A company co-owned by Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Jerome Bettis has filed suit against an energy company for alleged racial discrimination, charging it reneged on promises made in connection with its minority-owned business, and seeking at least $66 million in compensation.

The company being sued, Pittsburgh-based EQT Production Co., denies the lawsuit’s charges, and says it ended its relationship with Mr. Bettis’ company because its mismanagement led to numerous safety violations.

In 2017, Pittsburgh-based natural gas company EQT Production Co. approached a water hauling firm that is owned by a white man about forming a minority-owned business that would haul water for EQT, according to the lawsuit filed last week in IntegrServ LLC v. EQT Production Co.

EQT proposed the company partner with the retired Pittsburgh Steeler Bettis, who with his brother John owns Pittsburgh-based Bettis Bros. Sand and Gravel LLC, a 100% Black-owned business, according to the complaint.

Bettis Bros. began providing sand and gravel services for EQT and its contractors in September 2017, the complaint said.

The company later formed a new firm, IntegrServ, that was 51% owned by Bettis Bros., with the remaining shares divided between the water hauling company and that company’s general manager.

EQT assured IntegrServ it would guarantee contracts for at least five years, and endorsed IntegrServ’s plan to use subcontractors, the complaint said.

It asked that IntegrServ use as many different minority subcontractors as possible, but many of the owners of the business who employed the drivers were new to the trucking business “causing administrative difficulties for IntegrServe,” the complaint said.

It said the company was told by EQT it expected IntegrServ “to work through these administrative difficulties because having as large a number of minority suppliers as possible was a corporate priority for EQT.”

In early August 2019, an IntegrServ truck had a rollover, and later that month one of its minority-owned subcontractors discovered one of its drivers had a handgun in his truck and he was terminated.

Later that month, EQT terminated its master services agreement and its purchase order, citing safety violations, with 17.5 months remaining under the purchase order.

IntegrServ, which states that it has suffered damages for at least $66 million, charges EQT with violating the Civil Rights Act, and breach of contract.

“EQT’s disparate treatment of IntegrServ and similarly-situated white-owned contractors reveals that racial discrimination was the cause of EQTs termination of the IntegrServ Contracts,” the complaint states.

EQT said in a statement, “IntegrServ’s lawsuit is entirely without merit and contains a number of false statements. The fact is that EQT is demonstrably committed to service provider diversity. In 2020, approximately 12% of our entire supplier spend to date – totaling approximately $40 million – has gone to over a hundred minority-owned businesses.

“IntegrServ’s contract was terminated, along with a number of other contracts from non-minority owned businesses, as part of a program to drive efficiencies and accountability across EQT’s business. In addition, IntegrServ mismanaged its fulfillment of the contract, which led to numerous safety failures.

“We are disappointed that IntegrServ has chosen to respond by making serious, unsubstantiated allegations against EQT management and we will vigorously defend ourselves against this unwarranted lawsuit.”