Commitments and Contingencies |
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Mar. 31, 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Commitments and Contingencies | Commitments and Contingencies Commitments
From time to time, the Company may enter into agreements with suppliers that contain minimum purchase obligations and agreements to purchase capital equipment. The Company did not have any unconditional purchase obligations as of March 31, 2023.
Letters of Credit
The Company has various letters of credit that were issued under the Company’s revolving credit agreement which is collateralized by substantially all of the assets of the Company. The letters of credit are categorized below (in thousands):
Insurance
The Company has insurance coverage for physical partial loss to its assets, employer’s liability, automobile liability, commercial general liability, workers’ compensation and insurance for other specific risks. The Company has also elected in some cases to accept a greater amount of risk through increased deductibles on certain insurance policies. At each of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the workers’ compensation and automobile liability policies require a deductible per occurrence of up to $0.3 million and $0.1 million, respectively. As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the workers’ compensation and auto liability policies contained an aggregate stop loss of $5.4 million. The Company establishes liabilities for the unpaid deductible portion of claims incurred based on estimates. As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, accrued claims were $1.6 million and $1.5 million, respectively.
The Company also has insurance coverage for directors and officers liability. As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the directors and officers liability policy had a deductible per occurrence of $1.0 million and an aggregate deductible of $10.0 million. As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the Company did not have any accrued claims for directors and officers liability.
The Company also self-insures its employee health insurance. The Company has coverage on its self-insurance program in the form of a stop loss of $0.2 million per participant and an aggregate stop-loss of $5.8 million for the calendar year ending December 31, 2022. As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, accrued claims were $1.7 million and $1.5 million, respectively. These estimates may change in the near term as actual claims continue to develop.
Warranty Guarantees
Pursuant to certain customer contracts in our infrastructure services segment, the Company warrants equipment and labor performed under the contracts for a specified period following substantial completion of the work. Generally, the warranty is for one year or less. No liabilities were accrued as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 and no expense was recognized during the three months ended March 31, 2023 or 2022 related to warranty claims. However, if warranty claims occur, the Company could be required to repair or replace warrantied items, which in most cases are covered by warranties extended from the manufacturer of the equipment. In the event the manufacturer of equipment failed to
perform on a warranty obligation or denied a warranty claim made by the Company, the Company could be required to pay for the cost of the repair or replacement.
Bonds
In the ordinary course of business, the Company is required to provide bid bonds to certain customers in the infrastructure services segment as part of the bidding process. These bonds provide a guarantee to the customer that the Company, if awarded the project, will perform under the terms of the contract. Bid bonds are typically provided for a percentage of the total contract value. Additionally, the Company may be required to provide performance and payment bonds for contractual commitments related to projects in process. These bonds provide a guarantee to the customer that the Company will perform under the terms of a contract and that the Company will pay subcontractors and vendors. If the Company fails to perform under a contract or to pay subcontractors and vendors, the customer may demand that the surety make payments or provide services under the bond. The Company must reimburse the surety for expenses or outlays it incurs. As each of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, outstanding performance and payment bonds totaled $8.6 million, respectively. The estimated cost to complete projects secured by the performance and payment bonds totaled $1.2 million as of March 31, 2023. There were no outstanding bid bonds as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022.
Litigation
As of March 31, 2023, PREPA owed the Company approximately $227.0 million for services performed, excluding $163.2 million of interest charged on these delinquent balances as of March 31, 2023. The Company believes these receivables are collectible. PREPA, however, is currently subject to bankruptcy proceedings, which were filed in July 2017 and are currently pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico. As a result, PREPA’s ability to meet its payment obligations is largely dependent upon funding from FEMA or other sources. On September 30, 2019, Cobra filed a motion with the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico seeking recovery of the amounts owed to Cobra by PREPA, which motion was stayed by the Court. On March 25, 2020, Cobra filed an urgent motion to modify the stay order and allow the recovery of approximately $61.7 million in claims related to a tax gross-up provision contained in the emergency master service agreement, as amended, that was entered into with PREPA on October 19, 2017. This emergency motion was denied on June 3, 2020 and the Court extended the stay of our motion. On December 9, 2020, the Court again extended the stay of our motion and directed PREPA to file a status motion by June 7, 2021. On April 6, 2021, Cobra filed a motion to lift the stay order. Following this filing, PREPA initiated discussion, which resulted in PREPA and Cobra filing a joint motion to adjourn all deadlines relative to the April 6, 2021 motion until the June 16, 2021 omnibus hearing as a result of PREPA’s understanding that FEMA would release a report in the near future relating to the emergency master service agreement between PREPA and Cobra that was executed on October 19, 2017. The joint motion was granted by the Court on April 14, 2021. On May 26, 2021, FEMA issued a Determination Memorandum related to the first contract between Cobra and PREPA in which, among other things, FEMA raised two contract compliance issues and, as a result, concluded that approximately $47 million in costs were not authorized costs under the contract. On June 14, 2021, the Court issued an order adjourning Cobra’s motion to lift the stay order to a hearing on August 4, 2021 and directing Cobra and PREPA to meet and confer in good faith concerning, among other things, (i) the May 26, 2021 Determination Memorandum issued by FEMA and (ii) whether and when a second determination memorandum is expected. The parties were further directed to file an additional status report, which was filed on July 20, 2021. On July 23, 2021, with the aid of Mammoth, PREPA filed an appeal of the entire $47 million that FEMA de-obligated in the May 26, 2021 Determination Memorandum. FEMA approved the appeal in part and denied the appeal in part. FEMA found that staffing costs of $24.4 million are eligible for funding. On August 4, 2021, the Court extended the stay and directed that an additional status report be filed, which was done on January 22, 2022. On January 26, 2022, the Court extended the stay and directed the parties to file a further status report by July 25, 2022. On June 7, 2022, Cobra filed a motion to lift the stay order. On June 29, 2022 the Court denied Cobra’s motion and extended the stay to January 2023. On November 21, 2022, FEMA issued a Determination Memorandum related to the 100% federal funded portion of the second contract between Cobra and PREPA in which FEMA concluded that approximately $5.6 million in costs were not authorized costs under the contract. On December 21, 2022, FEMA issued a Determination Memorandum related to the 90% federal cost share portion of the second contract between Cobra and PREPA in which FEMA concluded that approximately $68.1 million in costs were not authorized costs under the contract. PREPA filed a first-level administrative appeal of the November 21, 2022 Determination Memorandum and has indicated that they will review the December 21, 2022 Determination Memorandums and, to the extent they feel plausible, file a first-level administrative appeal of the unauthorized amounts. On January 7, 2023, Cobra and PREPA filed a joint status report with the Court, in which PREPA requested that the Court continue the stay through July 31, 2023 and Cobra requested that the stay be lifted. On January 18, 2023, the Court entered an order extending the stay and directing the parties to file a further status report addressing (i) the status of any administrative appeals in connection with the November and December determination memorandums regarding the second contract, (ii) the status of the criminal case against the former Cobra president and
the FEMA official that concluded in December 2022, and (iii) a summary of the outstanding and unpaid amounts arising from the first and second contracts and whether PREPA disputes Cobra’s entitlement to these amounts with the Court by July 31, 2023.
On January 20, 2023, Cobra submitted a certified claim for approximately $379 million to FEMA pursuant to the federal Contract Disputes Act. On February 1, 2023, FEMA notified Cobra that it had reviewed the claim and determined that no contract, expressed or implied, exists between FEMA and Cobra. On March 27, 2023, Cobra was notified that FEMA had approved $233 million in Cobra invoices related to the December 21, 2022 Determination Memorandum. The 90% federal cost share of this approved amount was $210 million, which was obligated and made available for draw down on March 27, 2023. Of this $210 million, approximately $99 million has been represented by both PREPA and FEMA as intended to pay Cobra for outstanding invoices and the remaining $111 million is a reimbursement to PREPA for payments already made on Cobra invoices. On March 29, 2023, Cobra filed a notice of appeal with the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals related to the certified claim submitted in January 2023. On April 25, 2023, FEMA filed a motion to dismiss Cobra’s appeal alleging lack of jurisdiction. In the event PREPA (i) does not have or does not obtain the funds necessary to satisfy its obligations to Cobra under the contracts, (ii) obtains the necessary funds but refuses to pay the amounts owed to the Company or (iii) otherwise does not pay amounts owed to the Company for services performed, the receivable may not be collectible.
On May 13, 2021, Foreman Electric Services, Inc. (“Foreman”) filed a petition against Mammoth Inc. and Cobra in the Oklahoma County District Court (Oklahoma State Court). The petition asserted claims against the Company and Cobra under federal RICO statutes and certain state-law causes of action. Foreman alleged that it sustained injuries to its business and property in the amount of $250 million due to the Company’s and Cobra’s alleged wrongful interference by means of inducements to a FEMA official. On May 18, 2021, the Company removed this action to the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma and filed a motion to dismiss on July 8, 2021. On July 29, 2021, Foreman voluntarily dismissed the action without prejudice. On December 14, 2021, Foreman re-filed its petition against Mammoth Inc. and Cobra in the Oklahoma County District Court (Oklahoma State Court). On December 16, 2021, the Company again removed this action to the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. Foreman filed a motion to remand this action back to Oklahoma County District Court, which was granted on May 5, 2022. The case will now proceed according to a schedule that will be set by the Oklahoma County District Court. In a related matter, on January 12, 2022, a Derivative Complaint on behalf of nominal defendant Machine Learning Integration, LLC (“MLI”), which alleges it would have served as a sub-contractor to Foreman in Puerto Rico, was filed against the Company and Cobra in the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico alleging essentially the same facts as Foreman’s action and asserting violations of federal RICO statutes and certain non-federal claims. MLI alleges it sustained injuries to its business and property in an unspecified amount because the Company’s and Cobra’s wrongful interference by means of inducements to a FEMA official prevented Foreman from obtaining work, and thereby prevented MLI, as Foreman’s subcontractor, from obtaining work. These matters are still in the early stages and at this time, the Company is not able to predict the outcome of these claims or whether they will have a material impact on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
The Company is routinely involved in state and local tax audits. During 2015, the State of Ohio assessed taxes on the purchase of equipment the Company believes is exempt under state law. The Company appealed the assessment and a hearing was held in 2017. As a result of the hearing, the Company received a decision from the State of Ohio, which the Company appealed. On February 25, 2022, the Company received an unfavorable decision on the appeal. The Company appealed the decision and while it is not able to predict the outcome of the appeal, this matter is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
Cobra has been served with ten lawsuits from municipalities in Puerto Rico alleging failure to pay construction excise and volume of business taxes. On November 14, 2022, the Court entered judgment against Cobra in connection with one of the lawsuits ordering payment of approximately $9.0 million. On January 9, 2023, Cobra appealed the judgment and, on March 20, 2023, the Court confirmed the imposition of approximately $8.5 million related to construction excise taxes. On April 10, 2023, Cobra appealed this judgment, and is currently awaiting a decision. To the extent Cobra receives an unfavorable judgment, the Company believes that any such taxes in the judgement that relate to the Emergency Master Service Agreement with PREPA executed on October 19, 2017, would be reimbursable to Cobra. At this time, the Company is not able to predict the outcome of these matters or whether they will have a material impact on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
On April 16, 2019, Christopher Williams, a former employee of Higher Power Electrical, LLC, filed a putative class and collective action complaint titled Christopher Williams, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v.
Higher Power Electrical, LLC, Cobra Acquisitions LLC, and Cobra Energy LLC in the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico. On June 24, 2019, the complaint was amended to replace Mr. Williams with Matthew Zeisset as the named plaintiff. The plaintiff alleges the defendant failed to pay overtime wages to a class of workers in compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act and Puerto Rico law. On August 21, 2019, upon request of the parties, the Court stayed proceedings in the lawsuit and administratively closed the case pending completion of individual arbitration proceedings initiated by Mr. Zeisset and opt-in plaintiffs. Other claimants have subsequently initiated additional individual arbitration proceedings asserting similar claims. During and subsequent to the three months ended March 31, 2023, the Company agreed to settlements in principle with a portion of the claimants. Arbitrations remain pending for the remaining claimants. The Company will continue to vigorously defend the arbitrations. During the three months ended March 31, 2023, the Company recognized an estimated liability related to these complaints, which is included in “Accounts payable” in the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2023. The amount to settle these matters may ultimately increase or decrease from our estimated amount as the matters progress.
On September 10, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico unsealed an indictment that charged the former president of Cobra Acquisitions LLC with conspiracy, wire fraud, false statements and disaster fraud. Two other individuals were also charged in the indictment. The indictment was focused on the interactions between a former FEMA official and the former president of Cobra. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries were charged in the indictment. On May 18, 2022, the former FEMA official and the former president of Cobra each pled guilty to one-count information charging gratuities related to a project that Cobra never bid upon and was never awarded or received any monies for. On December 13, 2022, the Court sentenced the former Cobra president to custody of the Bureau of Prisons for six months and one day, a term of supervised release of six months and one day and a fine of $25,000. The Court sentenced the FEMA official to custody of the Bureau of Prisons for six months and one day, a term of supervised release of six months and a fine of $15,000. The Court also dismissed the indictment against the two defendants. The Company does not expect any additional activity in the criminal proceeding. Given the uncertainty inherent in criminal litigation, however, it is not possible at this time to determine the potential impacts that the sentencings could have on the Company. PREPA has stated in Court filings that it may contend the alleged criminal activity affects Cobra’s entitlement to payment under its contracts with PREPA. It is unclear what PREPA’s position will be going forward. Subsequent to the indictment, Cobra received a civil investigative demand (“CID”) from the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”), which requests certain documents and answers to specific interrogatories relevant to an ongoing investigation it is conducting. The aforementioned DOJ investigation is in connection with the issues raised in the criminal matter. Cobra is cooperating with the DOJ and is not able to predict the outcome of this investigation or if it will have a material impact on Cobra’s or the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. With regard to the previously disclosed SEC investigation, on July 6, 2022, the SEC sent a letter saying that it had concluded its investigation as to the Company and that based on information the SEC has as of this date, it does not intend to recommend an enforcement action against the Company.
On September 12, 2019, AL Global Services, LLC (“Alpha Lobo”) filed a second amended third-party petition against the Company in an action styled Jim Jorrie v. Craig Charles, Julian Calderas, Jr., and AL Global Services, LLC v. Jim Jorrie v. Cobra Acquisitions LLC v. ESPADA Logistics & Security Group, LLC, ESPADA Caribbean LLC, Arty Straehla, Ken Kinsey, Jennifer Jorrie, and Mammoth Energy Services, Inc., in the 57th Judicial District in Bexar County, Texas. The petition alleges that the Company should be held vicariously liable under alter ego, agency and respondeat superior theories for Alpha Lobo’s alleged claims against Cobra and Arty Straehla for aiding and abetting, knowing participation in and conspiracy to breach fiduciary duty in connection with Cobra’s execution of an agreement with ESPADA Caribbean, LLC for security services related to Cobra’s work in Puerto Rico. The trial court granted Cobra, Mammoth and Straehla’s motion to compel Alpha Lobo’s claims against them to arbitration. However, Alpha Lobo has not yet brought its claims in arbitration. Instead, on March 22, 2022, Alpha Lobo filed a Petition for Writ of Mandamus in the Fourth Court of Appeals, San Antonio, Texas, seeking to overturn the order compelling arbitration. The appellate court denied the Mandamus on May 4, 2022, without requesting a response. On June 28, 2022, Alpha Lobo filed a Petition for Writ of Mandamus in the Texas Supreme Court, seeking to overturn the order compelling arbitration. The Texas Supreme Court denied the Mandamus on August 5, 2022, without requesting a response. The Company believes these claims are without merit and will vigorously defend the action. However, at this time, the Company is not able to predict the outcome of this lawsuit or whether it will have a material impact on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Additionally, there was a parallel arbitration proceeding in which certain Defendants were seeking a declaratory judgment regarding Cobra’s rights to terminate the Alpha Lobo contract and enter into a new contract with a third-party. On June 24, 2021, the arbitration panel ruled in favor of Cobra.
The Company is involved in various other legal proceedings in the ordinary course of business. Although the Company cannot predict the outcome of these proceedings, legal matters are subject to inherent uncertainties and there exists the
possibility that the ultimate resolution of these matters could have a material impact on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
Defined Contribution Plan The Company sponsors a 401(k) defined contribution plan for the benefit of substantially all employees at their date of hire. The plan allows eligible employees to contribute up to 92% of their annual compensation, not to exceed annual limits established by the federal government. The Company makes discretionary matching contributions of up to 3% of an employee’s compensation and may make additional discretionary contributions for eligible employees. For the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company paid $0.6 million and $0.4 million, respectively, in contributions to the plan.
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