The founder of the energy firm behind plans to extract gas from the Manx seabed has been awarded more than £130,000 after winning his tribunal claim against the company.

Former Crogga chief executive officer Diccen Sargent was chief executive officer and director of Crogga Ltd since its formation in 2016 until he resigned in February 2022.

He made a claim for unlawful deduction of pay against holding company Crogga Energy Ltd and its subsidiary Crogga Operations Ltd in relation to payment of his deferred salary, a 15% uplift and holiday pay.

Welcoming the tribunal’s decision, Mr Sargent said: ‘I’m delighted that my complaint has been upheld that my salary was unlawfully withheld.’

The tribunal heard that Mr Sargent had been involved with Crogga from the outset, as director and shareholder. Crogga Ltd had been awarded a production licence in relation to a gas field located in Manx waters off the coast of Maughold.

In March 2020, Crogga Ltd was restructured, with a holding company Crogga Energy created while Crogga Operations and Crogga Ltd were its subsidiaries.

Mr Sargent’s employment was apparently transferred in December that year from Crogga Energy to Crogga Operations.

By that time, the funds needed to carry out a seismic survey were running low.

It was therefore agreed at board level that certain employees would defer part of their salaries, with a 15% uplift upon repayment.

This was extended in the December to a deferral of 100% of salaries with 15% uplift on repayment. The salaries and uplift were repayable when, according to an email sent to Mr Sargent, ‘the Crogga Group’s next funding round is completed’.

Mr Sargent maintained that his deferred salary was due and payable when a funding round labelled EQ1 had completed, or on June 20 2022.

But Crogga’s lawyer argued that while the trigger for payment was upon completion of the EQ1 funding round but that had not happened as yet.

Tribunal chair Felicity Kniveton said it was not in contention that there was an agreement to defer Mr Sargent's salary with a 15% uplift on payment, the issue between the parties was in respect of whether the salary and uplift had become due and payable as yet.

She concluded that the wording ‘Crogga Group’s next funding round is completed’ was not limited to the EQ1 funding round, it meant completion of any funding round.

Ms Kniveton ruled that Crogga Energy was liable to pay the deferred salary, but not the 15% uplift, and holiday pay to Mr Sargent. She said it was ‘just and equitable’ to pay him a further one week’s pay, taking the total award to £131,646.15.

She ruled that the while the 15% ‘uplift’ was certainly as a consequence of the deferred salary, it was not for work carried out and it was not part of the salary so therefore could not be awarded.

Mr Sargent insisted at the tribunal that his transfer to Crogga Operations was done for ‘purely administrative purposes’ and he remained CEO of the entire organisation.

The tribunal noted that the respondent’s record keeping and administration were ‘surprisingly poor’ and witnesses were ‘vague’ in this respect.

Ms Kniveton concluded: ‘It seems on the facts that although there may have been an intention for Mr Sargent to transfer his employment this did not actually happen. No new contract of employment was issued, the agreement to defer his salary was not transferred and there were no changes in Mr Sargent's work.’