The anti-corruption affiliation AC!! has simply made a report back to the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (French Monetary Markets Authority) regarding wind-powered electrical energy corporations whose director is the quantity 2 of a Crédit Mutuel subsidiary.
The journal Factuel Média has simply uncovered a moderately weird story. In an article entitled “Potential battle of curiosity at Crédit Mutuel”, journalist Léo Le Calvez writes: “Is Banque Transatlantique du Luxembourg’s quantity 2 on the coronary heart of a battle of curiosity? Fabrice Bonischo, quantity 2 at Banque Transatlantique du Luxembourg, a 100% subsidiary of Crédit Mutuel Alliance Fédérale, can also be the director of a holding firm referred to as An Muileann. The holding firm is the transit level between quite a few small French wind energy corporations with doubtful accounts and Luxembourg.”
The juicy wind energy market
Based on the Observatoire de l’éolien, the renewable energies sector has been on a roll lately. In 2023, there have been some 900 corporations energetic within the varied actions, using a complete of 28,266 individuals (+ 40% since 2019). These are sometimes small corporations with little capital, however with the appetites of ogres. The market is buoyant. All of the extra so since, as a part of the “regulation on power transition for inexperienced progress“, the French authorities is guaranteeing a really engaging buy-back worth for wind-generated electrical energy to help the sector. It additionally grants substantial help to entrepreneurs in varied kinds to encourage the manufacturing of inexperienced electrical energy.
Based on our Factuel Média colleagues, various these small buildings are grouped collectively inside the Luxembourg holding firm An Muileann. A phrase of clarification: the primary shareholder within the An Muileann monetary firm is Panama-based Odessa Securities SA. This firm was uncovered in the Panama Papers.
Clearly, this poses an issue, notably by way of France’s power sovereignty.
Accounting anomalies and curiosities
Factuel Média’s investigation targeted on a number of of those small inexperienced power corporations inside the An Muileann holding firm. One in every of them invested €3,000 in start-up capital. Nevertheless, it’s Luxembourg’s Transatlantique financial institution that certifies the deposit of funds. Therefore the doable battle of curiosity, for the reason that financial institution’s N°2 can also be a director of the shareholder…
One other small anomaly: the gross sales of a few of these wind energy corporations are in free fall, although the promoting worth of electrical energy is assured by the State. Extra importantly, whereas gross sales are falling, internet revenue is hovering. Taking the instance of one in all these buildings, Factuel Média notes that gross sales are €19,300 in 2021, however internet revenue is… €1.89 million.
How is that this doable? It’s as a result of the corporate’s funding revenue amounted to €1,934,000 in 2021. In different phrases, it has made monetary investments which have introduced in some huge cash.
One other curiosity is that every one these corporations have names starting with “Parc Éolien”. They don’t have any workers.
Dividends to the only real shareholder
These are the info on which the anti-corruption affiliation AC!! is basing its report back to the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF). Its lawyer, Vincent Poudampa, factors out that “in accordance with an knowledgeable who needs to stay nameless, ‘the web revenue [of the companies concerned] was handed on within the type of dividends to the only real shareholder, during which case, in view of Luxembourg tax secrecy, it can’t be accessed’”.
To be continued…
