NEW ORLEANS –– An oil and gas company may add new claims to a lawsuit over a failed oil well, a federal judge ruled on Sept. 17.
Judge Karen Roby of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana granted a motion by EPL Oil & Gas Inc. to amend the complaint against Tana Exploration Company LLC.
EPL accused Tana of not paying their share of drilling expenses in exploring for oil off the coast of Louisiana. EPL claims Tana breached the original 2013 agreement and owes nearly $2 million under the lease.
After EPL filed the original complaint, the company determined the oil well needed to be "plugged" and abandoned. The company now seeks more compensation for that work.
Tana has not presented any objection to the motion.
In her order, Roby ruled there were no negative factors, such as futility and undue prejudice, to preclude amending the complaint. The judge determined EPL was correct to wait until plugging finished to try and collect on the claims.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana Case number 2:18-cv-00757-BWA-KWR