ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. (AP) -- Sanderson Farms has given more than $1 million to Nash County to compensate for the costs of trying to bring a chicken processing plant to the county.

The reimbursement was received in a letter from Bob Billingsley, director of development and engineering for Sanderson Farms.

Sanderson Farms officials said in November that they wouldn't to open a large-scale chicken processing plant in Nash County on N.C. 97 just north of the Wilson County line. The company cited legal challenges that could delay the project.

County Commissioner Robbie Davis presented the letter during a county commissioners' retreat Friday at the Golden LEAF Foundation's retreat center in Rocky Mount.

Copyright 2013 The AP.