The main focus is on Otto Christian Wöhler (Director of Research), whose children, through the consulting firm "Resilience," advise chambers of commerce (CAPA, CEPA, CAPECA) that their father is supposed to oversee. The complaint alleges the rigged purchase of the ships "Víctor Angelescu" and "Mar Argentino" from the Spanish shipyard Armón Vigo for US$35 million, a figure that would climb to US$161 million with the addition of a third polar vessel. Basterra, Padín, López Cazorla, and advisors such as Picco and Basanta are accused of favoring Spain, a country that plunders the Malvina Islands, while simultaneously destroying the Argentine shipbuilding industry and violating Argentine laws.

THE FULL NOTE:

CONFLICT OF INTEREST, OVERPRICING AND CORRUPTION IN FISHING (Note 2/4)

FIS & SeafoodMediaGroup, January 16, 2026.

In the previous article, we focused on the potential conflicts of interest and/or incompatibilities that could arise from the actions of Otto Christian Wöhler, the former Director of INIDEP and current Director of Research at that Institute. In this article, we will delve further into his controversial role in the awarding of the contracts for the construction of the research vessels Víctor Angelescu and Mar Argentino, as well as the roles of other actors involved in the bidding and construction process for these vessels in Spain, which could have been built in shipyards in Argentina.   

This official allegedly oversaw the bidding, awarding, and delivery process for these vessels. His role included signing official documents and managing operational aspects. The contract for the vessel Víctor Angelescu was reportedly awarded with his signature via a memo dated June 30, 2016. and even in October of that year he visited the Shipyard "to inspect the progress".

While we have been unable to locate the official's final formal opinion, as would have been appropriate and, if it did not exist, would have been sufficient grounds for observation in the bidding process regarding the preference for manufacturing in Spain, he nevertheless defended the decision to "award the contract to the Armón Vigo Shipyard in several public statements, citing a qualitative leap in technology for fisheries research that was not available locally, thus avoiding delays in technology transfer" (2/2016). "It is the first time we have designed a vessel with state-of-the-art equipment" (3/2016). He focused on supposed scientific benefits, not economic, technological development, or employment benefits.

In 2024 ( Puerto Magazine ), Wöhler did not question the external construction. In interviews (2016-2017), he justified the Spanish choice by citing the "leap in quality" in marine research, access to advanced technologies, and compliance with IDB standards. However, Argentina had already accessed the construction of research vessels and other complexes several times with IDB support. So why did this researcher assume that the national shipyards lacked the capacity or that they could not potentially partner with Italian, German, Finnish, or Chinese companies? Empirical conclusion?

The feasibility analysis was under his management and, as we will see, involved advisors convened by INIDEP. In the case of the Ice-Class vessel, could his academic specialization have also influenced his decision? Contrary to his opinion, all the experts and directors of Argentine shipyards opposed the project and denounced irregularities. Not a single researcher—except for the directors we will mention—defended the project to build in Spain. Various key players involved in promoting and awarding the contracts for the two research vessels participated in the construction at the Armón Shipyard in Spain, as well as in the advanced but ultimately unsuccessful efforts to build the Ice-Class oceanographic vessel. The courts will be the most appropriate body to judge any potential liabilities and their extent.

Engineer Luis Eugenio Basterra , in his triple capacity as President of the Agriculture and Livestock Commission of the Chamber of Deputies (2011/2019); then Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of the Nation (2019/2021) and, finally, national deputy (2023/2027), could not be absent from such a momentous decision that would have implied - had the third failed project been realized - the payment of 161 million dollars to a Spanish Shipyard by the National State, with a loan from the IDB, adding to the tremendous Argentine debt. 

At the time the bids for the first tender were opened on September 2, 2015, the Undersecretary of Fisheries was Dr. Néstor Miguel Bustamante (2015-2017). Dr. Juan Manuel Bosch (2017-2019) and Carlos Liberman (2019-2023) continued in this position. Although the Federal Fisheries Council—according to its own minutes—never intervened in the process, it should have been aware of the awarding and construction of the vessels. The Federal Fisheries Councils (CFP) were primarily responsible for these awards from 2015 to 2023, and some of their members remain on the Council today, including the current Undersecretary of Fisheries , Juan Antonio López Cazorla . The CFP is responsible for establishing fisheries and research policy ( Art. 9, Law 24.922 ) and never addressed the construction or allocation of research vessels, nor did it plan fisheries development in relation to the need to acquire these vessels from abroad. Furthermore, INIDEP ( Art. 12, Law 24.922 ) is responsible for managing fisheries research vessels “in accordance with the requirements and policies that may be established in due course…”. Remarkably, the members of the CFP left the political decision in the hands of a few—some of them foreigners.

Oscar Horacio Padín is also credited with a very important role “in the project,” having been a member of the CFP (1999-2011); advisor to Congressman Basterra (2011-2019); researcher at INIDEP (since 1980); Director of CIMAS in Río Negro (2014-2020) and, while serving as Director of INIDEP (2020-2023) - at the behest of Minister Basterra - one of the managers of the oceanographic vessel “Ice-Class 7” ( Pescare, 2/3/2023 ); which, by Decree 140/2023 of the PEN approved the model contract between Argentina and the IDB for a loan of up to US$125 million to finance PROSAMA, which included, among other things, the construction of that vessel. The decision to build a vessel to operate in polar or subpolar regions, where ice poses a significant risk, was not even discussed by the Federal Fisheries Council (CFP), nor by the business sector, despite unmet needs for research in Argentina's Exclusive Economic Zone and adjacent waters. This project, even before its completion, was already slated for construction abroad. The change in government stripped it of its supposed essential status.

In the 2020 INIDEP Annual Report, Padín "celebrated the addition of the vessels as a 'jewel' to the fleet, highlighting the administrative, legal, and financial efforts to build the two ships in Spain, which represent a 'quantitative and qualitative leap forward' in fisheries and oceanographic studies." We would say ironically, "Nothing like thinking that what's foreign is always better." Raúl Scalabrini Ortiz exposed this as an inferiority complex: the belief that progress only comes from abroad, that foreign things are inherently better, and that Argentina must submit to foreign models to advance .

Similarly, Dr. Carlos Ángel Lasta , former researcher at INIDEP, is credited with a leading role in port circles. He was a member of the CFP (2020-2023), an advisor to the CTM of the Río de la Plata Treaty and to INIDEP during Padín's administration, and a participant in meetings with the IDB and the Directorate of Sectoral and Special Programs and Projects (DIPROSE), where the agreement with the IDB was reached. He has been a key figure in the research sector.

Likewise, CPN Ramón María Basanta , first Administrative Director of INIDEP (2016-2021) and later representative of DIPROSE, proved to be a key figure in this decision to outsource the construction of the vessels. During his visit to the Armon Shipyard ( Faro de Vigo, December 16, 2018 ) , he stated, “ We finalized the new design a few days ago, and now we will have a world-class oceanographic vessel… Argentina has complete confidence in Armon .” This shadowy figure took responsibility, misjudging the opinion of Argentinians regarding the decision to build outside the country. He was not merely an administrative official at INIDEP when it came to finalizing the awarding of the contract and the projects for the three research vessels. “ Now we know it was worth it, ” remarked Engineer Luis Javier Picco at that very moment. What “worth it” was this INIDEP advisor, who appeared to be closely linked to the Armon Shipyard, referring to?

Basanta, in addition to being a state official, was also president of the company “Garay 1831 SA” with an office at 1831 Garay Street in Mar del Plata during those years (2/8/2017); although it is striking that, in this study       According to an eyewitness, in May 2021, work was underway on the plans for the proposed Ice-Class oceanographic vessel, presumably to award the construction contract to Armón for over $125 million, instead of within INIDEP itself, as would have been appropriate given the confidentiality of a project that would later be put out to tender. What was an administrative director doing at the launch of the Angelescu in Spain in 2017 alongside scientific director Otto Wöhler?

According to Engineer Podetti, Naval Engineer Luis Javier Picco, hired by INIDEP, was a sales manager for the Armón Shipyard. Under these circumstances, his impartiality in drafting the tender documents, evaluating the bids, and analyzing the construction is highly unlikely. A well-known and active participant in the fishing and naval sectors stated: “I affirm that the professional hired by INIDEP is not independent of the Armón Shipyard, since the day before the opening of bids for the coastal vessel tender, he showed me folders with documentation that the Armón Shipyard would present in its technical and economic proposal, which were in the trunk of his personal vehicle. Furthermore, he had no qualms about accompanying the Armón Shipyard executives on various business trips with local shipyards and even with Chubut authorities, as shown in Puerto Magazine” (June 9, 2017).

Could this Picco be the same one who "served" as President of the fishing company Makro SA, which owned several vessels in the Rawson yellow fleet. This company benefited from the Productive Development Fund (FAFP) for shrimp, distributing 5,000 tons until 2028. And, as if there weren't enough coincidences, his company, "Luis Javier Picco SA," was located at Av. Julio A. Roca 751, 6th floor, CABA, the same address as the company Mar Perlado (Fishing Reports, 5/17/2024). Furthermore, he was an advisor to INIDEP during Padín's administration.

Engineer Raúl Podetti also tells us: “Among thousands of naval engineers worldwide, INIDEP selected Juan Luis Sánchez Pastrana from the consulting firm “Astur Marine,” who was closely linked to Armón. Much of his “advisory” work was done for the Armón shipyard, which would be selected to build the two INIDEP vessels. This organization relied on a report by Sánchez Pastrana to choose a design “tailor-made for Armón” and disqualify the Argentine shipyards.”

Technology and science are contaminated by business, to such an extent that this character participated in the political decision to give away Argentina's few economic resources to the Spanish, which, if applied in the country, could have contributed to Argentina's development, generated employment and sovereignty.

We've left him for last, but he surely played a central role in the awarding of the shipbuilding contract at the Armón Shipyard in Vigo, Spain. Of course, we're talking about Laudelino Alperi Baragaño , President of the Spanish business group Astilleros Armón, who was in Comodoro Rivadavia ostensibly with the intention of establishing a shipyard in that city. A man skilled at closing deals and transferring funds: “The owners of Astilleros Armón accumulated 85.5 million euros in Switzerland and Luxembourg until 2012 and then transferred their funds to the Pyrenean Principality (…) a court is investigating an opaque Swiss-Luxembourg network of assets, and a report questions the origin of the funds” ( Gil-Irujo, El País, 7/19/2024 ). “The courts are investigating businessmen Laudelino Alperi and José Ramón Fernández for possible money laundering with ramifications in Switzerland, Luxembourg, Panama, the United Kingdom, and the Virgin Islands (…) the businessmen defend themselves by saying that these funds come from their industrial activities. Currently, Armón is the most important shipbuilding group (in Spain) and has been heavily criticized for workplace accidents, four of them fatal, and anti-union practices…” ( Nortes, 7/20/2024 ).

It does not appear to be a transparent company, one that Otto Wöhler , Ramón Basanta, and others on behalf of the Argentine State "can trust" by handing over national assets, while simultaneously discrediting the Argentine Shipyards.        

It would also be necessary to analyze the interest—beyond the British one—in promoting a law in Congress to approve the "Blue Hole" Benthic Protected Area, which also justified the construction of the aforementioned Ice-Class vessel; however, the National Congress did not approve the law due to various reports that included ours. This project seemed tied to the new construction at the Armón Shipyard for US$125 million, which, at that time, would have also meant annual operating costs of around 70 million pesos.

The acquisition of the research vessels “Víctor Angelescu” and “Mar Argentino” by INIDEP (National Institute for Fisheries Research and Development) was subject to several public complaints. These accusations focused on alleged fraud in the 2015/17 tenders awarded to the Spanish shipyard Armón Vigo SA, and on the supposed manipulation of the bidding documents to exclude Argentine offers. International Tender 1/15 (November 27, 2015) for the construction of the research vessel “Víctor Angelescu” was awarded to this Spanish shipyard for US$28.3 million (excluding taxes). The following year (July 8, 2016), the tender for the construction of the coastal research vessel “Mar Argentino” was officially launched, with Armón Vigo submitting a bid of US$7 million (excluding taxes and modifications). Transportation and maintenance costs were added , further increasing the final price.

The government tolerates illegal fishing by the Spanish on the high seas and around the Malvina Islands, and even buys their vessels. Unbelievable. Officials involved would be committing the crime of dereliction of duty. Corruption isn't just about lining one's own pockets ; it's also about undermining Argentine interests and national sovereignty. The next article (3/4) details some of the allegations surrounding the bidding processes.

Dr. César Augusto Lerena

South Atlantic and Fisheries Expert – Former Secretary of State.

President of the Center for Latin American Fisheries Studies

cesarlerena.com.ar