CIRI and Buccaneer reach deal

Cook Inlet Region Inc. and Buccaneer Energy Ltd. have agreed to mutually drop any claims against each other in an ongoing dispute over the Kenai Loop natural gas field.

The two parties have asked a federal bankruptcy judge to approve the settlement.

The deal would resolve one of the largest outstanding issues in bankruptcy proceedings started last year and would allow AIX Energy LLC to assume ownership of the field.

CIRI initiated a legal and regulatory dispute last year over drainage issues at Kenai Loop. The bankruptcy case stalled those proceedings before the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission and the state court. The deal would resolve all those matters.

- ERIC LIDJI