The wind industry seems to attract a particular class of bloke, in much the same way that the Prohibition era drew lots of heavy-set Italians to the Mob.
Maybe that seemingly endless stream of massive subsidies filched from taxpayers and power consumers generates the same allure as festering dung does for swarms of flies?
Whatever it is, the whiff that surrounds the wind industry has attracted (and continues to attract) a class that has no hesitation lying, cheating, stealing and even bonking their way to the easy loot on offer.
The Italian Mob were in on the wind power fraud from the get-go: applying their considerable (and perfectly applicable) skills – leading the European wind power fraud, with what economists call “first-mover-advantage” (see our post here).
We’ve reported on just how rotten the wind industry is – from top to bottom – and whether it’s bribery and fraud; vote rigging scandals; tax fraud; investor fraud or REC fraud – wind weasels set a uniform standard that would make most businessmen blush.
The crooks involved – and the corruption, lies thuggery and deceit that follow them – are uniform across the globe.
Wind power outfits in Taiwan – faced with a pesky community backlash – sent the muscle in and beat the protesters to a bloody pulp (see our posts here and here).
The Thais aren’t much better.
In Australia, Thai outfit RATCH has been lying to, bullying and threatening communities far and wide for years (see our posts here and here and here).
In previous posts we’ve looked at how the goons that work for RATCH didn’t hesitate to invent a character – Frank Bestic – in a half-cunning attempt to infiltrate their opponents at Collector and elsewhere – see our posts here and here and here.
RATCH also teamed up with one of Queensland’s “white-shoe-brigade“, John Morris – in a joint plan to destroy the Atherton Tablelands by spearing 60 odd turbines into a patch of pristine wilderness on top of Mt Emerald – a move, quite rightly, opposed by 92% of locals (see our post here).
Morris – a five-star resort owner who has generously wined, dined and otherwise accommodated his mate, LNP pollie, David Kempton (who holds a rabid interest in the project getting approved, despite the fact that his own electorate is miles away) – has pulled out all stops to smooth the way to development approval (see our post here).
Faced with the inevitable community backlash to yet another pointless economic, environmental and public health disaster, the Queensland Planning Minister, Jeff Seeney has called “time-out”; declining to approve the project, as demanded by RATCH and Morris.
Morris – facing the uncharacteristic prospect of defeat – has turned to bullying and threatening the Planning Minister to ensure a speedy decision in his and RATCH’s favour: demanding that the Planning Minister make a decision no later than tomorrow (ie 19 December 2014) (see this article).
RATCH and Morris have shown all the care and restraint we’ve come to expect from the wind industry and its parasites: an “industry” that has absolutely no interest in producing meaningful power or “saving” the planet. Take away the promise of $50 billion in subsidies from the REC Tax on power consumers (see our post here) and this lot will disappear in a heartbeat (see our post here).
RATCH shares its Thai roots with another Thai wind power outfit that owes its existence to the Thai Military Junta – “Wind Energy Holdings”.
Wind Energy Holdings has hit the news recently, as its hitherto-hot-shot head, Nopporn Suppipat has been caught with his fingers in the till. Having been caught – he’s acted with all the honour we’ve come to expect from wind weasels, wherever they ply their trade: he’s bolted!
Here’s The Wall Street Journal laying out an all too familiar wind industry tale.
Co-chief of Thailand’s Wind Energy a fugitive, say police
The Wall Street Journal
Warangkana Chomchuen and James Hookway
18 December 2014
UNTIL a few weeks ago, Nopporn Suppipat was a rising star in Thailand’s corporate scene.
The 43-year-old entrepreneur was profiled in local magazines, touted as a leader in alternative energy, and was firming up plans for a multi-billion-dollar initial public offering of the wind-power company he helped lead, Wind Energy Holding.
Now police say he has left the country to avoid arrest on accusations of extortion and insulting the monarchy, and Wind Energy said he had stepped down as co-chief executive.
The company’s IPO plans are on hold as it reorganises, according to source.
In a telephone interview from an undisclosed location, Mr Nopporn said he had done nothing wrong, yet he feared he might never be able to return to Thailand.
Mr Nopporn said his fall from grace was unexpected. He said his problems dated from the aftermath of Asia’s financial crisis in the late 1990s.
To shore up his personal finances, Mr Nopporn said, he had borrowed 17 million baht, the equivalent of about $630,000 today, from Gryphon International Holding, where he was then the largest shareholder, although had since divested himself of all of his shares.
Mr Nopporn’s business partners, though, filed an embezzlement complaint against him with the police, who forwarded to public prosecutors.
He arranged to pay the money back in instalments, finally settling the outstanding sum in court in 2012, according to a court document.
Most of his partners then agreed to settle the dispute, the document shows. However, Mr Nopporn said, one partner, Bundit Chotewitthayakul, refused to withdraw his lawsuit.
With preparations for an IPO for Wind Energy beginning to get off the ground, Mr Nopporn said, earlier this year he had offered Mr Bundit 20 million baht to withdraw his complaint.
According to Mr Nopporn, Mr Bundit then asked for 100 million baht. Mr Bundit’s lawyer said his client declined to comment.
“I wanted to have a clean slate and I can afford it,” Mr Nopporn said.
Mr Nopporn said he then hired a negotiator to try to reach a lower settlement with Mr Bundit. Police said the negotiator then hired three brothers of the estranged wife of Thailand’s heir to the crown, who has since relinquished her royal title, to increase pressure on Mr Bundit. From that point, Mr Nopporn’s problems took a turn for the worse.
The brothers were arrested and accused of defaming the monarchy by exploiting their royal ties for personal gain, among other offences, as police investigators stepped up an anticorruption campaign that also implicated senior police officials.
The police officials, who have been arrested and accused of similar crimes, and the brothers are now in police custody.
It is unclear whether they entered pleas or whether they have legal representation.
Thailand has some of the world’s most severe lese majeste laws, allowing for prison sentences of up to 15 years.
With the investigation widening, Mr Nopporn said he chose to leave Thailand before an arrest warrant was issued alleging he committed lese majeste by contracting the former princess’s brothers, in addition to the police’s accusation that he attempted to extort Mr Bundit. The company has appointed Emma Collins as its sole chief executive; she was co-chief with Mr Nopporn.
A spokesman for Wind Energy said it was reviewing its options for an IPO, while the company said in a written statement that the criminal allegations against Mr Nopporn had nothing to do with Wind Energy.
The Wall Street Journal
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STT loves the way the (unnamed) spokesman for Wind Energy Holdings was quick to cut their “star” boss loose: proving that there really is no honour amongst thieves!
Now – some might think that corporate “standards” could be expected to slip in a country run by a band of “brass-hats” – but things don’t get any better even where the outfit is Denmark’s leading (but woefully struggling) fan maker, Vestas.
Vestas set the benchmark a while back – true to form, it keeps lying and cheating its way into trouble wherever it goes.
While Vestas threw $millions at the Greens and other astro-turfing, eco-fascist outfits in Australia (and elsewhere) – employing them as spruikers for its well-oiled (but nauseating) “Act on Facts” propaganda campaign – it got belted in the US earlier this year for failing to give its own (and potential) investors the very sort of facts, upon which share market punters and free markets depend.
Consistent with Vesta’s “fast-and-loose” with the “truth” style of doing business, it was caught out cooking its books and lying to the markets about its profitability in an effort to take investors for a ride. That little subterfuge cost it a lazy $5 million.
Vestas reaches conditional settlement on US lawsuit for $5 million
Wind Power Monthly
James Quilter
27 June 2014
UNITED STATES: Vestas said it has conditionally settled a lawsuit from a pension fund claiming the company issued false information regarding its revenue and earnings.
The lawsuit originates from 2011 and alleged false reporting was made between October 2009 and October 2010.
Vestas said $5 million will be paid out to the plaintiffs. It denies any wrongdoing and said it was making the payment “in order to end the substantial expenses, burdens and uncertainties associated with a continued litigation in the USA”.
The settlement is still subject to approval by the US courts.
Speaking about the decision, Vestas chairman Bert Nordberg said: “We look forward to putting this case behind us, which will allow us to continue our focus on the operation of the business to the benefit of our customers and our owners.”
The 2009-2010 period represents a troubled time for Vestas. At the end of 2010 company changed its accounting procedures.
Deminor Recovery Services, a company targeting Vestas on behalf of disgruntled investors, has been focusing on this change, suggesting Vestas used it to shift around 1.8GW of orders from the 2009 results into 2010 figures.
Wind Power Monthly
STOP THESE THINGS 
Ratch is in partnership on 2 Huay Bong wind projects in Thailand with Wind Energy Holding Co, the (former?) CEO of which has bolted to escape an arrest warrant. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree…
Vestas is also the company that set up the turbine blade factory in Portland Victoria with multimillion $ government subsidies and then cynically shipped the blades to a US site.
False information regarding revenues and earnings is not confined to their US activities.
But did the Australian Greens raise a peep?? No, they are not going to wrap their ideological teeth around the hand that feeds them.
I don’t often turn to the ‘Urban Dictionary’ for definitions but I think its definition of RATCH is very apt ‘gross, disgusting’.
Ratch is also explained in other dictionary’s as being part of a system using cogs to move things.
Well I suppose turbines could be seen as having both a ratch and cogs, but a Ratch alone is of no use is it, it needs other things to make it useful.
Whereas Vesta in the Urban Dictionary says it refers to someone who will never spoil anyone’s day!
Never mind though because the Oxford Dictionary states historically the word refers to a wooden or wax match. Which as we know one strike and it becomes of little use.
Of course it originates from the name of the Roman Goddess of the hearth.
Obviously a more appropriate name for a Wind Turbine Company, as we know fans can either blow a flame out or waft it into becoming a wildfire which has the propensity to destroy all in its path.
So both Ratch and Vesta are very appropriate names for companies involved in this industry.
More obvious names though would be Pillage and Embezzle so as not to hide their true identities and purpose.
Well, John Morris’ bullying and threats have been ignored by Deputy Premier Seeney – he won’t be making the decision which was demanded by today. Port Bajool & John Morris are in a hurry to get approval so they can flog their Mt Emerald Wind Farm site and distance themselves from this disaster-in-the-making asap.
Reblogged this on Wolsten and commented:
Hard to believe that the promise of guaranteed risk free publicly funded income would attract crooks and corruption…not.