Louisiana Company Claims Iowa Fertilizer Owes $53 Million

fert-plant

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Louisiana construction company says in a lawsuit it is owed $53 million dollars for work done at the Iowa Fertilizer Co. plant in Wever.

White Castle, Louisiana-based Maintenance Enterprises says in documents filed in federal court in Des Moines on Friday that it’s filed a mechanics lien with the Iowa Secretary of State.

The company hopes to collect from Orascom, a subsidiary of an Egyptian construction company. It began in 2013 building the $1.9 billion Iowa Fertilizer Co., which Orascom has since been spun off as a separate limited liability company based in the Netherlands.

Maintenance Enterprises is suing for breach of contract and unjust enrichment.

A fertilizer company spokesman did not immediately respond to a message.