Hacienda keeps open 35 investigations for fraud in hydrocarbons after the Aldama case

The Spanish Tax Agency has kept open 35 investigations into potential tax fraud within the hydrocarbons sector following the Aldama case. These probes involve alleged violations of value-added tax (IVA) declarations and have intensified since authorities identified a surge in such illicit activities. The most prominent recent case involves businessman, broker, and convicted corruption figure Víctor de Aldama, who allegedly played a key role in defrauding the state of 180 million euros. This case remains pending trial. The 35 ongoing investigations span multiple stages and jurisdictions, according to officials from the Tax Agency. The agency has designated this issue as one of its top priorities, citing the substantial damage caused to both society and public finances. Beyond high-profile cases, data reveals that among the ten most indebted companies listed annually by the tax authority, five are linked to these fraudulent practices, collectively owing nearly 900 million euros. These include Bio Zenite Energy, Metaway Combustibles, Vertix Petroleum, Marillion SLU, and Biomar Oil. The total debt attributed to these companies exceeds 1.5 billion euros, with the overall national debt reaching 15.4 billion. Among the implicated entities is Villafuel SL, which is central to a broader scheme involving not only Víctor de Aldama, convicted to four and a half years in prison in the Mascarillas case but later exempted from serving time, but also Carmen Pano. Pano reportedly brought 90,000 euros in cash to the PSOE headquarters in Ferraz, claiming the money belonged to Claudio Rivas, owner of the company. Rivas faces two additional active cases in the National Court: the Gaslow case, alleging a 148 million euro IVA fraud between 2018 and 2021, and another involving SKT Oil, with a loss exceeding 70 million euros between 2016 and 2018. The modus operandi of these fraudulent schemes typically involved creating shell companies that purchased fuel, sold it to customers while charging IVA, and then disappeared before Hacienda could reclaim the taxes. This allowed them to sell fuel at lower prices than competitors and gain market share. As the scale of the fraud grew, causing increasing losses to public revenue, the government decided to strengthen oversight. Until 2023, companies were required to prove their legal, technical, and financial capacity through industry ministry registration, with the CNMC publishing a list of authorized wholesale operators. In 2023, the Ministry for the Ecological Transition replaced the Industry Ministry in overseeing these registrations. Simultaneously, the Tax Agency launched the Register of Fiscal Deposit Extractors (Redef), as officials acknowledged that previous enforcement measures had been insufficient. Through Redef, the government established that holders of fiscal deposits for hydrocarbons would become secondary liable parties in cases of debt to Hacienda, provided they permitted unauthorized operators to extract the fuel. This measure aims to close loopholes and ensure greater accountability in the sector.