Bula Resources chief executive Mr John Hogan yesterday said reaching an agreement with former chairman and chief executive Mr Jim Stanley was a "pragmatic commercial decision".

In his first public statement on the agreement, Mr Hogan said it would allow the company to stop incurring costs and management time on what had become a protracted legal case and to focus fully on the future.

The agreement includes a confidentiality clause and no details of the settlement were disclosed. Mr Stanley was not available for comment.

The company said it was proceeding with an action to confirm its ownership of 73.7 million Bula shares registered in the name of Chamonix Nominees Ltd. The shares will be cancelled if the proceedings are successful.

"The cancellation of the 73.7 million shares will reduce the number of shares at issue by 3.6 per cent, thereby benefiting the remaining shareholders," Mr Hogan said.