BP To Get $4B In Anadarko Settlement;

Anadarko Petroleum(APC) announced today that it had reached a $4 billion settlementwithBP(BP) for the Deepwater Horizon disaster of April 2010.

The $4 billion tab was more than some analysts had forecast, but less than the $6.1 billion BP had original sought. Along with agreeing to pay the sum, Anadarko will drop its gross negligence claims against BP, as well as return the 25% interest it still holds in the Macondo well. Other former stakeholdersMitsui & Co. andWeatherford International (WFT) have already reached similar settlements with BP.

While the move grants Anadarko immunity from private businesses and area residents who may want to seek damages for the explosion, which killed 11 people and led to the most devastating oil spill in U.S. history, the company may still face penalties from the federal government.

Both Anadarko and BP were moving up in pre-market trading.

In related news, BP CEOBob Dudley said he expects the price of Brent crude to hover between $90 to $100 a barrel in the near future, below the $111.45 that futures were recent! ly chang ing hands for. However, while predicting a price decrease, Dudley stressed that he does not see the U.S. entering into a double-dip recession.