The Plan is a profit sharing plan that includes a cash or deferred arrangement under Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") and is an "employee stock ownership plan" within the meaning of IRC Section 4975(e)(7). The Plan is maintained and sponsored by Caterpillar Inc. (the "Company") for employees of Caterpillar Global Mining LLC, a 100 percent-owned subsidiary of the Company, and enables eligible employees to accumulate funds for retirement. The Plan is governed by the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, as amended (“ERISA”).

Employees whose employment is governed by the collective bargaining agreement with the Steelworkers Union Local #1343 ("SMKE") and those whose employment is governed by the collective bargaining agreement certified by the National Labor Relations Board Case No. 16-RC-7210 ("Denison") are eligible to participate in the Plan. SMKE employees are eligible to participate in the Plan after they have completed 480 hours of service and Denison employees are generally eligible on the first day of employment. Plan participation is voluntary and participating eligible employees (the "participants") elect to defer a portion of their eligible compensation through pre-tax and after-tax contributions.

All participants are eligible to make participant contributions up to 70 percent of their eligible compensation through a pre-tax deferral arrangement and an after-tax Roth 401(k) arrangement as elected by each participant. Participants who are at least 50 years old by the end of the calendar year are allowed to make a catch-up contribution for that year. Contributions are subject to certain limitations set by the IRC.

All participants also are eligible for employer matching contributions which are 100 percent of participant 401(k) contributions up to a maximum of 6 percent of eligible compensation. Upon attainment of 20 years of seniority, the Company will make a one-time $10,000 non-elective employer contribution into an eligible participant's account.

Participants direct the investment of their participant contributions, employer matching contributions and employer non-elective contributions into various investment options offered by the Plan as discussed in Note 3. Participants generally may change their contribution elections and prospective investment elections on a daily basis and reallocate the investment of their existing account balances either daily or every seven business days (if subject to applicable trading restrictions) depending on the investment.

Newly eligible participants are subject to an automatic enrollment process. Unless electing otherwise, participants who become newly eligible will be enrolled with a default 6 percent deferral of their eligible compensation, and their default investment election is the Target Retirement Fund ("TRF") closest to the year in which the participant turns age 65. The salary deferral for all eligible participants will increase by an additional 1 percent each subsequent year up to a maximum 15 percent, unless otherwise instructed by the participant. The salary deferral for SMKE participants will increase by an additional 1 percent each subsequent year up to a maximum established by the Plan Administrator, unless otherwise instructed by the participant.

Accounts are separately maintained for each participant. The participant's account is credited with the participant's contributions, employer matching contributions, employer non-elective contributions, Plan earnings/losses (based on each participant's investment elections) and charged with administrative expenses. Participants are entitled to the benefit that can be provided from the participant's vested account.

Participants are fully vested in their participant contributions, employer non-elective contributions and related earnings thereon. SMKE participants also vest immediately in the employer matching contributions and the related earnings thereon. Denison participants fully vest in their employer matching contributions and the related earnings thereon as follows:

Upon termination of employment for any reason, including death or retirement, the balance in a participant's vested account is distributable in a single lump sum cash payment unless the participant (or beneficiary) elects to receive periodic withdrawals. Participants also have the option to leave their vested account balances in the Plan, subject to certain limitations and required minimum distribution rules. A participant also may elect to receive a distribution of Company stock up to the amount of the participant's balance in the Caterpillar Stock Fund on date of election.

The Plan provides for participant loans against eligible participant account balances. Eligible participants obtain loans by filing a loan application with the Plan's recordkeeper and receiving all requisite approvals. Loan amounts are generally limited to the lesser of $50,000 or 50 percent of the individual participant's vested account balance, with certain regulatory restrictions. The minimum loan permitted is $1,000 and participants may only have one outstanding loan at any time. Each loan specifies a repayment period that cannot extend beyond five years. Loans bear interest at the prime interest rate on the first business day of each calendar quarter plus 1 percent, as determined at the time of loan origination. Loans that transferred to the Plan due to acquisitions are based upon the terms of the plan agreement in effect at the time of loan origination. Repayments, including interest, are made through payroll deductions and are credited to the individual participant's account balance. Participant loans are measured at their unpaid principal balance plus any accrued but unpaid interest. For participant loans that are in default, the amount of the unpaid loan principal and interest due to the Plan will be treated as a deemed distribution. Deemed distributions are reported as a taxable distribution and remain part of the participant’s account balance until a distributable event occurs (i.e., termination of employment).

The Plan is administered by the Company. Pursuant to procedures adopted by the Company, responsibility for the Plan's non-financial matters has been delegated to the Caterpillar Inc. Benefit Administrative Committee and responsibility for the Plan's financial matters has been delegated to the Caterpillar Inc. Benefit Funds Committee. The Company and the Caterpillar Inc. Benefit Funds Committee have entered into a trust agreement with The Northern Trust Company (the “Trustee”) to receive contributions, administer the assets of the Plan and distribute withdrawals pursuant to the Plan. The Company has retained Alight Solutions to provide recordkeeping and administrative services as part of the administration of the Plan.

The Company has the right under the Plan at any time to terminate the Plan, subject to provisions of ERISA and subject to the terms of any applicable collective bargaining agreement. In the event of Plan termination, participants will become fully vested in all benefits which have been accrued up to the date of Plan termination and Plan assets will be distributed in accordance with the provisions of the Plan.

The Plan obtained its latest determination letter on March 16, 2015, in which the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") stated that the Plan and related trust, as then designed, were in compliance with the applicable requirements of the IRC. Although the Plan has been amended subsequent to the period covered by the determination letter, the Plan Administrator and the Plan's counsel believe that the Plan is designed and is currently being operated in compliance with the applicable requirements of the IRC, and therefore, believe that the Plan is qualified and the related trust is tax-exempt. If an operational issue is discovered, the Plan sponsor has indicated that it will take any necessary steps to bring the Plan’s operations into compliance with the IRC.