A Houston based oil and gas company agreed to pay nearly $35 million to settle claims it underpaid royalties for oil and natural gas removed from leased federal lands in the San Juan Basin of northern New Mexico.
Hilcorp San Juan made the $34.6 million agreement, according to an announcement by the U.S. Department of Justice. It said it “knowingly” made the underpayments.
Reuters reported the agreement brings an end to government allegations that the company did not fullly pay the required royalties on fossil fuels extracted between 2017 and 2018 in the Basin that also stretches into southern Colorado. Instead, Hilcorp reportedly made some royalty payments based on estimates but never revised the payments at a later time.
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