An audit report from May, reviewed today, highlights that the investment project for energy production by the company Tesla STP was granted via direct adjustment, exempting it from prior analysis or evaluation by regulatory and supervisory entities in the energy sector.
The Court of Accounts indicated that the tax exemptions granted by the General Customs Authority and the Tax Directorate to Tesla STP, its subcontractors, shareholders, and group companies resulted in a minimum loss of 52,282,555 euros for the São Toméan state.
The report outlines that the Administrative Investment Contract includes a Public-Private Partnership established on October 10, 2023, aiming to address the country’s energy deficit and is structured in three phases.
The first phase involves installing new Diesel machinery within six months, valued at 10,850,000 euros; the second phase involves setting up a Multi-fuel Plant over 18 months, costing 62,500,000 euros; and the third phase involves establishing a Solar Plant over 18 months, amounting to 23,592,000 euros, totaling an investment of 96,942,000 euros.
However, the audit concluded that Tesla has not provided evidence of investment expenditures amounting to 10,850,000 euros planned for the contract’s first phase.
The document also reveals that construction of the plant in Água Grande, the São Toméan capital, commenced in September 2023, prior to the contract’s signing on October 10, 2023, and was carried out by FB Construction STP, part of the same group as Tesla STP.
Additionally, it notes that the generator group installed cannot continuously produce 10 megawatts of energy (MWe), yet Tesla charges the Water and Electricity Company (Emae) for the installed capacity of 10 MWe, not the capacity produced and consumed by Emae, which is a clear violation of the contract.
Concerning financial charges, between December 2023 and December 2024, Emae was overcharged by 2,662,438.60 euros.
However, it was also noted that out of the 6,406,945.64 euros invoiced, Emae paid only 683,570.02 euros, leaving a debt of 5,723,384.62 euros.
According to the audit report, the contract stipulates that Emae “agrees and commits to supplying free of charge […] all fuel necessary to produce electricity at Plant Phase One,” with a total of 13,320,198 liters supplied from December 2023 to December 2024, equivalent to 374,596,623 dobras (15,145,292 euros).
The TC’s audit points out that the employment contract violates labor norms concerning equal pay between São Toméan and expatriate workers.
The TC notes that the contract with Tesla STP was signed under the Temporary Law on Investment Incentives, intended “to grant the Government, for four years, the power to define the conditions and modalities for authorizing investments in the national territory.”
The audit recommended amending this law to address prior supervision issues.
