Pedro María Azcárate Palacios

Mr. Azcárate Palacios has a degree in Economics and Business Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid in 1974. He is a member, among others, of the Registry of Auditing Economists (REA), the Official Registry of Accounts Auditors (ROAC) and the Spanish Association of Auditors. Accounting and Business Administration (AECA). Likewise, he was a member by opposition since 1978 of the Institute of Certified Accountants.

He has extensive experience in the supervision, development and completion to the satisfaction of the client of auditing and consulting projects that cover a wide range of organizations and services provided.

In 1974 he joined Andersen's Bilbao Audit Division. In 1985 he moved to San Sebastián to take charge of this office and the one in Pamplona that would open in 1988. In 1994 he rejoined the Bilbao office as Managing Partner of the Navarra, Basque Country, Rioja and Cantabria offices, where he developed the professional relationships with Andersen's main clients (Banco Guipuzcoano, BBVA, BBK, Caja Cantabria, Provincial Councils, Gamesa, Basque Government, Iberdrola, IBV, MCC, etc.) and joins Andersen's Spanish Executive Committee.

During the period 1998/2002 he was president of the Economic and Financial Advisory Council of the Guggenheim Foundation in Bilbao. In September 2000, he moved to the Madrid office as National Director, Executive Manager of the Assurance Services Area (Audit, Financial Advice and Transactions and Computer Security) of Arthur Andersen. Since the merger of Deloitte with Arthur Andersen in 2003, he has assumed the same responsibilities in the merged Company (Deloitte).

Since 2004 he has been a member of the Global Executive Committee of Deloitte de Assurance. Until July 31, 2008, she was a member of the Executive Committee of Deloitte in Spain. During these years he chairs the Deloitte Risk Committee, which supervises the audits of its main clients (ACS, Banco Santander, BBVA, El Corte Inglés, FCC, Inditex, La Caixa, NH Hoteles, Repsol, etc.). In July 2008, his statutory retirement from Deloitte took place.

He is currently a businessman with investments in certain energy producing companies (photovoltaic), real estate and publishing companies. He is an advisor to various unlisted companies. In addition, he audits an NGO and is Vice Treasurer and member of the Governing Council of the College of Economists of Madrid and member of the board of directors of the Register of Auditor Economists (REA) and of the General Council of Economists of Spain.