ST. LOUIS — Companies are fighting for control of Ashley Energy LLC, which owns the Near North Riverfront power plant that provides steam to 70 downtown buildings and previously indicated interest in creating a nearby technology park.
One of the firms, Power Investments LLC, in August sued the other, Cardinals Preferred LLC, in federal court in St. Louis, claiming that it had rights under a call option to purchase Cardinals' shares in Ashley, but that Cardinals had wrongly declined to sell.
Power, represented by Mason Miller, company manager and member, in 2017 partnered with Cardinals, tied to Canadian firms that weren't named, to purchase Ashley, the lawsuit says. It claims Power is Ashley's majority Class A unitholder, while Cardinals has 999,222 preferred units originally purchased for $999,222.
Power says it exercised its call on Aug. 9 last year, at a price that should total $1.6 million, but that Cardinals six days later told Miller it was converting its preferred units to Class A units, therefore rejecting the call. A Cardinals representative, the suit says, also told Miller it had the power to delay the call at least six months, and that it could increase the call's purchase price by forcing cash distributions from Ashley and settling litigation it previously brought against the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District over a 2019 flood.
Power, represented in the suit by Christopher LaRose of Armstrong Teasdale LLP, is seeking damages against Cardinals.
That firm, represented by Stephen O'Brien of Dentons US LLP, says it invested significant capital into the Ashley plant, and paid more for the business than Power, which allegedly invested $850,988.
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