Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

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Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation – The accompanying audited consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with GAAP, under the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) except the
shares and corresponding equity amounts and loss per share related to Nauticus’ Common Stock prior to the Business Combination have been retroactively restated to reflect the post-combination Common Stock capital structure.
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 revenues and expenses during the period. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include the (i) estimates of future costs to complete customer contracts recognized over time, (ii) valuation allowances for deferred income tax assets, (iii) valuation of stock-based compensation awards and (iv) the valuation of conversion options, warrants and earnouts. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Cash and Cash Equivalents The Company classifies all highly-liquid instruments with an original maturity of three months or less as cash equivalents. The Company maintains cash and cash equivalents in bank deposit accounts, which at times may exceed federally insured limits of $250,000. Historically, the Company has not experienced any losses in such accounts. There were no cash equivalents at December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
Restricted Certificate of Deposit — The Company has a restricted certificate of deposit, held by a bank on our behalf, of $201,822 and $250,375, as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. The Company entered into an agreement in August 2023 whereby a $150,000 restricted certificate of deposit was required to collateralize a letter of credit. The remainder relates to a guarantee against corporate credit cards. The balance at December 31, 2022 relates to a guarantee against corporate credit cards.
Short-term Investments – Short-term investments on December 31, 2022 of $4,959,263, include an investment in a US Treasury Bill that matured on March 14, 2023. On March 14, 2023, the Company received proceeds of $5,000,000 at maturity, the gain on the investment of $40,737 is included in other expense (income) on the consolidated income statements.
Accounts Receivable, Unbilled Revenues, and Allowance for Credit Losses - In June 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU” or “standard”) 2016-13, Financial Instruments – Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments. Subsequently, the FASB issued several clarifying standard updates to clarify and improve the ASU. These ASUs significantly change how entities will measure credit losses for most financial assets and certain other instruments that are not measured at fair value through net income. The most significant change in this standard is a shift from the incurred loss model to the expected loss model that will be based on an estimate of current expected credit loss (“CECL”). Under the standard, disclosures are required to provide users of the financial statements with useful information in analyzing an entity’s exposure to credit risk and the measurement of credit losses. Financial assets held by the Company that are subject to the guidance in Topic 326 were trade accounts receivable and unbilled revenues. The Company adopted the standard effective January 1, 2023. The impact of the adoption was not considered material to the financial statements and primarily resulted in new and enhanced disclosures only.

With the adoption of ASU 2016-13, accounts receivable and contract assets are recorded at the invoiced amount and do not typically bear interest. The Company regularly monitors and assesses its risk of not collecting amounts owed by customers. The Company operates in the midstream space of the oil and natural gas industry and its accounts receivables and contract assets are primarily derived from providing gathering and transportation of natural gas and natural gas liquids for its customers. At each balance sheet date, the Company recognizes an expected allowance for credit losses. In addition, at each reporting date, this estimate is updated to reflect any changes in credit risk since the receivable was initially recorded. This estimate is calculated on a pooled basis where similar risk characteristics exist. If applicable, accounts receivable and contract assets are evaluated individually when they do not share similar risk characteristics which could exist in circumstances where amounts are considered at risk or uncollectible.

The allowance estimate is derived from a review of the Company’s historical losses based on the aging of receivables. This estimate is adjusted for management’s assessment of current conditions, reasonable and supportable forecasts regarding future events, and any other factors deemed relevant by the Company. The Company believes historical loss information is a reasonable starting point in which to calculate the expected allowance for credit losses as the Company’s portfolio segments have remained constant since the Company’s inception.
The Company writes off receivables when there is information that indicates the debtor is facing significant financial difficulty and there is no possibility of recovery. If any recoveries are made from any accounts previously written off, they will be recognized in income in the year of recovery, in accordance with the entity’s accounting policy election. The total amount of write-offs and expected credit losses were $2,040 and $9,963 for the years ending December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. The allowance for current expected credit losses for the year ending December 31, 2023 and 2022 was $0 and $9,963, respectively.
Assets Held For Sales - Long-lived assets identified as assets held for sale are categorized on the balance sheet as current assets and are measured at the lower of carrying value or fair value less any costs to sell. Any liabilities associated with the assets being sold are categorized on the balance sheet as current liabilities. Assets held for sale are no longer depreciated or amortized.
Property and Equipment – Property and equipment is recorded at cost and depreciated using the straight-line method. Expenditures which extend the useful lives of existing property and equipment are capitalized. Those costs which do not extend the useful lives are expensed as incurred. Upon disposition, the cost and accumulated depreciation are removed and any gain or loss on the disposal is reflected in the statements of operations.
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets The Company reviews long-lived assets for potential impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable. In this assessment, future pre-tax cash flows (undiscounted) resulting from the use of the asset and its eventual disposal are estimated. If the undiscounted future cash flows are less than the carrying amount of the asset, an impairment loss is recognized for the difference between its carrying value and estimated fair value. For the year ended December 31, 2023 $25,354,791 of property and equipment was impaired. There were no impairments for December 31, 2022.
Segment Reporting Our operations represent a single segment because each revenue stream possesses similar production methods, distribution methods, and customer quality and consumption characteristics, resulting in similar long-term expected financial performance.
Revenue – Our primary sources of revenue are from providing technology engineering services and products to the offshore industry and governmental entities. Revenue is generated pursuant to contractual arrangements to design and develop subsea robots and software and to provide related engineering, technical, and other services according to the specifications of the customers. These contracts can be service sales (cost plus fixed fee or firm fixed price) or product sales and typically have terms of up to 18 months. The Company had no product sales in 2023 and 2022, respectively.
A performance obligation is a promise in a contract to transfer distinct goods or services to a customer. For all contracts, we assess if there are multiple promises that should be accounted for as separate performance obligations or combined into a single performance obligation. We generally separate multiple promises in a contract as separate performance obligations if those promises are distinct, both individually and in the context of the contract. If multiple promises in a contract are highly interrelated or require significant integration or customization within a group, they are combined and accounted for as a single performance obligation.
Our performance obligations under service agreements generally are satisfied over time as the service is provided. Revenue under these contracts is recognized over time using an input measure of progress (typically costs incurred to date relative to total estimated costs at completion). This requires management to make significant estimates and assumptions to estimate contract sales and costs associated with its contracts with customers. At the outset of a long-term contract, the Company identifies risks to the achievement of the technical, schedule and cost aspects of the contract. Throughout the contract term, on at least a quarterly basis, we monitor and assess the effects of those risks on its estimates of sales and total costs to complete the contract. Changes in these estimates could have a material effect on our results of operations. Where the current estimate of total costs at completion for contracts exceeds the total consideration we expect to receive we recognize the entire expected loss in the period that becomes evident. Estimated contract costs include costs that relate directly to the contract including direct labor, direct materials, and allocations of certain overhead costs.
Firm-fixed price contracts present the risk of unreimbursed cost overruns, potentially resulting in lower-than-expected contract profits and margins. This risk is generally lower for cost plus fixed fee contracts which, as a result, generally have a lower margin.
InventoriesInventories consist of raw materials, work in progress and finished goods where applicable for the Olympic Arm business and are stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Work in progress and finished goods inventories include raw materials, direct labor and production overhead. The Company periodically reviews inventories on hand and current market conditions to determine if the cost of raw materials, work in progress and finished goods inventories exceed current market prices and impairs the cost basis of the inventory accordingly. The associated impairment is charged as a standalone expense on the Statement of operation. Obsolete inventory or inventory in excess of management’s estimated usage requirement is written down to its net realizable value if those amounts are determined to be less than cost. The associated write-downs or write-offs of inventory are charged to cost of sales.
Inventories consisted of the following:
December 31,
2023
December 31,
2022
Raw material and supplies $ 898,335  $ 1,499,030 
Work in progress 1,300,462  5,167,882 
Total inventories $ 2,198,797  $ 6,666,912 
Leases – The Company’s lease arrangements are operating leases which are capitalized on the balance sheet as right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and obligations. ROU assets represent our right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. These are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the present value of payments over the lease term. If leases do not provide for an implicit rate, we use our incremental borrowing rate based on the estimated rate of interest for collateralized borrowing over a similar term as the lease payments. Lease expense for operating leases is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. Leases with an initial term of 12 months or less ("short term leases") are not recorded on the balance sheet; and the lease expense on short-term leases is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
Stock-Based Compensation The Company accounts for employee stock-based compensation using the fair value method. Compensation cost for equity incentive awards is based on the fair value of the equity instrument generally on the date of grant and is recognized over the requisite service period. The Company’s policy is to issue new shares upon the exercise or conversion of options and recognize option forfeitures as they occur.
Income Taxes – Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. In assessing the realizability of deferred tax assets, management considers whether it is more-likely-than-not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which those temporary differences become deductible. Management considers the scheduled reversal of deferred tax asset (including the impact of available carryback and carryforward periods), projected future taxable income, and tax-planning strategies in making this assessment. A valuation allowance for deferred tax assets is recorded when it is more likely than not that the benefit from the deferred tax asset will not be realized.
The Company recognizes the effect of income tax positions only if those positions are more likely than not of being sustained. Recognized income tax positions are measured at the largest amount that is greater than 50% likely of being realized. Changes in recognition or measurement are reflected in the period in which a change in judgment occurs. The Company had no material uncertain tax positions as of December 31, 2023 or 2022.
Foreign Currency Gains and Losses – The Company purchases certain materials and equipment from foreign companies and these transactions are generally denominated in the vendors’ local currency. The Company recorded $44,020 of foreign currency transaction losses and $260,615 of foreign currency transaction gains for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively that are included in other income, net.
Common Stock Warrants – We account for common stock warrants as either equity-classified or liability-classified instruments based on an assessment of the warrant’s specific terms and applicable authoritative guidance. This assessment considers whether the warrants are freestanding financial instruments, meet the definition of a liability or requirements for
equity classification, including whether the warrants are indexed to the Company’s Common Stock, among other conditions for equity classification. This assessment, which requires the use of professional judgment, is conducted at the time of warrant issuance and as of each subsequent quarterly period end date while the warrants are outstanding.
We have determined that the private warrants sold in a private placement to CLAQ’s co-sponsors in connection with CLAQ’s initial public offering (the “Private Warrants”) and warrants sold to the public in CLAQ’s initial public offering (the “Public Warrants”) should be accounted for as liabilities. The Private Warrants and Public Warrants were initially recorded at their estimated fair value on the Closing Date. They are then revalued at each reporting date thereafter, with changes in the fair value reported in the consolidated statements of operations. Derivative warrant liabilities are classified in the balance sheet as current or non-current based on whether or not net-cash settlement or conversion of the instrument could be required within 12 months of the balance sheet date. The fair value of the Private Warrants was estimated using a Black-Scholes option pricing model (a Level 3 measurement). The Public Warrants are valued using their publicly-traded price at each measurement date (a Level 1 measurement).
We have determined that the SPA Warrants should be accounted for as liabilities. The SPA Warrants were initially recorded at their estimated fair value on the Closing Date and are then revalued at each reporting date thereafter, with changes in the fair value reported in the consolidated Company’s statements of operations. Derivative warrant liabilities are classified in our balance sheets as current or non-current based on whether or not net-cash settlement or conversion of the instrument could be required within 12 months of the balance sheet date. At the Closing Date, the fair value of the Original SPA Warrants upon issuance was estimated using a Monte Carlo valuation model (a Level 3 measurement).
Earnout Shares Earnout Shares, issuable to former holders of Nauticus Robotics Holdings, Inc.’s Common Stock, are held in escrow. The Earnout Shares will be released upon the occurrence of a Triggering Event within 5 years of the Closing Date. The Earnout Shares are considered legally issued and outstanding shares of Common Stock subject to restrictions on transfer and potential forfeiture pending the achievement of the earnout targets. The Company evaluated the Earnout Shares and concluded that they meet the criteria for equity classification. The Earnout Shares were classified in stockholders’ equity, recognized at fair value upon the closing of the Business Combination and will not be subsequently remeasured. A Monte Carlo valuation model (a Level 3 measurement) determined their estimated fair value upon issuance.
Capitalized InterestThe Company capitalizes interest costs incurred to work in progress during the related construction periods. Capitalized interest is charged to cost of revenue when the related completed project is delivered to the buyer. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company capitalized interest totaling $1,515,446 per capitalized interest, of which $354,162 and $1,161,284 related to inventory and property and equipment, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company capitalized interest totaling $804,000 related to inventory.
Earnings (Loss) per Share - Basic earnings per share is computed by dividing income by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share is computed in the same manner as basic earnings per share except that the denominator is increased to include the number of additional shares of common stock that could have been outstanding assuming the exercise of stock options and warrants (determined using the treasury stock method) and conversion of convertible debt. The Earnout Shares, which are subject to forfeiture if the achievement of certain stock price thresholds is not met, are not considered participating securities and are not included in the weighted-average shares outstanding for purposes of calculating loss per share.
Major Customer and Concentration of Credit Risk – We have a limited number of customers. During the year ended December 31, 2023, sales to two customers accounted for almost 100% of total revenue. The total balance due from these customers as of December 31, 2023 comprised 68% of accounts receivable with the remaining 32% due from one other customer. During the year ended December 31, 2022, sales to two customers accounted for 95% of total revenue. The total balance due from these customers as of December 31, 2022 comprised 82% of accounts receivable. No other customer represented more than 10% of our revenue. Loss of these customers could have a material adverse impact on the Company.
Reclassifications - Financial statements presented for prior periods include reclassifications that were made to conform to the current year presentation. There was no material impact to the consolidated financial statements for these changes.
Recent Accounting PronouncementsIn September 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-04, Liabilities – Supplier Finance Programs (Subtopic 405-60): Disclosure of Supplier Finance Program Obligations, which requires companies to disclose
the use and impact of such programs on a company’s working capital, liquidity, and cash flow. We adopted this standard on January 1, 2023. We do not utilize Supplier Finance Programs and therefore no further disclosure is required.
In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, an amendment to ASC 326, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses, which changes the impairment model for certain financial assets that have a contractual right to receive cash, including trade and loan receivables. The new model requires recognition based upon an estimation of expected credit losses rather than recognition of losses when it is probable that they have been incurred. An entity will apply the amendment through a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the first reporting period in which the guidance is effective. The Company has adopted this standard as of January 1, 2022, and there was no impact on its financial position, results of operations and cash flows upon adoption.
In March 2022, the FASB issued ASU No. 2022-02, an amendment to ASC 326, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses, which eliminates the accounting guidance for creditors in troubled debt restructuring. It also aligns conflicting disclosure requirement guidance in ASC 326 by requiring disclosure of current-period gross write-offs by year of origination. The amendment also adds new disclosures for creditors with loan refinancing and restructuring for borrowers experiencing financial difficulty. The Company has adopted this standard as of January 1, 2023, and there was no impact on its financial position, results of operations and cash flows upon adoption.
Accounting Standards Issued but not adopted as of December 31, 2023 - In November of 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued ASU No. 2023-07, Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures. The amendments are intended to increase reportable segment disclosure requirements primarily through enhanced disclosures about significant segment expenses. The ASU is effective on a retrospective basis for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024. We are currently evaluating the impact of this guidance on the disclosures within our consolidated financial statements.
In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures. The amendments require disclosure of specific categories in the rate reconciliation and provide additional information for reconciling items that meet a quantitative threshold and further disaggregation of income taxes paid for individually significant jurisdictions. The ASU is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024, with early adoption permitted. We are currently evaluating the impact that this guidance will have on the disclosures within our consolidated financial statements.