UPDATE:Halliburton Agrees To Pay $35 Million To Settle Nigeria Bribery Case

Halliburton Co. (HAL) said Tuesday it has agreed to pay $35 million to the Nigerian government to settle bribery allegations related to the construction and expansion of its Bonny Island natural gas liquefaction facility, in which its former subsidiary KBR Inc. (KBR) had a 25% stake.

The deal comes two weeks after nine people and entities were indicted on the allegations, including former Halliburton chief ecxecutive and U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney. The charges were dropped Friday as an anti-graft agency spokesman said a settlement had been reached.

Under the pact, all lawsuits and charges against Halliburton, KBR and associated persons have been dropped and the Nigerian government agreed not to file further criminal or civil charges. In addition to paying $32.5 million as part of the settlement, Halliburton will pay $2.5 million in government legal fees and aid in Nigeria's efforts to recover funds frozen in a Swiss bank account of a former joint-venture agent.

Halliburton and KBR, which separated in 2007, paid $579 million to the U.S. government last year to settle similar allegations related to Nigeria.

The $35 million settlement amounts to about 4 cents a share for Halliburton, said Scott Burk, an analyst with Oppenheimer & Co.

"It's modest enough that we don't think it's going to have an impact on Halliburton," Burk said. "It seems like it will be worthwhile to just not have to worry about it going forward."

Nigerian anti-graft officials last week said the settlement would total $250 million. Halliburton representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the discrepancy.

Energy companies have become increasingly targeted in bribery probes, particularly those stemming from dealings in Nigeria.

At the same time earlier this month that Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said it was probing Halliburton, investigators said they were also looking into alleged bribery by Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSA, RDSA.LN).

Seven companies, including Shell, agreed in November to pay a combined $236 million to settle allegations by U.S. investigators that they or their contractors bribed foreign officials to obtain import permits for drilling equipment and other materials into countries including Nigeria.

Among the companies involved in that settlement were offshore drillers Noble Corp. (NE), Transocean Ltd. (RIG, RIGN.VX) and Pride International Inc. (PDE).

Earlier this fall The Wall Street Journal reported the U.S. Department of Justice had begun looking into allegations of bribery in Yemen by Halliburton's larger oil field services rival Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB).

Halliburton shares recently rose 9 cents to $40.23. The stock has gained approximately 33% this year.

-By Ryan Dezember and Tess Stynes, Dow Jones Newswires; 713-547-9208; Ryan.Dezember@dowjones.com

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