Cold facts can reveal new information about the bankrupt wind power company Markbygden Ett outside Piteå.
Via high internal interest rates, large sums were transferred to the owner company before the application for reconstruction was submitted.
At the same time, villagers have received around SEK 760,000 less than expected by the company.
Wind power company Markbygden Ett is controlled by the Chinese state via a number of subsidiaries and recently applied for reconstruction. With its 179 wind turbines, the company is one of Sweden’s largest.
Now Cold facts can reveal that before the crisis the company transferred large amounts via high internal interest rates to its owner company North pole vindkraft holding AB.
According to researchers who reviewed the figures, the internal interest rate has been almost twice as high as the company’s interest rate to the bank.
– I think it’s about trying to get money out of a company that is bankrupt, says Christian Sandström, assistant professor at the International Business School in Jönköping.
200 million in interest
According to Christian Sandström, the company has paid a total of around SEK 200 million in excess interest over the past three years.
– In practice, it will be a way to drain the company of money, he says.
The residents in the area around Markbygden are also affected by the company’s poor finances. They believe that they lost around SEK 760,000 this year.
– If you now start to go in and read, you will say that this is a type of transaction that requires explanation, says Bo Engberg, chairman of Lillpite village association.
Cold facts have sought representatives of Markbygden Ett to ask about the internal interest rates and the villagers’ criticism of the compensation, but the company does not want to answer with reference to the ongoing reconstruction.
In the application documents, the company states that the poor economy is mainly due to an unprofitable long-term electricity supply agreement with Norsk hydro.