HOUSTON A federal judge has approved a class action settlement, including $24.4 million in a cash fund to resolve litigation against Repsol Oil and Gas USA, LLC, formerly Talisman Energy USA, Inc., for royalty owners’ claims that the company improperly allocated production volumes and underpaid owners for wells operated in the Eagle Ford shale basin in South Texas.
In addition to the cash fund, Repsol waived any right to recover over $12 million in past overpayments to royalty owners. Judge Keith P. Ellison in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, approved the class action settlement and entered an order of judgment following a final fairness hearing May 12. The hearing was the final step in the settlement process after the judge gave preliminary approval last December to the class action settlement, the certification of the class for the settlement and the plan of allocation.