Lawyer: Hunts, Banks May Settle Fight Soon

The Hunt brothers of Texas and their creditor banks have made substantial progress in negotiations and could settle a $1.5-billion dispute within two weeks, an attorney for the Hunts’ Placid Oil Co. said Friday.

Placid, which was the mainspring of the Hunt family’s multibillion-dollar fortune and one of the nation’s largest independent oil companies, was hard hit by the dramatic slump in oil prices in the mid-1980s. Its decline aggravated huge setbacks that the Hunts had in investments such as silver and land.

$1.5 Billion Owed

The Hunt brothers--Nelson Bunker, Lamar and Herbert--placed Placid and the William Herbert Hunt trust estate, which operates Penrod Drilling Co., under bankruptcy court protection in 1986. Overall, the Hunt brothers, including their three trust estates, owe about $1.5 billion to 23 creditor banks.

Henry Simon, an attorney for Placid, said, “Nothing is in writing yet but both parties feel that we can come to a resolution fairly quickly. I think we’ll be doing it within two weeks.”

Robert Jones, an attorney for First RepublicBank Corp., the lead creditor bank, said: “There have been settlement discussions. Those discussions are not complete but they are close enough that the parties decided to postpone confirmation hearings (for a plan of reorganization for Placid) for one week.”

Jones said he could not elaborate on the timing of any possible settlement.

Simon said a basic agreement had been worked out between the two sides in negotiations over the last few months and that they were currently working on the specifics. “Little pieces have fallen into place as we’ve gone along and now we’ve reached a point where they all work,” he said.

He said lawyers from both sides will meet Monday to discuss the deal and iron out a schedule.

Sources close to the negotiations said Placid had been spurred to negotiate a settlement when the financing of the Green Canyon oil field off Louisiana appeared to be in jeopardy.

Last month, bankruptcy Judge Harold Abramson granted Placid emergency funds to allow it to continue developing the field, but warned the Hunts he was frustrated that extra money was needed.