Pedro Trebbau López

Pedro Trebbau López is the co-founder and executive director of Derwick Associates, a Venezuelan energy company.

Derwick Associates

Derwick Associates was founded in 2007 by Trebbau Lopez, Alejandro Betancourt López, and Francisco D'Agostino. The company won several contracts from the Venezuelan government during the 2009 - 2010 Venezuelan energy crisis.

Lopez is currently involved in negotiating a deal between Derwick and Spain to undertake several contracts in the country as well.

Legal activity

In July 2013 Otto Reich, the former US Ambassador to Venezuela, filed a RICO suit in the New York Federal Court alleging that the Derwick Associates executives, including Lopez, had bribed Venezuelan officials to secure lucrative contracts to build power stations and then subcontracted to Missouri-based ProEnergy Services to carry out the construction, unjustly enriching themselves in the process. Reich also claimed that the defendants caused his business to lose contracts by defaming him, calling on a shareholder to come forward in a previous court case and claim Reich worked for Derwick.

In March of 2014, human rights attorney Thor Halvorssen Mendoza filed a suit in a Miami circuit court against the Derwick Associates executives, including Lopez, claiming they had defamed him and damaged his reputation and business during Derwick's court action against Banco Venezolano, and that they had made a $50 million bribe to the Venezuelan Assembly speaker Diosdado Cabello in order to gain lucrative government contracts. Halvorssen has stated that former Derwick employees have come forward and confirmed these allegations.

Criminal investigations were recently launched by the United States Justice Departments and New York City banking regulators into Derwick's activities and the activities of its executives. The investigators are probing into the price difference between what Derwick paid to ProEnergy Services for its contract services and what Derwick was ultimately paid by the Venezuelan government. In addition, authorities are investigating potential concealment of bribes and banking violations. The investigations are still in the preliminary stages and it is unclear if criminal charges will ultimately be brought against Trebbau. The Derwick executives deny the allegations brought against them.