Archer Daniels Midland, Inc. (ADM) said that LNG Indy, LLC, a company that provided liquified natural gas to its grain factory in Parr, Indiana, allegedly misled ADM and did not provide a proper installation of its system. ADM asked that the defendant is required to pay damages for costs incurred in a fire that happened at the location.
ADM, represented by Johnson & Bell LTD, claimed in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in the Northern District of Indiana that it suffered property damage and business losses due to a fire that allegedly was “a direct and proximate result of Defendant’s negligent and wrongful conduct.”
LNG Indy claimed to provide monitoring for the gas flow, safety, and storage levels at all times and that its systems can be used to dry grain. The defendant installed a system at the Parr facility in October of 2019 which ADM used to dry grain, especially during the wet harvest that year.
In November 2019, the gas temperatures were 130 degrees colder than expected and ice-build up was visible on the equipment, but the defendants “showed no urgency” to fix the issue after ADM reported it. ADM then initiated scheduled procedural cleaning which involved shutting down the dryer, but the burners did not turn off which led to a fire that destroyed the dryer. As a result of not being able to dry grain, ADM claimed it lost inventory, revenue, and opportunities.
The plaintiff alleged that LNG Indy, LLC was negligent because it did not monitor its equipment as agreed, did not check the safety of the facility for storage of the liquified natural gas, failed to respond when told the discharge temperature was 130 degrees too cold, did not warn the plaintiff of the potential problems or limitations of the equipment, and did not train ADM on warning signs that the equipment was not working.
The complaint noted that the defendant failed to accomplish duties owed to ADM. “Defendant owed ADM a duty to train it on the proper signs that the equipment may be operating improperly or insufficiently and proper actions to take in response,” the complaint stated.
