3M’s accrued product warranty liabilities, recorded on the Consolidated Balance Sheet as part of current and long-term liabilities, are estimated at approximately $21 million. 3M does not consider this amount to be material. The fair value of 3M guarantees of loans with third parties and other guarantee arrangements are not material.

 

In addition to guarantees, 3M, in the normal course of business, periodically enters into agreements that require the Company to indemnify either major customers or suppliers for specific risks, such as claims for injury or property damage arising out of the use of 3M products or the negligence of 3M personnel, or claims alleging that 3M products infringe third-party patents or other intellectual property. While 3M’s maximum exposure under these indemnification provisions cannot be estimated, these indemnifications are not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated results of operations or financial condition.

 

A summary of the Company’s significant contractual obligations as of December 31, 2007, follows:

 

Contractual Obligations

 

Long-term debt payments due in 2008 include $350 million of dealer remarketable securities (final maturity 2010) and $62 million of floating rate notes (final maturity 2044). These securities are classified as the current portion of long-term debt as the result of put provisions associated with these debt instruments.

 

Unconditional purchase obligations are defined as an agreement to purchase goods or services that is enforceable and legally binding on the Company. Included in the unconditional purchase obligations category above are certain obligations related to take or pay contracts, capital commitments, service agreements and utilities. These estimates include both unconditional purchase obligations with terms in excess of one year and normal ongoing purchase obligations with terms of less than one year. Many of these commitments relate to take or pay contracts, in which 3M guarantees payment to ensure availability of products or services that are sold to customers. The Company expects to receive consideration (products or services) for these unconditional purchase obligations. Contractual capital commitments are included in the preceding table, but these commitments represent a small part of the Company’s expected capital spending in 2008 and beyond. The purchase obligation amounts do not represent the entire anticipated purchases in the future, but represent only those items for which the Company is contractually obligated. The majority of 3M’s products and services are purchased as needed, with no unconditional commitment. For this reason, these amounts will not provide a reliable indicator of the Company’s expected future cash outflows on a stand-alone basis.

 

Other obligations, included in the preceding table within the caption entitled “Unconditional purchase obligations and other,” include the current portion of the liability for uncertain tax positions under FIN 48. The Company is not able to reasonably estimate the timing of the long-term payments or the amount by which the liability will increase or decrease over time; therefore,