DWUL ENERGY
WWW.DWULENERGY.COM.BR
CONTATO@DWUL.COM.BR
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DWUL Participações de Capital LTDA Rua das Orquídeas, 737/509 - Business Tower - Jardim 13345-04 Indaiatuba Brazil
July 19, 2024.
To: Mr. Ronald Vanswijgenhoven Judicial Officer Modero Brussels Alsembergsesteenweg 995 1180 Ukkel Belgium
Subject: Response to Formal Notice of Collection – Ref. 24BA87012
Dear Mr. Vanswijgenhoven,
On behalf of DWUL Participações de Capital LTDA, I am writing in response to the formal notice dated April 29, 2024, regarding the alleged debt of €5,370.48 associated with invoice no. 19901256 issued by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC).
To begin with, under Brazilian Law, you do not have legal authority to represent GWEC nor to demand any right against DWUL. Thus, we hereby consider your demand letter void in accordance with Brazilian Civil Code. Any other attempt to collect the alleged debt against DWUL will be deemed a violation of the Criminal Statutes that regulates the collection of debts, and the appropriate criminal remedies will be pursued by DWUL against you.
In addition, we would like to point out the following:
Item: Contesting the Undue Payment
DWUL Participações de Capital LTDA entered its association with the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) by paying EUR 5,000 for the annual fee in May 2023, as per the signed contract (see attached association contract). This amount was fully paid within the stipulated period.
However, in November 2023, we received a new invoice for the same amount of EUR 5,000 for the annual fee, and in January 2024, we were charged again for this amount. This practice is clearly abusive, constituting a duplicate charge for the same membership period, which is unacceptable and contrary to the originally agreed terms.
Inability to Access the Member System: From the inception of our membership with GWEC, we have faced persistent technical difficulties that have prevented us from accessing the member system. Numerous attempts to resolve these issues with technical support have been to no avail. An analysis of GWEC's access logs will confirm that no successful logins were made during the relevant period due to these technical problems.
DWUL ENERGY
WWW.DWULENERGY.COM.BR
CONTATO@DWUL.COM.BR
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Lack of Membership Benefits: Our expectation upon joining GWEC was to engage in significant interactions and receive clear benefits. However, the reality has been starkly different, with the membership providing only early access to a publicly available report and marketing emails. Clear evidence documents this situation.
Unsatisfactory Membership Experience and Legal Compliance: The greatest strength of any association lies in the active interaction among its members. Denying these interactions in favour of revenue collection contravenes the fundamental purpose of the organization. In our case, we did not even have basic access to interactive platforms. A review of GWEC's access logs will corroborate this technical impossibility.
GWEC's response indicated that as "Global Supporters," our access to critical components of GWEC is indeed limited. The membership did not allow participation in working groups or task forces, severely restricting our experience. This situation is unacceptable, especially considering the cost of €5,000 per year.
Our analysis of European directives and legislation, including Directive 2011/83/EU, Directive 2005/29/EC, Directive 93/13/EEC, Directive 2019/2161/EU, and the Consumer Protection Cooperation Regulation, strongly supports our position.
Given that we have been unable to utilize the services offered by GWEC and have not had access to the system, we consider this charge to be unjust and will not be making the requested payment.
In summary:
We have been unable to access GWEC's member system due to ongoing technical failures. The membership benefits do not justify the €5,000 annual fee, being disproportionate and limited to marketing emails and an early public report.
Due to the aforementioned unfair and abusive commercial practices, we request the immediate cancellation of our membership with GWEC and the annulment of any additional charges, including the invoice issued in November 2023. We also require that all collection attempts related to this duplicate invoice be ceased.
We are confident that this matter will be resolved in a fair and amicable manner.
Sincerely,
Sergio Figueira Managing Partner DWUL Energy
- 55 19 3318.3794
- 55 19 9 9578.8622 sergio@dwul.com.br dwul.com.br