A lawsuit by a Waltham-based firm over the state’s obvious refusal to offer them requested correspondence is simply the newest litigation involving the enterprise, a evaluation of court docket proceedings exhibits.
World Companions, the corporate which at present operates a number of of the state’s 18 freeway service plazas, sued MassDOT final week demanding the discharge of “key documents,” which they are saying are “tied to the controversial award of a 35-year service plaza lease.” The lease in query was accredited by the MassDOT Board of Administrators at their common assembly in June over the objections of World, and was awarded to Dublin-based comfort retailer chain Applegreen.
Their lawsuit, filed in Suffolk Superior Court docket on August 11, seeks to have a choose order the discharge of correspondence between Applegreen and members of MassDOT’s Choice Committee, and it’s not the primary time the corporate has discovered itself preventing it out in court docket lately. Right here’s a take a look at a few different pending instances.
Alliance Vitality LLC. v. Venture Service LLC.
This ongoing dispute out of Connecticut is between subsidiaries owned by World and Applegreen. It’s scheduled to go to trial in February of 2027.
The case started as a swimsuit by World-subsidiary Alliance in 2024 in opposition to Venture Service, which was partially procured by Applegreen in 2019.
In accordance with the civil criticism, Alliance is asking the court docket to find out a “rebate” they have been receiving for gasoline didn’t rely as a “discount” which may improve the quantity of lease they owed to Venture Providers.
“For more than a decade, Alliance made payments exactly as the subcontract required, without a single objection from Project Service. That changed after Applegreen, a foreign-owned company, took control in 2019. Applegreen is now trying to rewrite the contract to squeeze more money out of the deal for itself, money that does nothing for Connecticut taxpayers,” Sean Geary, chief authorized officer at World Companions, informed the Herald in response to emailed questions.
Venture Service responded to the swimsuit with a countersuit of their very own, claiming that “Alliance has been receiving rebates and, on information and belief, potentially other reductions in the cost of fuel it purchases, since at least 2015.”
Bob Etchingham, the President and CEO of Applegreen, mentioned through the MassDOT board’s most up-to-date assembly that “we inherited Global as a tenant in Connecticut in 2019 and found them to be unsatisfactory, even having to resort to litigation to recover unpaid rent.”
Regardless of the dispute, World says they’ve paid out the lease requested by Applegreen “under protest,” to the tune of $10.6 million “because honoring our commitments matters.”
Conservation Regulation Basis v. World Companions
Introduced in U.S. District Court docket for the District Of Massachusetts, this swimsuit was filed by an environmental group final summer season over what they contend have been a number of violations of the Clear Water Act.
In accordance with Conservation Regulation Basis, World’s oil terminals in Chelsea and Revere have been “discharging pollutants” into the Chelsea River, specifically doubtlessly carcinogenic “polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons” and heavy metals.
“Since 2023, Global’s monitoring data for the Chelsea Sandwich Terminal has revealed at least 22 violations of the monthly average effluent limits for PAHs” allowed below their Chelsea allow, and “since 2023, Global’s monitoring data for the Global Revere Terminal has revealed at least 28 violations of the monthly average effluent limits for PAHs” allowed below their Revere allow, the CLF informed the court docket.
World informed the Herald that they started working with the U.S. Environmental Safety Company and the Massachusetts Division of Environmental Safety on the matter “long before CLF filed its complaint,” and so they entered a “voluntary Administrative Consent Order” with the EPA final summer season detailing subsequent steps.
The corporate “permanently decommissioned” the Revere facility final fall, in accordance with Geary, and in Chelsea they put in a “state-of-the-art stormwater filtration system” earlier this yr that introduced them “in full compliance with all permit requirements.”
“As a company that handles energy products, we take our responsibility to the environment and the communities where we operate very seriously,” Geary mentioned.
What it means
In accordance with World, their about 9 many years of enterprise within the Bay State “keeping homes warm, fueling emergency services, and supporting local communities” has demonstrated that they’re an organization that operates with “integrity and honesty” whereas concurrently “collaborating with federal, state, and local agencies to ensure we meet or exceed all regulatory requirements.”
Authorized disputes, they are saying, are a “a natural part of doing business in complex industries,” and the corporate “in all cases, believe we have acted with honesty, integrity, and in the best interests of our employees and communities.” Their chief authorized officer pointed the Herald towards Applegreen’s authorized historical past.
Etchingham informed MassDOT’s board that his firm has been the goal of a “well orchestrated” smear marketing campaign introduced by World Companions and its executives after the opposite firm was pretty outbid. Diana Pisciotta, a spokesperson for the Irish firm, informed the Herald that World’s monitor file speaks for itself and it’s not a ringing endorsement.
These instances alongside a tax dispute in New York and since-resolved complaints from gasoline sellers in Connecticut exhibit a sample, she mentioned.
“When a company has a history of legal cases related to exploiting contractual loopholes, shortchanging vendors, non-compliance with tax obligations and environmental issues, responsible government agencies are wise to consider the reliability and integrity of their potential partner,” Pisciotta mentioned. “The length of this contract – [three] decades plus, requires an operator who can not only get the job done to world class standards, but can also be a trusted partner.”
