HOUSTON — The former CEO of a oil and gas industry services provider, is claiming Delaware-based TETRA Technologies breached their purchase agreement by withholding escrow funds and is seeking a declaratory judgment against indemnification in a suit against TETRA and a vendor.
John Giese filed a complaint July 27 in the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas against Versus, TETRA Technologies Inc., alleging breach of contract.
Giese serves as CEO of JRGO which provides construction and technical services for petrochemical, oil, gas and power generation industries. According to his complaint, shareholders of JRGO and its former subsidiary JRGO Energy, executed an agreement on Dec. 6, 2018 to sell JRGO to TETRA.
The agreement included keeping "certain funds" in escrow for 18 months after the June 6, 2020, sale of JRGO. Giese alleges that TETRA has failed to show "no proper demand for indemnification" regarding its legal dispute with Sowards Oil Field Services, a previous vendor of JRGO, and failed to release the balance of the escrow funds per the purchase agreement. Giese also claims JRGO's "sellers are not liable to indemnify" TETRA in the "seemingly fraudulent lawsuit" with Sowards.
Giese also claims he and the other sellers have suffered "loss of operating capital, lost investment opportunities and attorneys' fees and costs" as result of TETRA alleged breach of contract.
Giese seeks monetary relief of more than $950,000, trial by jury and all other just relief. He is represented by Joseph Lavigne and Jacob Pritt of Jones Walker LLP in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas case number 4:20-CV-02626