Businessman Alberto Esgueva, one of the main defendants in the so-called wind plot trial for which the prosecution is seeking sentences of up to 12 years in prison and a fine of 68 million euros, appeared in court on Tuesday as a victim of the economic and personal consequences of the proceedings. In addition, the defendant defended the legality of his operations in the wind sector and denied having received favorable treatment from the Junta de Castilla y León or having paid commissions to public officials.
Esgueva, who only testified in response to his lawyer’s questions, highlighted the impact that, according to him, the actions of the tax authorities and the public repercussion of the case had: “They sold my house at auction, they intervened in my property, they executed every euro that entered the accounts, we had to fire all the staff and with the publication of this case, my business project in Spain and Poland ended,” he assured.
The defendant entered the sector in December 2004, when Iberdrola offered to act as a local partner for the development of wind farms in Castile and León. As a result of this agreement, the company Energía Global Castellana was created, in which the San Cayetano group and the Iberdrola Biovent subsidiary participated, with an initial capital of 60,000 euros. As he explained, his group’s role was to facilitate administrative procedures and agreements with landowners.
Three years later, in 2007, it decided to abandon the project and sell its stake to Iberdrola for 47.1 million euros, a figure that it justified by a formula provided for in the initial contract, based on the production forecasts of the parks. Likewise, he defended that this operation had been declared and taxed, with the payment of approximately 3 million euros in taxes.
He stressed, however, that the National Tax Administration Agency (AEAT) considered that the operation was not a simple sale of shares, but rather an economic activity subject to VAT, which gave rise to an embargo of 13 million euros. According to him, this decision marked the start of a chain of executions which financially asphyxiated his businesses.
A similar situation, as he explained, occurred with other wind projects promoted in collaboration with the Preneal company, which also contacted him to act as a local partner. In this case, only two parks in the province of Soria have been developed, while eleven others in different provinces have not obtained authorization. Despite this, he reiterated that the National Treasury qualified the subsequent operations as economic activities and demanded payment of VAT.
The accused also gave explanations about the sale of an apartment in Comillas, Cantabria, to Delgado in 2005 and a chalet in the “El Pichón” urbanization of Simancas, in Valladolid, transactions which, according to him, took place after the marital separation and at market prices. Likewise, he also denied that part of the profits obtained were used to pay commissions to civil servants or public agents.
Alberto Esgueva was CEO of Excal, the public internationalization agency of the regional government of Castilla y León, between 2003 and 2006, before moving into private commercial activity. He has been involved in several legal proceedings, in addition to the wind plot, such as the Perla Negra case, of which he was acquitted, and has maintained various disputes with the tax authorities regarding the taxation of his business operations. In one of them, the courts annulled a claim of almost 20 million euros after finding an error in the Treasury’s action, while other projects promoted by companies linked to it, such as the Montealegre de Campos tourist complex, in Valladolid, ended in embargoes and auctions for lack of execution.
Francisco Esgueva appoints his brother as head of the wind sector of his companies
After his appearance, other defendants testified. His brother Francisco Esgueva, from whom they are asking for 12 years in prison and a 14.5 million fine, said that the management of the wind business fell mainly to Alberto and that he did not benefit from the 47 million obtained from the sale to Iberdrola, since he had previously sold his stake. Likewise, he assured that he only knew Delgado after meeting him at a public event.
Businessman Germán José Martín Giraldo, Esgueva’s partner in Cronos Global, accused of two crimes for which he is sentenced to a fine of 14.5 million euros and twelve years in prison, also appeared. He said the 2008 financial crisis and embargoes stemming from tax audits had precipitated the sale of assets and closure of real estate projects in Poland. Regarding the 7 million euros paid by Preneal to Cronos, he denied that it was a gift and defended that it was the resale price of shares, an operation which – as he said – ended up being widely supported by the Supreme Court.
The hearing continued with the statement of businessman César Hernández Chico, from whom the prosecutor requests 7 years in prison and almost 1.9 million euros in fines for the prosecution of crimes of corruption and influence peddling, who recognized that in a meeting with Rafael Delgado it was recommended to have local partners for the development of wind projects, a practice that he described as common in the sector.
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