The retailer also claimed that subsequent [image-nocss] anti-U.S. tirades from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez prompted boycotts against CITGO, which is owned by a U.S. subsidiary of the national oil company of Venezuela. Those incidents made CITGO an unreliable supplier and damaged brand, Road Ranger argued.
According to a filing last month, the two sides reached a settlement, although terms were not disclosed, said the report.
Steve Brooks, general counsel for Rockford, Ill.-based Road Ranger, told CSP Daily News that the company could not comment officially on the matter.
Earlier this month, District Judge Barbara Crabb of Wisconsin's Western District ruled for CITGO and required Road Ranger to pay nearly $5 million in damages, attorney fees and other costs, the report said. But it is not known how much of that Road Ranger will have to pay under the terms of the settlement and what CITGO agreed to in return.
Road Ranger began selling CITGO gas and diesel in 1988 and started a branding agreement with CITGO in 1991. But in 2005, the oil company temporarily slashed supplies, claiming that Hurricanes Katrina and Rita constituted acts of God that gave it the legal grounds to do so, according to the lawsuit cited by the newspaper. By 2006, supplies were back to normal, but Road Ranger was getting most of its fuel elsewhere, citing CITGO's unreliability as a supplier and the stigma of being connected with Chavez.
"By late 2005, Ranger was very close to being driven out of business," the retailer argued in its countersuit, the report said.
The contract between the two companies was set to expire in mid-2006. But Road Ranger objected to the renewal contract offered by CITGO, and they could not reach a middle ground. The agreement lapsed that summer.
In its suit, CITGO claimed Road Ranger fell short of its purchase requirements by nearly 20 million gallons and breached other terms of its agreement.
Road Ranger is a leading Midwest retail petroleum convenience store chain that operates company locations in the states of Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin and Ohio. Founded in 1984, the company currently employs approximately 1,000 individuals and is estimated to reach approximately $900 million in revenues for the current year.
Houston based CITGO is owned by PDV America Inc., a subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the national oil company of Venezuela.
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