North Dakota's Supreme Court says an energy company did not shortchange a group of more than 300 landowners on their natural gas royalty payments.

The high court unanimously upheld a district judge's ruling in favor of Petro-Hunt LLC of Dallas.

A group of property owners disputed the company's method of figuring royalty payments from natural gas it produced from beneath their land.

Petro-Hunt subtracted its costs for processing the gas before it made royalty payments. The landowners argued the company should have absorbed those costs.

The Supreme Court also rejected arguments that Petro-Hunt should have had to pay royalties on natural gas it used to operate some storage facilities.

- Associated Press