According to Red Eléctrica's calculations, 93 companies have been affected by this deception and are now seeking compensation. The Public Prosecutor's Office identifies businessman Esteban Roig as the director of the fraudulent structure, requesting sixteen years in prison for him. Another sixteen individuals are also accused, with prison sentences requested ranging from nine to six years.
The indictment details that the accused opened at least thirteen energy trading companies and allegedly organized to not pay energy producers for electricity they had already collected from final consumers. The fraud, which began in 2012 and was uncovered in late 2017, exploited the electricity system's operational mechanisms, particularly the "adjustments" or "deviations" that occur when demand exceeds forecasts and energy cannot be stored.
This system allowed traders to bill customers for all supplied energy, while responsibility for unpaid "deviations," which could amount to 10% of the energy served, was not determined for about eight months. This delay was the loophole for the fraud. The implicated companies were investigated and disqualified by the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC), but the network used a complex corporate structure to evade sanctions.
The trading companies attracted customers by offering low prices, thereby increasing unpaid "deviations," which were ultimately passed on to the final consumer's energy price. Once a company was disqualified, customers were transferred to another entity linked to the network. Some of the funds obtained were transferred to other associated companies to conceal them.
The operations center was located in Madrid, but the organization also had companies in Barcelona. The headquarters in a building in the Sarrià neighborhood acted as the connecting point, lending an appearance of legality to the fraudulent activities.
