or manner in which an asset is being used or in its physical condition including a significant decrease in current and projected reserve volumes; c.a significant adverse change in legal factors or in the business climate that could affect the value, including an adverse action or assessment by a regulator; d.an accumulation of project costs significantly in excess of the amount originally expected; and e.a current-period operating loss combined with a history and forecast of operating or cash flow losses. Oil and gas properties undergo a process to monitor for indicators of potential impairment throughout the year. This process is aligned with the requirements of ASC 360 and ASC 932. Asset valuation analysis, profitability reviews and other periodic control processes assist in assessing whether events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying amounts of any of the assets may not be recoverable. Because the lifespans of the oil and gas properties are measured in decades, the future cash flows of these assets are predominantly based on long-term oil and natural gas commodity prices, industry margins, and development and production costs. Significant reductions in management’s view of oil or natural gas commodity prices or margin ranges, especially the longer-term prices and margins, and changes in the development plans, including decisions to defer, reduce, or eliminate planned capital spending, can be an indicator of potential impairment. Other events or changes in circumstances, can be indicators of potential impairment as well. In general, temporarily low prices or margins are not viewed as an indication of impairment. Management believes that prices over the long term must be sufficient to generate investments in energy supply to meet global demand. Although prices will occasionally drop significantly, industry prices over the long term will continue to be driven by market supply and demand fundamentals. On the supply side, industry production from mature fields is declining. This is being offset by investments to generate production from new discoveries, field developments and technology, and efficiency advancements. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries investment activities and production policies also have an impact on world oil supplies. The demand side is largely a function of general economic activities, alternative energy sources and levels of prosperity. During the lifespan of its major assets, management expects that oil and gas prices and industry margins will experience significant volatility, and consequently these assets will experience periods of higher earnings and periods of lower earnings. In assessing whether events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable, management considers recent periods of operating losses in the context of its longer-term view of prices and margins. Cash Flow Assessment. If events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable, management estimates the future undiscounted cash flows of the affected properties to judge the recoverability of carrying amounts. In performing this assessment, assets are grouped at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows that are largely independent of the cash flows of other groups of assets. Cash flows used in recoverability assessments are based on assumptions which are developed by management and are consistent with the criteria management uses to evaluate investment opportunities. These evaluations make use of assumptions of future capital allocations, crude oil and natural gas commodity prices including price differentials, refining and chemical margins, volumes, and development and operating costs. Volumes are based on projected field and facility production profiles, throughput, or sales. Management’s estimate of upstream production volumes used for projected cash flows makes use of proved reserve quantities and may include risk-adjusted unproved reserve quantities. Fair value of Impaired Assets. An asset group is impaired if its estimated undiscounted cash flows are less than the asset group’s carrying value. Impairments are measured by the amount by which the carrying value exceeds fair value. The assessment of fair value is based upon the views of a likely market participant. The principal parameters used to establish fair value include estimates of acreage values and flowing production metrics from comparable market transactions, market-based estimates of historical cash flow multiples, and discounted cash flows. Inputs and assumptions used in discounted cash flow models include estimates of future production volumes, throughput and product sales volumes, commodity prices which are consistent with the average of third-party industry experts and government agencies, refining and chemical margins, drilling and development costs, operating costs and discount rates which are reflective of the characteristics of the asset group. Impairments incurred are Level 3 fair value measurements.
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Materials and supplies | Materials and supplies Materials and supplies are valued at the lower of cost or net realizable value and presented as a component of Inventory and other on the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet. Oil Inventory As referenced above, the Company announced that it restarted production at SYU on May 15, 2025, and began flowing oil production to LFC storage facilities. As a result, the Company recognized short term oil inventory as of June 30, 2025. FASB ASC Topic 330—Inventory (“ASC 330”) dictates that inventory shall initially be valued at the price paid or consideration given to acquire an asset. By analogy, the Company capitalized the costs incurred that were directly attributable to producing and transporting the production to the onshore storage tanks, including associated depreciation, depletion, and amortization. Oil inventory is presented as a component of Inventory and other on the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet. The Company has oil inventory storage capacity of 540 MBbls onshore at LFC. The Company generally expects the inventory volumes to fluctuate over time to maintain optimal operational efficiencies. The ending volume of inventory that remains in the onshore storage tanks is measured at the current period’s cost, and a lower of cost or net realizable value assessment is performed for each reporting period.
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Accounts Payable and Accrued Liabilities | Accounts Payable and Accrued Liabilities Accounts payable and accrued liabilities include obligations incurred in the ordinary operation of the business for services performed and products received, including capital expenditures that are capitalized as oil and gas properties.
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Asset Retirement Obligation | Asset Retirement Obligations The Company’s asset retirement obligations (“ARO”) primarily relate to the future plugging and abandonment of oil and gas properties and related facilities. The Company uses assumptions and judgments to estimate the respective future plugging and abandonment costs, technical assessments of the assets and their ultimate productive life (timing of settlements), a risk-adjusted discount rate and an inflation factor in order to determine the current present value of this obligation. To the extent future revisions to these assumptions impact the present value of the existing asset retirement obligation liability, a corresponding adjustment is made to the oil and gas property balance. The fair values of these obligations are recorded as liabilities on a discounted basis, which is typically at the time the assets are installed. Asset retirement obligations incurred in the current period are Level 3 fair value measurements. The costs associated with these liabilities are capitalized as part of the related assets and depreciated as the reserves are produced. Over time, the liabilities are accreted for the change in their present value. Refer to Note 4 — Asset Retirement Obligations for additional disclosures.
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Derivative Warrant Liabilities | Derivative Warrant Liabilities The Company does not currently use derivative instruments to hedge exposures to cash flow, market, or foreign currency risks. The Company evaluates all of its financial instruments, including issued stock purchase warrants, to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives, pursuant to ASC 480 and ASC Topic 815, “Derivatives and Hedging” (“ASC 815”). The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is re-assessed at the end of each reporting period. The Company accounts for its warrants as derivative warrant liabilities in accordance with ASC 815-40. Accordingly, the Company recognizes the warrant instruments as liabilities at fair value and adjusts the instruments to fair value at each reporting period. The liabilities are subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date until exercised, and any change in fair value is recognized in the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations (Refer to Note 11 — Fair Value Measurements for additional details).
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Income Taxes | Income Taxes The Company accounts for income taxes under ASC 740, “Income Taxes” (“ASC 740”). ASC 740 requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for both the expected impact of differences between the financial statements and tax basis of assets and liabilities and for the expected future tax benefit to be derived from tax loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that included the enactment date. ASC 740 additionally requires a valuation allowance to be established when it is more likely than not that all or a portion of deferred tax assets will not be realized. ASC 740 also requires that an annual effective tax rate be determined and that such annual effective rate be applied to year-to-date income in interim periods. Utilizing provisions of ASC 740, the Company's effective tax rate was negative 6.5%, negative 8.5%, negative 3.2% and negative 5.7% for the three and six months ended June 30, 2025 (Successor), the three months ended June 30, 2024 (Successor) and the period February 14, 2024 through June 30, 2024 (Successor), respectively. The effective tax rate differs from the statutory tax rate of 21% due primarily to changes in valuation allowance on the deferred tax assets and disallowed expenses. No income taxes were allocated to the Predecessor as it was not a taxable legal entity. Deferred income taxes arise from temporary differences between the tax basis of assets and liabilities and their reported amounts in the financial statements, which will result in taxable or deductible amounts in the future. In evaluating our ability to recover our deferred tax assets, we consider all available positive and negative evidence, including scheduled reversals of deferred tax liabilities, projected future taxable income, tax-planning strategies, and results of recent operations. In projecting future taxable income, we begin with historical results and incorporate assumptions about the amount of future federal and state pretax operating income adjusted for items that do not have tax consequences. Based on our ongoing assessment of all available evidence, both positive and negative, we concluded that it was more likely than not that our U.S. deferred tax assets in excess of deferred tax liabilities would not be realized. Also, in scheduling the reversals of our existing timing differences for the Successor period, we concluded that certain deferred tax liabilities in future periods do not have deferred tax assets available to offset, which is primarily due to our net operating losses being limited to 80% of taxable income on an annual basis. Therefore, a further valuation allowance of our deferred tax assets in excess of our liabilities is necessary and results in deferred tax expenses for the Successor period. Our judgment regarding the likelihood of realization of these deferred tax assets could change in future periods, which could result in a material impact to our income tax provision in the period of change. On July 4, 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (“OBBBA”) was enacted in the United States. The OBBBA makes permanent key elements of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, including 100% bonus depreciation on qualified property acquired and placed in service after January 19, 2025. Per ASC 740, the effects of changes in tax rates and laws on deferred tax balances to be recognized in the period in which the legislation is enacted is required. The Company is currently reviewing what impact, if any, the OBBBA will have on the Company's tax estimates.
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Parent Net Investment (Predecessor) | Parent Net Investment (Predecessor) Parent net investment reflects the financial reporting basis of SYU’s assets and liabilities and changes due to capital contributions and losses. All cash activity of SYU for the periods presented were concentrated in accounts retained by EM. Accordingly, net cash activity attributable to SYU is reflected in contributions from parent in the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements in the Predecessor periods.
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Net Loss Per Share of Common Stock | Net Loss Per Share of Common Stock The Company complies with accounting and disclosure requirements of FASB ASC Topic 260, “Earnings Per Share.” Net loss per share of Common Stock is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted average number of shares of Common Stock outstanding for the period.
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Recent Accounting Pronouncements | Recent Accounting Pronouncements In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740) - Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures. The FASB issued this ASU to enhance the transparency and decision usefulness of income tax disclosures. The amendments in this ASU address investor requests for more transparency about income tax information through improvements to income tax disclosures primarily related to the rate reconciliation and income taxes paid information. The amendments in this ASU are effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2024. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is currently reviewing what impact, if any, adoption will have on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows. In November 2024, the FASB issued ASU 2024-03, Income Statement - Reporting Comprehensive Income - Expense Disaggregation Disclosures (Subtopic 220-40) - Disaggregation of Income Statement Expenses. The FASB issued this ASU to improve the disclosures about a public business entity's expenses and address requests from investors for more detailed information about the types of expenses (including purchases of inventory, employee compensation, depreciation, amortization, and depletion) in commonly presented expenses captions (such as cost of sales, SG&A, and research and development). The amendments in this ASU are effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2026, and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2027. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is currently reviewing what impact, if any, adoption will have on the Company's disclosures. The Company’s management does not believe that any other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting standards if currently adopted would have a material effect on the accompanying financial statements.
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