$12 million verbal settlement reached in Anadarko suit, not yet signed

CHEYENNE – A $12 million verbal settlement agreement has been reached in a lawsuit against the Occidental Petroleum Corp. unit Anadarko Petroleum Corp.

The suit was filed by Wyoming landowners, who accused the extraction company of anti-competitively hoarding permits, effectively controlling local oil and gas development. The group alleged that Anadarko did this by collecting drilling permits without intending to use them, limiting competitor access to certain areas.

The suit nearly went to trial Monday, but instead the federal court reported notice of a “verbal settlement.” The settlement agreement has not yet been signed by all parties and still needs to be finalized and sent to all 2,300 members of the class-action lawsuit.

Prior to the verbal settlement, the expected 10-day jury trial was pushed back by an order from the U.S. District Judge Kelly H. Rankin. The delay in trial was due to the parties' request for additional time to work on a possible settlement.