Energy Transfer LP took its legal complaint against environmental group Greenpeace and its allies to North Dakota state court after a loss in a federal court case involving the disruption of construction on the Dakota Access crude oil pipeline.

''We filed a lawsuit in Morton County, North Dakota, as we remain committed to holding those who were responsible for the damages to both our business and our reputation accountable for their actions,'' Energy Transfer spokeswoman Vicki Granado said on Feb. 25.

''As we have said since we filed our original lawsuit, we have an obligation to our shareholders, partners, stakeholders and employees to stand up to those who deliberately imposed harm on our company — financial or otherwise. This is an obligation we take seriously, which is why we are continuing to pursue this in the state court of North Dakota,'' Granado said.

The Feb. 21 complaint named Greenpeace, the Red Warrior Society, and three individuals. Energy Transfer said the defendants schemed to cause financial and physical harm to its employees as well as the 1,172-mile Dakota Access pipeline. Energy Transfer accused the group of "unlawful acts" such as inciting protests, soliciting money to support illegal acts, and creating a public spectacle against the company. (District Court for the State of North Dakota, South Central Judicial District, docket 30-2019-CV-00180)

Greenpeace Deputy General Counsel Deepa Padmanabha said the group had not been served with the new lawsuit as of Feb. 25. "Regardless of the allegations in the complaint, the company is clearly still trying to bully Greenpeace through the legal system, despite a federal court recently throwing out Energy Transfer's entire $900 million case against Greenpeace," Padmanabha said. "We are confident that this latest attempt to silence peaceful advocacy will receive the same fate as the last meritless attack.''

In a Feb. 20 earnings call, Energy Transfer Executive Vice President and General Counsel Thomas Mason indicated that the company would pursue the complaint after the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota dismissed the company's claims on Feb. 14. "It's not over," Mason said. "We're not just going to stand by and accept this kind of behavior from bad actors."

The federal court had rejected the company's claims after finding that Greenpeace and the defendants did not violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which allows parties to seek penalties and other relief for acts by criminal organizations.

In August 2017, Energy Transfer had charged Greenpeace and its allies with being part of a network of "rogue eco-terrorist groups who employ patterns of criminal activity." Energy Transfer said the groups incited the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and activists to falsely claim the project would "threaten livelihoods, sacred sites and water," cost the company billions of dollars in damaged facilities and lost time, and cost North Dakota taxpayers nearly $33 million to pay for state and local responses.

The $3.8 billion pipeline, which transports crude from the Bakken Shale to a hub near Patoka, Ill., began commercial service in 2017 after months of conflict between law enforcement and security on one side and the Standing Rock Sioux and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes and their supporters on the other.