Elliott Investment Affiliate Leads with $8.82 Billion Bid for Citgo Parent

In a high-stakes auction, an affiliate of Elliott Investment Management has upped its bid to $8.82 billion for the Venezuela-owned parent company of Citgo Petroleum. The bid is part of a complex court-organized auction intended to settle a string of debt defaults and expropriations linked to Venezuela and its state oil company, PDVSA.

The Delaware Court, which is overseeing the auction, had earlier received a $7.4 billion offer from a group led by miner Gold Reserve. However, recent developments have seen an improved $8.45 billion bid from Vitol's subsidiary, with Elliott's Amber Energy stepping in last with the most attractive offer. The court is set to make a decision next week.

According to a Tuesday filing from creditor Red Tree Investments, Amber Energy's bid includes an arrangement to compensate holders of a defaulted Venezuelan bond. Red Tree identified Amber Energy as the highest bidder and urged the court to select them as the winner under Delaware law. At press time, Amber Energy has not provided a comment on the matter.

(With inputs from agencies.)