Topeka ? The state’s largest electric company settled with other parties Tuesday over the sale of one of its major assets, but regulators initially were skeptical.

The agreement involves Westar Energy’s plans to sell its 45 percent interest in ONEOK Inc., a Tulsa, Okla., natural gas company. Westar’s stock in ONEOK is worth $971 million, and Westar hopes to receive $738 million after taxes and is offering it back to ONEOK first.

The agreement involves Westar, ONEOK, the Kansas Corporation Commission’s staff and the Citizens’ Utility Ratepayers Board, a state agency that represents residential and small-business consumers. It would require Westar to use money from the stock sale to pay off some of its estimated $3 billion in corporate debt.

The sale would be part of Westar’s efforts to improve its financial condition, something that now concerns the KCC and consumer advocates.

The parties filed the agreement with the commission, and ONEOK’s attorney asked the KCC to approve it within a week.

But commissioners appeared wary of the agreement. They questioned whether they would be agreeing to give up their power to review and pass judgment upon similar transactions in the future and whether they would have any say in the terms of a sale if ONEOK decided not to buy back the stock Westar owns.

“I understand the motivation and what the goal is,” said Commissioner Brian Moline. “I still have a concern. Are we then agreeing to a precedent here that will come back and haunt us?”

Westar has said its first choice is to have ONEOK buy back the stock, and the firm has until Aug. 28 to make a decision. Failing that, Westar hopes to sell the stock on the open market.

Attorneys sought to reassure the commission that in approving the agreement, the KCC wouldn’t give up any of the power it believes it has. They said they simply wanted to clear any regulatory hurdles that could prevent ONEOK from obtaining financing to buy back the stock if it wanted to do so.

The filing came before the KCC opened hearings into Westar’s finances. KCC spokeswoman Rosemary Foreman said the agreement may shorten the hearings but added that the three commissioners still have broader issues to consider than just the ONEOK sale.