Jun 1, 2015 3 min read

A Mon Valley real estate company filed suit in Washington County Court claiming Murray Energy and related companies broke their lease for coal-loading facilities on two landings on the Monongahela River in Speers, damaging equipment and a building when it pulled out.

Guttman Realty Co. of 200 Speers St., Belle Vernon, is seeking more than $500,000 in “breaches” from Mon River Towing Inc., Murray American River Towing Inc., Murray American Transportation and Murray Energy Corp., all of St. Clairsville, Ohio.

In court documents, Guttman Realty provided background for the dispute. In 2006, Consol Energy Corp. purchased Mon River Towing and entered into a lease with Guttman. A lease executed in April 2013 was set to continue for five more years.

Around December 2013, according to filings with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission, Consol completed its sale of stock in Consolidation Coal Co. and subsidiaries including Mon River Towing to Murray Energy and its subsidiary.

Guttman asserts a transfer of more than 50 percent of the stock in Mon River Towing constituted an assignment of the lease, and Guttman considers Murray to be a successor of Mon River Towing Inc.

In January 2014, Murray American Transportation began making rent payments on behalf of Mon River Towing, and continued to do so through June of last year.

A Guttman Realty employee inquired about July 2014 rent that had not been received. Base rent at the time of the alleged breach was $9,399 per month.

In court documents, Guttman said Jeffrey D. Roe, who identified himself as assistant director of purchasing for Murray Energy in an email exchange, was unsure if Murray owed Guttman any payment for July of last year because he “was just advised we moved our operations out of Speers at the end of May.”

Guttman responded that Murray was bound by a lease through April 2018.

As part of an email exchange, Roe wrote of a connection between the river landings’ lease and Guttman fuel supply and said Murray vacated the premises because of a statement made by James Guttman linking the two.

Guttman Realty maintains Roe’s assertion was “without factual or legal merit,” and any discussions about fuel supply agreements were not made with Guttman Realty Co.

A letter sent July 22, 2014, from Robert D. Moore, executive vice president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer for Murray Energy Corp., which was included as an exhibit in Guttman’s suit, provided a few more details. According to Moore’s letter, as a result of Murray Energy’s discussions with James Guttman in December 2013, Murray immediately began preparations to vacate the premises in Speers. Due the size of the company and scope of operations, vacating continued until June 2014.

“Murray Energy Corp. has not violated any terms of above-referenced lease,” Moore stated in the letter.

Guttman maintains Murray Energy removed an overhead crane from a building on its upper landing and cut the building’s support structure.

A Murray spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.