LAWTON – The chief communications officer for Westwin Elements wrote in an email to Southwest Ledger that they submitted an offer April 21 to purchase their pilot nickel processing plant in Lawton and the land on which it sits – “an offer that would fully satisfy the company’s obligations related to the project.”
More than five weeks later, Westwin had received “no response or substantive feedback” about its offer from the Lawton Economic Development Authority, wrote Marissa Espinosa, Westwin’s chief public affairs officer.
She was writing in response to a July 21 story in which Richard Rogalski, executive director of LEDA, said, “We’re still working out the details.” The company has been in default on its redevelopment agreement with LEDA since June 1.
In a document dated Dec. 12, 2023, LEDA lent Westwin $2.7 million in “development financing” to support construction of a pilot plant on 40 acres off Bishop Road near Southwest 112th Street; LEDA leased that property to Westwin on Dec. 29, 2023.
The $2.7 million included $1 million from the City of Lawton and a $2 million loan to LEDA from the Comanche County Industrial Development Authority; however, $300,000 from that loan was held in reserve, Rogalski said. The loan would have been “forgiven” if Westwin had developed a large-scale refinery in Lawton.
“They didn’t come through,” Rogalski said. “They didn’t buy” the pilot plant. “They are in default on the agreement unless a modification is approved by all parties.”
“On May 29, Westwin reaffirmed its offer and again requested a meeting to discuss resolution of the matter,” Espinosa wrote. “The company remains prepared to move forward and believes direct engagement is the most productive path to resolving outstanding issues.”
LEDA officials told the Ledger last Tuesday that their recollection of events is different.
“As you may recall, on Jan. 13, 2026, the City of Lawton, LEDA, and CCIDA sent a letter to Westwin regarding its outstanding obligations, which included specific conditions related to the termination of the project documents,” Rogalski wrote in an email Tuesday to Southwest Ledger.
Those obligations, he related, include “a full repayment of the $2.7 million in public assistance and the purchase of the Pilot Facility site.”
The Jan. 13 letter noted that “these conditions must be satisfied on or before May 31, 2026.”
LEDA did receive an unsigned letter from Westwin, dated April 21, 2026, Rogalski confirmed. “However, it did not satisfy the conditions stated in the Jan. 13th letter; it proposed instead to restructure Westwin’s obligations over time and increase the debt to include the purchase of the Pilot Facility site.”
The April 21 letter was not presented to LEDA, CCIDA, nor to the Lawton City Council, “as their position had been made clear in the January 13th letter,” Rogalski explained.
On June 2, LEDA confirmed to Westwin in writing that the ground lease expired by its terms on June 1, that the promissory note matured on June 1, “and that all unpaid amounts were immediately due.” That letter also addressed Westwin’s April 21 proposal, Rogalski said.
Westwin responded on June 3, “providing a signed copy of its April 21st letter and requesting a meeting to negotiate a new lease,” Rogalski said.
“Since that time,” LEDA’s attorney “has been working with Westwin’s counsel on proposed terms,” he said. “As a part of this discussion, counsel for LEDA requested financial information from Westwin sufficient to evaluate its ability to perform under any proposed restructured note or new lease. That information has not been made available for the board’s review, and therefore Westwin’s proposal has not been presented for action.”
LEDA is a public trust “and its board acts only in properly noticed public meetings,” Rogalski concluded. “We have no further comment while this matter is pending.”
Southwest Ledger called Espinosa twice on July 22 and once on July 24, and left voice messages each time. She never responded.