Contractor sues Hoku Materials parent company

A contractor is suing the parent company of Hoku Materials over work done at Hoku’s failed polysilicon plant in eastern Idaho.

Officials with JH Kelly Inc., a Washington state construction company, have said the company is still owed about $25 million for work on the plant in Pocatello. The Idaho State Journal reports the company filed a lawsuit in Pocatello’s U.S. District Court on Tuesday, contending Tianwei New Energy Holdings committed fraud and racketeering in connection with the plant. JH Kelly is seeking unspecified damages including money owed for work completed and attorney’s fees.

Tianwei New Energy Holdings has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit.

Hoku is currently in bankruptcy proceedings in eastern Idaho.

Earlier this year, rates for Idaho Power customers increased partly because of the Pocatello plant’s struggle to pay its multi-million power bill.

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Information from: Idaho State Journal, http://www.journalnet.com