everythingLubbock.com
by: Caitlyn Rooney
Posted:
LUBBOCK, Texas — The City of Lubbock filed a federal lawsuit against renewable energy company Elk City II Wind, according to court documents obtained by EverythingLubbock.com on Monday. The city demanded more than $19 million in restitution.
Federal court records stated the City of Lubbock had an agreement for wind-powered electricity with Elk City. According to court records, Lubbock claimed the deal should be void under Texas law. The company strongly disagreed.
The cities of Lubbock, Brownfield, Tulia and Floydada created the West Texas Municipal Power Agency (WTMPA) in 1983. A federal complaint stated Lubbock was deleted from the WTMPA in 2019, but still held the majority of an agreement the group made with Elk City in 2012.
Lubbock claimed it was left paying for energy that was not used and a contract with little to no escape clause, court records showed. Lubbock said the agreement did not let it control or limit the amount of energy it bought, according to court documents.
“Energy supplied by the wind farm has become logistically and economically obsolete for Lubbock,” the complaint said. In a motion to dismiss the complaint, Elk City II Wind said “buyer’s remorse” was not an excuse to void the agreement.
“The flaws in Lubbock’s claims are numerous and fatal,” Elk City’s court records stated. The company called the lawsuit an “improper effort” to get out of a contract that Lubbock “voluntarily” accepted for years. The company said the reason Lubbock did not use the energy it paid for was because the city “failed to arrange delivery of that energy.”
Elk City claimed that Lubbock not profiting from the deal was a risk assumed under the agreement.
As the case moves forward, check EverythingLubbock.com for further updates.