OFAC maintains protection over Citgo by preventing the PDVSA 2020 bonds from being traded, despite the fact that a U.S. court has already approved an auction.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury reported on September 16, 2026, that it authorizes, starting November 5 of this year, all transactions related to the bond of Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA) 2020.
Consequently, the U.S. entity extends protection for Venezuela’s property of Citgo for another month and a half, since these securities were placed with 50.1% of the shares of the oil refinery owned by PDVSA as collateral.
The Citgo Petroleum auction in the United States, organized by the Delaware Court to pay PDVSA debts, approved a bid of US$5.9 billion from Amber Energy, a subsidiary of Elliott Investment Management.
However, the sale is stalled and facing requests for a stay due to objections regarding its actual value and the lack of definitive green light from OFAC.
The bonds have been the subject of litigation by creditors seeking to collect enormous amounts in debt and may involve Venezuela’s loss of control of Citgo, the country’s most valuable asset abroad.
Bondholders
For his part, Venezuelan lawyer José Ignacio Hernández said that OFAC has once again postponed General License 5, until November 5 next.
«Consequently, the holders of the PDVSA 2020 bonds still cannot exercise the guarantee over 50.1% of the shares of Citgo Holding Inc. At any moment, an appeal regarding the validity of the bonds may be decided,» he emphasized on his social media.