An affiliate of Elliott Investment Management, Amber Energy Inc., has emerged victorious in the auction for Citgo Petroleum Corp.’s parent company, PDV Holding, with a bid of $7.3 billion. This acquisition marks a significant step in Elliott’s efforts to gain control of an oil refiner that was once Venezuela’s largest foreign asset. The announcement was made by Robert Pincus, the court-appointed special master overseeing the auction, in a filing on Friday. The bid is still pending formal approval from Judge Leonard Stark in Delaware.
Amber Energy outbid several other interested parties seeking to take control of Citgo from Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the state-owned oil company. The sale aims to address the claims of Venezuelan creditors owed over $20 billion, although the final sale price may result in little to no compensation for many investors.
Amber’s CEO, Gregory Goff, expressed gratitude for the selection and emphasized the company’s commitment to maintaining high standards of safety and reliability at Citgo. After Pincus submits his final recommendation, other bidders will have a 45-day window to potentially outbid Elliott. Additionally, Elliott retains the right to terminate the agreement if a motion to prevent other creditors from pursuing lawsuits to attach the asset is denied.
Venezuela began nationalizing foreign businesses over 20 years ago, with companies like Crystallex International Corp.—a now-defunct Canadian miner—at the forefront of claims against the auction proceeds. Following the nationalization of key industries under former President Hugo Chávez, affected companies have pursued international arbitration awards, hoping to recover their losses through US courts.
In the current political landscape, Venezuela is represented by the opposition in US courts, as President Nicolás Maduro is not recognized as the legitimate leader. Both Maduro and opposition leaders have opposed the sale of Citgo and considered filing for bankruptcy protection to block it. Other companies eyeing compensation from the sale include Siemens AG, ConocoPhillips, and Exxon Mobil Corp. Citgo itself processes over 800,000 barrels of oil daily and ranks as the seventh-largest refiner in the US, following Marathon Petroleum Corp.
The sale requires approval from both Judge Stark and the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, as Citgo is subject to US sanctions against Venezuela due to ongoing governmental instability.
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