Williams Companies 10-K 2019-12-31

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 10-K

(Mark One)

Commission file number 1-4174

The Williams Companies, Inc.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

918**-**573-2000

(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☑

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☑

The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates computed by reference to the price at which the common equity was last sold as of the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second quarter was approximately $32,986,794,536.

The number of shares outstanding of the registrant’s common stock outstanding at February 19, 2020 was 1,212,494,859.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the Registrant’s Definitive Proxy Statement for the Registrant’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held on April 28, 2020, are incorporated into Part III, as specifically set forth in Part III.

THE WILLIAMS COMPANIES, INC.

FORM 10-K

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DEFINITIONS

The following is a listing of certain abbreviations, acronyms, and other industry terminology that may be used throughout this Annual Report.

Measurements:

Barrel: One barrel of petroleum products that equals 42 U.S. gallons

Bcf : One billion cubic feet of natural gas

Bcf/d: One billion cubic feet of natural gas per day

British Thermal Unit (Btu): A unit of energy needed to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree

Fahrenheit

Dekatherms (Dth): A unit of energy equal to one million British thermal units

Mbbls/d: One thousand barrels per day

Mdth/d: One thousand dekatherms per day

MMcf/d: One million cubic feet per day

MMdth: One million dekatherms or one trillion British thermal units

MMdth/d: One million dekatherms per day

Tbtu: One trillion British thermal units

Consolidated Entities:

Cardinal: Cardinal Gas Services, L.L.C.

Gulfstar One: Gulfstar One LLC

Northwest Pipeline: Northwest Pipeline LLC

Transco: Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC

UEOM: Utica East Ohio Midstream LLC, previously a Partially Owned Entity until acquiring remaining interest in March 2019

Northeast JV: Ohio Valley Midstream LLC, a partially owned venture that includes our Ohio Valley assets and UEOM

WPZ: Williams Partners L.P. Effective August 10, 2018, we completed our merger with WPZ, pursuant to which we acquired all outstanding common units of WPZ held by others and Williams continued as the surviving entity.

Partially Owned Entities: Entities in which we do not own a 100 percent ownership interest and which, as of December 31, 2019, we account for as an equity-method investment, including principally the following:

Aux Sable: Aux Sable Liquid Products LP

Brazos Permian II: Brazos Permian II, LLC

Caiman II: Caiman Energy II, LLC

Constitution: Constitution Pipeline Company, LLC

Discovery: Discovery Producer Services LLC

Gulfstream: Gulfstream Natural Gas System, L.L.C.

Jackalope: Jackalope Gas Gathering Services, L.L.C., which was sold in April 2019

Laurel Mountain: Laurel Mountain Midstream, LLC

OPPL: Overland Pass Pipeline Company LLC

RMM: Rocky Mountain Midstream Holdings LLC

Government and Regulatory:

EPA: Environmental Protection Agency

Exchange Act, the: Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended

FERC*:* Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

IRS: Internal Revenue Service

SEC: Securities and Exchange Commission

Other:

Fractionation: The process by which a mixed stream of natural gas liquids is separated into its constituent products,

such as ethane, propane, and butane

GAAP: U.S. generally accepted accounting principles

Geismar Incident: An explosion and fire which occurred on June 13, 2013, at our formerly owned Geismar olefins plant and rendered the facility temporarily inoperable.

LNG: Liquefied natural gas; natural gas which has been liquefied at cryogenic temperatures

MVC: Minimum volume commitment

NGLs: Natural gas liquids; natural gas liquids result from natural gas processing and crude oil refining and are

used as petrochemical feedstocks, heating fuels, and gasoline additives, among other applications

NGL margins: NGL revenues less Btu replacement cost, plant fuel, transportation, and fractionation

WPZ Merger: The August 10, 2018, merger transactions pursuant to which we acquired all outstanding common units of WPZ held by others, merged WPZ into Williams, and Williams continued as the surviving entity.

The statements in this Annual Report that are not historical information, including statements concerning plans and objectives of management for future operations, economic performance or related assumptions, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may be identified by various forms of words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “seeks,” “could,” “may,” “should,” “continues,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,” “intends,” “might,” “goals,” “objectives,” “targets,” “planned,” “potential,” “projects,” “scheduled,” “will,” “assumes,” “guidance,” “outlook,” “in-service date,” or other similar expressions and other words and terms of similar meaning. Although we believe that our expectations regarding future events are based on reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that such expectations or assumptions will be achieved. Additional information regarding forward-looking statements and important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are described under Part I, Item 1A in this Annual Report.

PART I

In this report, Williams (which includes The Williams Companies, Inc. and, unless the context otherwise indicates, all of our subsidiaries) is at times referred to in the first person as “we,” “us” or “our.” We also sometimes refer to Williams as the “Company.”

GENERAL

We are an energy infrastructure company committed to be the leader in providing infrastructure that safely delivers natural gas products to reliably fuel the clean energy economy. We have operations in 15 supply areas that provide natural gas gathering, processing, and transmission services and natural gas liquids fractionation, transportation, and storage services to more than 600 customers. We own an interest in and operate over 30,000 miles of pipelines, 28 processing facilities, 7 fractionation facilities, and approximately 23 million barrels of NGL storage capacity, handling approximately 30 percent of the nation’s natural gas volumes.

We were founded in 1908, originally incorporated under the laws of the state of Nevada in 1949 and reincorporated under the laws of the state of Delaware in 1987. Our common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WMB.” Our operations are located in the United States. Williams’ headquarters are located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with other major offices in Salt Lake City, Utah; Houston, Texas; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Our telephone number is 918-573-2000.

Service Assets, Customers, and Contracts

Interstate Natural Gas Pipeline Assets

Our interstate natural gas pipelines, which are presented in our Transmission & Gulf of Mexico segment as described under the heading “Business Segments,” are subject to regulation by the FERC and as such, our rates and charges for the transportation of natural gas in interstate commerce are subject to regulation. The rates are established through the FERC’s ratemaking process.

Our interstate natural gas pipelines transport and store natural gas for a broad mix of customers, including local natural gas distribution companies, public utilities, municipalities, direct industrial users, electric power generators, and natural gas marketers and producers. We have firm transportation and storage contracts that are generally long-term contracts with various expiration dates and account for the major portion of our regulated businesses. Additionally, we offer storage services and interruptible transportation services under shorter-term agreements. Transco’s and Northwest Pipeline’s three largest customers in 2019 accounted for approximately 28 percent and 48 percent, respectively, of their total revenues.

Gathering, Processing, and Treating Assets

Our gathering, processing, and treating operations are presented within our Transmission & Gulf of Mexico, Northeast G&P, and West reporting segments as described under the heading “Business Segments.”

Our gathering systems receive natural gas from producers’ crude oil and natural gas wells and gather these volumes to gas processing, treating, or redelivery facilities. Typically, natural gas, in its raw form, is not acceptable for transportation in major interstate natural gas pipelines or for commercial use as a fuel. Our treating facilities remove water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other contaminants, and collect condensate. We are generally paid a fee based on the volume of natural gas gathered and/or treated, generally measured in the Btu heating value.

In addition, natural gas contains various amounts of NGLs, which generally have a higher value when separated from the natural gas stream. Our processing plants extract the NGLs, which include ethane, primarily used in the petrochemical industry; propane, used for heating, fuel, and also in the petrochemical industry; and, normal butane, isobutane, and natural gasoline, primarily used by the refining industry.

Our gas processing services generate revenues primarily from the following types of contracts:

Generally, our gathering and processing agreements are long-term agreements, with terms ranging from month-to-month to the life of the producing lease. Certain contracts include fee redetermination or cost of service mechanisms that are designed to support a return on invested capital and allow our gathering rates to be adjusted, subject to specified caps in certain cases, to account for variability in volume, capital expenditures, commodity price fluctuations, compression and other expenses. We also have certain gas gathering and processing agreements with minimum volume commitments (MVC), whereby the customer is obligated to pay a contractually determined fee based on any shortfall between the actual gathered and processed volumes and the MVC for a stated period.

Demand for gas gathering and processing services is dependent on producers’ drilling activities, which is impacted by the strength of the economy, natural gas prices, and the resulting demand for natural gas by manufacturing and industrial companies and consumers. During 2019, our facilities gathered and processed gas and crude oil for approximately 230 customers. Our top ten customers accounted for approximately 75 percent of our gathering and processing fee revenues and NGL margins from our noncash commodity-based agreements.

Crude Oil Transportation and Production Handling Assets

Our crude oil transportation operations, which are presented in our Transmission & Gulf of Mexico segment as described under the heading “Business Segments,” earn revenues typically by volumetric-based fee arrangements. Revenue sources have historically included a combination of fixed-fee, volumetric-based fee, and cost reimbursement arrangements. Generally, fixed fees associated with the production at our Gulf Coast production handling facilities are recognized on a units-of-production basis. Certain fixed fees associated with the production at our Gulfstar One facility are recognized based on contractually determined maximum daily quantities. Crude oil marketing activity is presented on a net basis within Product costs in the Consolidated Statement of Operations subsequent to the adoption of Accounting Standard Update 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606) as of January 1, 2018.

Key variables for our all of our businesses will continue to be:

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND CAUTIONARY STATEMENT

FOR PURPOSES OF THE “SAFE HARBOR” PROVISIONS OF

THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

The reports, filings, and other public announcements of Williams may contain or incorporate by reference statements that do not directly or exclusively relate to historical facts. Such statements are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (Securities Act) and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements relate to anticipated financial performance, management’s plans and objectives for future operations, business prospects, outcome of regulatory proceedings, market conditions, and other matters as discussed below. We make these forward-looking statements in reliance on the safe harbor protections provided under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this report that address activities, events, or developments that we expect, believe or anticipate will exist or may occur in the future, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can be identified by various forms of words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “seeks,” “could,” “may,” “should,” “continues,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,” “intends,” “might,” “goals,” “objectives,” “targets,” “planned,” “potential,” “projects,” “scheduled,” “will,” “assumes,” “guidance,” “outlook,” “in-service date,” or other similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to management and include, among others, statements regarding:

Forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions, uncertainties, and risks that could cause future events or results to be materially different from those stated or implied in this report. Many of the factors that will determine these results are beyond our ability to control or predict. Specific factors that could cause actual results to differ from results contemplated by the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following:

Given the uncertainties and risk factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, we caution investors not to unduly rely on our forward-looking statements. We disclaim any obligations to and do not intend to update the above list or announce publicly the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements to reflect future events or developments.

In addition to causing our actual results to differ, the factors listed above and referred to below may cause our intentions to change from those statements of intention set forth in this report. Such changes in our intentions may also cause our results to differ. We may change our intentions, at any time and without notice, based upon changes in such factors, our assumptions, or otherwise.

Because forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, we caution that there are important factors, in addition to those listed above, that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. These factors are described in the following section.

RISK FACTORS

You should carefully consider the following risk factors in addition to the other information in this report. Each of these factors could adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, and, in some cases our reputation. The occurrence of any of such risks could also adversely affect the value of an investment in our securities.

Risks Related to Our Business

The financial condition of our natural gas transportation and midstream businesses is dependent on the continued availability of natural gas supplies in the supply basins that we access and demand for those supplies in the markets we serve.

Our ability to maintain and expand our natural gas tra

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Not applicable.

Please read “Business” for a description of the location and general character of our principal physical properties. We generally own our facilities, although a substantial portion of our pipeline and gathering facilities is constructed and maintained pursuant to rights-of-way, easements, permits, licenses, or consents on and across properties owned by others.

Environmental

Certain reportable legal proceedings involving governmental authorities under federal, state, and local laws regulating the discharge of materials into the environment are described below. While it is not possible for us to predict the final outcome of the proceedings which are still pending, we do not anticipate a material effect on our consolidated financial position if we receive an unfavorable outcome in any one or more of such proceedings.

On June 13, 2013, an explosion and fire occurred at our formerly owned Geismar olefins plant and rendered the facility temporarily inoperable (Geismar Incident). On October 21, 2013, the EPA, Region 6, issued an Inspection Report pursuant to the Clean Air Act’s Risk Management Program following its inspection of the facility on June 24 through June 28, 2013. The report notes the EPA’s preliminary determinations about the facility’s documentation regarding process safety, process hazard analysis, as well as operating procedures, employee training, and other matters. On June 16, 2014, we received a request for information related to the Geismar Incident from the EPA under Section 114 of the Clean Air Act to which we responded on August 13, 2014. We have worked with the agency to resolve these matters and in the second half of 2019, entered into a Stipulation of Settlement, which includes a penalty of $750,000 that will be due within thirty days of the Court’s entry of the settlement. The Court set a fairness hearing on the settlement for December 11, 2019. Prior to the scheduled hearing, the Court continued the hearing without setting a new date.

On May 5, 2017, we entered into a Consent Order with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Division (GADNR) pertaining to alleged violations of the Georgia Water Quality Control Act and associated rules arising from a permit issued by GADNR for construction of Transco’s Dalton expansion project. Pursuant to the Consent Order, we paid a fine of $168,750 and agreed to a Corrective Action Plan.

On January 19, 2016, we received a Notice of Noncompliance with certain Leak Detection and Repair (LDAR) regulations under the Clean Air Act at our Moundsville Fractionator Facility from the EPA, Region 3. Subsequently, the EPA alleged similar violations of certain LDAR regulations at our Oak Grove Gas Plant. On March 19, 2018, we received a Notice of Violation of certain LDAR regulations at our former Ignacio Gas Plant from the EPA, Region 8, following an on-site inspection of the facility. On March 20, 2018, we also received a Notice of Violation of certain LDAR regulations at our Parachute Creek Gas Plant from the EPA, Region 8. All Notices were subsequently referred to a common attorney at the Department of Justice (DOJ). We are exploring global resolution of the claims at these facilities, as well as alleged violations at certain other facilities, with the DOJ. Global resolution would include both

payment of a civil penalty and an injunctive relief component. We continue to work with the DOJ and the other agencies to resolve these claims, whether individually or globally, and negotiations are ongoing.

Other environmental matters called for by this Item are described under the caption “Environmental Matters” in Note 19 – Contingent Liabilities and Commitments of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included under Part II, Item 8 Financial Statements of this report, which information is incorporated by reference into this Item.

Other litigation

The additional information called for by this Item is provided in Note 19 – Contingent Liabilities and Commitments of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included under Part II, Item 8 Financial Statements of this report, which information is incorporated by reference into this Item.

Not applicable.

Information About Our Executive Officers

The name, title, age, period of service, and recent business experience of each of our executive officers as of February 24, 2020, are listed below.

PART II

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WMB.” At the close of business on February 19, 2020, we had 6,512 holders of record of our common stock.

Performance Graph

Set forth below is a line graph comparing our cumulative total stockholder return on our common stock (assuming reinvestment of dividends) with the cumulative total return of the S&P 500 Stock Index, the Bloomberg Americas Pipelines Index, and the Arca Natural Gas Index for the period of five fiscal years commencing January 1, 2015. The Bloomberg Americas Pipelines Index is composed of Enbridge Inc., Kinder Morgan, Inc., TC Energy Corporation, ONEOK, Inc., Pembina Pipeline Corporation, Cheniere Energy, Inc., Targa Resources Corp., Inter Pipeline Ltd., and Williams. The Arca Natural Gas Index is comprised of over 20 highly capitalized companies in the natural gas industry involved primarily in natural gas exploration and production and natural gas pipeline transportation and transmission. The graph below assumes an investment of $100 at the beginning of the period.

The following financial data at December 31, 2019 and 2018, and for each of the three preceding years in the period ended December 31, 2019, should be read in conjunction with the other financial information included in Part II, Item 7, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and Part II, Item 8, Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Form 10-K. All other financial data has been prepared from our accounting records.

General

We are an energy infrastructure company focused on connecting North America’s significant hydrocarbon resource plays to growing markets for natural gas and NGLs through our gas pipeline and midstream business. Our operations are located in the United States.

Our interstate natural gas pipeline strategy is to create value by maximizing the utilization of our pipeline capacity by providing high quality, low cost transportation of natural gas to large and growing markets. Our gas pipeline businesses’ interstate transmission and storage activities are subject to regulation by the FERC and as such, our rates and charges for the transportation of natural gas in interstate commerce, and the extension, expansion or abandonment of jurisdictional facilities and accounting, among other things, are subject to regulation. The rates are established through the FERC’s ratemaking process. Changes in commodity prices and volumes transported have limited near-term impact on these revenues because the majority of cost of service is recovered through firm capacity reservation charges in transportation rates.

The ongoing strategy of our midstream operations is to safely and reliably operate large-scale midstream infrastructure where our assets can be fully utilized and drive low per-unit costs. We focus on consistently attracting new business by providing highly reliable service to our customers. These services include natural gas gathering, processing, treating, and compression, NGL fractionation and transportation, crude oil production handling and transportation, marketing services for NGL, crude oil and natural gas, as well as storage facilities.

As of December 31, 2019, our operations are presented within the following reportable segments: Atlantic-Gulf, Northeast G&P, and West, consistent with the manner in which our chief operating decision maker evaluates performance and allocates resources. All remaining business activities as well as corporate activities are included in Other. Our reportable segments are comprised of the following businesses:

and our previously owned 50 percent equity-method investment in the Delaware basin gas gathering system (DBJV) (see Note 6 – Investing Activities of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements).

Unless indicated otherwise, the following discussion and analysis of results of operations and financial condition and liquidity relates to our current continuing operations and should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in Part II, Item 8 of this report. Effective January 1, 2020, the composition of our reportable segments changed (see Part I, Item I Business Segments for further discussion).

Dividends

In December 2019, we paid a regular quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share. On January 28, 2020, our board of directors approved a regular quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share payable on March 30, 2020.

Overview

Net income (loss) attributable to The Williams Companies, Inc., for the year ended December 31, 2019, increased $1.005 billion compared to the year ended December 31, 2018, reflecting:

These favorable changes were partially offset by:

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Interest Rate Risk

Our current interest rate risk exposure is related primarily to our debt portfolio. Our debt portfolio is primarily comprised of fixed rate debt, which mitigates the impact of fluctuations in interest rates. Any borrowings under our credit facility and any issuances under our commercial paper program could be at a variable interest rate and could expose us to the risk of increasing interest rates. The maturity of our long-term debt portfolio is partially influenced by the expected lives of our operating assets. (See Note 15 – Debt and Banking Arrangements of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.)

The tables below provide information by maturity date about our interest rate risk-sensitive instruments as of December 31, 2019 and 2018. See Note 18 – Fair Value Measurements, Guarantees, and Concentration of Credit Risk of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for the methods used in determining the fair value of our long-term debt.

Commodity Price Risk

We are exposed to the impact of fluctuations in the market price of NGLs and natural gas, as well as other market factors, such as market volatility and energy commodity price correlations. We are exposed to these risks in connection with our owned energy-related assets, our long-term energy-related contracts, and limited proprietary trading activities. Our management of the risks associated with these market fluctuations includes maintaining sufficient liquidity, as well as using various derivatives and nonderivative energy-related contracts. The fair value of derivative contracts is subject to many factors, including changes in energy commodity market prices, the liquidity and volatility of the markets in which the contracts are transacted, and changes in interest rates. At December 31, 2019 and 2018, our derivative activity was not material. (See Note 18 – Fair Value Measurements, Guarantees, and Concentration of Credit Risk of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.)

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Stockholders and the Board of Directors of

The Williams Companies, Inc.

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of The Williams Companies, Inc. (the Company) as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive income (loss), changes in equity and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2019, and the related notes and the financial statement schedule listed in the index at Item 15(a) (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, based on our audits and the report of other auditors, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated financial position of the Company at December 31, 2019 and 2018, and the consolidated results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2019, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

We did not audit the financial statements of Gulfstream Natural Gas System, L.L.C. (Gulfstream), a limited liability corporation in which the Company has a 50 percent interest. In the consolidated financial statements, the Company’s investment in Gulfstream was $217 million and $225 million as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively, and the Company’s equity earnings in the net income of Gulfstream were $74 million in 2019, $75 million in 2018 and $75 million in 2017. Gulfstream’s financial statements were audited by other auditors whose report has been furnished to us, and our opinion, insofar as it relates to the amounts included for Gulfstream, is based solely on the report of other auditors.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019, based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) and our report dated February 24, 2020 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Adoption of New Accounting Standard

As discussed in Note 1 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company changed its method for accounting for revenue in 2018.

Basis for Opinion

These consolidated financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s consolidated financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. We believe that our audits and the report of other auditors provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

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None.

Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, does not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a - 15(e) and 15d - 15(e) of the Securities Exchange Act) (Disclosure Controls) will prevent all errors and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within the company have been detected. These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty, and that breakdowns can occur because of simple error or mistake. Additionally, controls can be circumvented by the individual acts of some persons, by collusion of two or more people, or by management override of the control. The design of any system of controls also is based in part upon certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions. Because of the inherent limitations in a cost-effective control system, misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected. We monitor our Disclosure Controls and make modifications as necessary; our intent in this regard is that the Disclosure Controls will be modified as systems change and conditions warrant.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

An evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our Disclosure Controls was performed as of the end of the period covered by this report. This evaluation was performed under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer. Based upon that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that these Disclosure Controls are effective at a reasonable assurance level.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

There have been no changes during the fourth quarter of 2019 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our Internal Control over Financial Reporting.

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a - 15(f) and 15d - 15(f) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934). Our internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance to our management and board of directors regarding the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. Our internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of our assets; (ii) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that our receipts and expenditures are being made only in accordance with authorization of our management and board of directors; and (iii) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of our assets that could have a material effect on our financial statements.

All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations including the possibility of human error and the circumvention or overriding of controls. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation.

Under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we assessed the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019, based on the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) in Internal Control — Integrated Framework (2013). Based on our assessment, we concluded that, as of December 31, 2019, our internal control over financial reporting was effective.

Ernst & Young LLP, our independent registered public accounting firm, has audited our internal control over financial reporting, as stated in their report which is included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Stockholders and the Board of Directors of

The Williams Companies, Inc.

Opinion on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

We have audited The Williams Companies, Inc.’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019, based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) (the COSO criteria). In our opinion, The Williams Companies, Inc. (the Company) maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019, based on the COSO criteria.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the consolidated balance sheet of the Company as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, and the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive income (loss), changes in equity and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2019, and the related notes and the financial statement schedule listed in the index at Item 15(a) and our report dated February 24, 2020, expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Basis for Opinion

The Company’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in the accompanying Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects.

Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk, and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Definition and Limitations of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

Tulsa, Oklahoma

February 24, 2020

None.

PART III

The information regarding our directors and nominees for director required by Item 401 of Regulation S-K will be presented under the heading “Election of Directors” in our definitive proxy statement prepared for the solicitation of proxies in connection with our Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held April 28, 2020, which shall be filed no later than March 19, 2020 (Proxy Statement), which information is incorporated by reference herein.

Information regarding our executive officers required by Item 401(b) of Regulation S-K is presented at the end of Part I herein and captioned “Information About Our Executive Officers,” as permitted by General Instruction G(3) to and Instruction 3 to Item 401(b) of Regulation S-K.

Information required by paragraphs (c)(3), (d)(4) and (d)(5) of Item 407 of Regulation S-K will be included under the heading “Questions and Answers About the Annual Meeting and Voting” and “Corporate Governance and Board Matters” in our Proxy Statement, which information is incorporated by reference herein.

Our Code of Business Conduct, together with our Corporate Governance Guidelines, the charters for each of our board committees, and our Code of Business Conduct applicable to all employees, including our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Accounting Officer, or persons performing similar functions, are available on our Internet website at www.williams.com. We will provide, free of charge, a copy of our Code of Business Conduct or any of our other corporate documents listed above upon written request to our Corporate Secretary at Williams, One Williams Center, Suite 4700, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74172. We intend to disclose any amendments to or waivers, in each case, of the Code of Business Conduct on behalf of our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Accounting Officer, and persons performing similar functions on the corporate governance section of our Internet website at www.williams.com, promptly following the date of any such amendment or waiver.

The information required by Item 402 and paragraphs (e)(4) and (e)(5) of Item 407 of Regulation S-K regarding executive compensation will be presented under the headings “Compensation Discussion and Analysis,” “Executive Compensation and Other Information,” “Compensation of Directors,” “Compensation and Management Development Committee Report on Executive Compensation,” and “Compensation and Management Development Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation” in our Proxy Statement, which information is incorporated by reference herein. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the information provided under the heading “Compensation and Management Development Committee Report on Executive Compensation” in our Proxy Statement is furnished and shall not be deemed to be filed for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is not subject to the liabilities of that section and is not deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

The information regarding securities authorized for issuance under equity compensation plans required by Item 201(d) of Regulation S-K and the security ownership of certain beneficial owners and management required by Item 403 of Regulation S-K will be presented under the headings “Equity Compensation Stock Plans” and “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” in our Proxy Statement, which information is incorporated by reference herein.

The information regarding certain relationships and related transactions required by Item 404 and Item 407(a) of Regulation S-K will be presented under the heading “Corporate Governance and Board Matters” in our Proxy Statement, which information is incorporated by reference herein.

The information regarding our principal accounting fees and services required by Item 9(e) of Schedule 14A will be presented under the heading “Principal Accountant Fees and Services” in our Proxy Statement, which information is incorporated by reference herein.

PART IV

(a) 1 and 2.

All other schedules have been omitted since the required information is not present or is not present in amounts sufficient to require submission of the schedule, or because the information required is included in the financial statements and notes thereto.

(a) 3 and (b). The exhibits listed below are filed as part of this annual report.

INDEX TO EXHIBITS

Not applicable.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

Date: February 24, 2020

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.