GALVESTON – A West Texas pipe distributor has filed a request for disclosure in Galveston County District Court in a lawsuit against Alpha Gamma Onshore, Mantle Oil & Gas LLC and Thomas Kelly.
Based in Midland, KC Pipe filed the complaint and is seeking damages of at least $100,000 but no more than $200,000.
According to the complaint obtained by The Record, during January 2016, Mantle Oil & Gas contracted with KC Pipe to purchase steel casing for use in drilling and operating various wells in Throckmorton County, Texas, and Sabine Parish, Louisiana.
KC Pipe provided 140 pieces of pipe and invoiced Mantle for the principal amount of $85,836.65.
Mantle allegedly failed to make payments on the invoices when they were due and on June 23, 2016, KC Pipe sent correspondence to the company demanding payment for the outstanding balance, which was more than 90 days past due.
These efforts to collect payment were not successful.
During the same period, Alpha Gamma expressed its interest in taking over all operations on the Wells in Throckmorton County and Sabine Parish from Mantle and an agreement was reached on July 1, 2016.
Under the agreement, Alpha Gamma agreed to “assume all responsibilities for all of the wells, including unpaid invoices of $1,520,196.”
According to court records, the agreement noted that “Alpha Gamma accepts and agrees that Mantle is entitled to notify all vendors which have provided goods or services in connection with its operations in Throckmorton County and Sabine Parish that they should look solely to Alpha Gamma for payment of all unpaid invoices which have been rendered by them to Mantle or which are to be issued in connection with compensation for future goods and services to be provided by such vendors.”
Mantle did notify KC Pipe on July 20, 2016, and the pipe company reached out to Alpha Gamma on Aug. 1, 2016, regarding the past-due amount.
A KC Pipe official spoke with Alpha Gamma's managing member, Thomas E. Kelly, who assured officials that Alpha Gamma would pay the invoices within a month, the suit states.
According to the complaint, KC Pipe followed up by email that same day, attaching copies of the delinquent invoices and internal aging report.
By November, KC Pipe claimed it still had not received any payments and it sent a formal letter to both Mantle and Alpha Gamma demanding full payment.
From at least Aug. 1, 2016, until March 2017, KC Pipe alleges it continued to make regular phone calls to Alpha Gamma, receiving only continued empty promises of payments that never came.
“Accordingly, Mantle and Alpha Gamma have forced KC Pipe to file suit to recover its losses,” the complaint states.
Causes of action include suit on sworn account (Mantle); breach of contract (Mantle); quantum meruit (Mantle); quantum meruit (Alpha Gamma); fraudulent misrepresentation (Kelly); and financial fraud by nondisclosure (Kelly).
KC Pipe is alleging it has suffered economic damages arising from the debt in the principal amount of $85,836.65, attorneys' fees accrued in collecting the unpaid principal, plus nontaxable costs of litigation.
It also seeks to recover reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses related to the case.
KC Pipe is represented by Alexis W. Foster of Gray Reed & McGraw of Houston.
Galveston County District Court Case No. 17-CV-0409