Paul Singer’s Elliott Management is one of the big winners from Venezuela’s forced sale of Citgo and Maduro’s ouster

Houston’s Citgo Petroleum stands as Venezuela’s final remaining prized international oil asset, and it’s now backed by activist investor Paul Singer’s Elliott Investment Management after a decade-long legal fight.

In late November, Amber Energy—backed by Elliott—secured victory in a frequently delayed, highly disputed court-mandated auction for Citgo, paying a discounted $5.9 billion. The firm must also cover over $2 billion for holders of Venezuela’s defaulted bonds. While Venezuela and other bidders have pending legal appeals, energy analysts still anticipate the deal will close by year’s end.

Elliott and Amber’s auction win occurred shortly before the Trump administration’s action against Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on January 4. This development could allow Citgo and other U.S. refiners to obtain more of the heavy Venezuelan crude that Gulf Coast refineries seek.

Citgo operates three U.S. refineries along with pipeline and terminal assets. Its network processes 800,000 barrels per day at facilities in Louisiana, Texas, and Illinois. It also has branding and fuel marketing agreements with 4,000 independently owned retail locations across the East Coast, Midwest, and South.

Even with its 115-year history, Citgo has been fully and quietly owned by Venezuela and its state oil firm PDVSA since 1990. The company became a focal point in legal efforts to compensate creditors who lost oil assets, mining rights, and other holdings when they were seized under Venezuela’s late socialist leader Hugo Chavez nearly two decades ago.

Amber’s CEO, Gregory Goff, chose not to comment for this article.

The other main beneficiary of the Citgo sale is oil giant , which holds over half of the creditors’ approximately $20 billion in claims. The Chavez government seized Conoco’s oil assets in 2007.

President Trump is urging Conoco, , to help Venezuela rebuild infrastructure and increase oil production, though the industry is hesitant due to high costs, political instability, and low oil prices. Trump is set to meet with top oil executives today.

“ConocoPhillips is tracking developments in Venezuela and their possible effects on global energy supply and stability. It’s too early to speculate about any future business activities or investments,” ConocoPhillips spokesman Dennis Nuss stated.

“We will keep up our collection efforts, which comply with all relevant laws and regulations,” he further noted.

A long legal fight and a political minefield

The legal dispute between Venezuela and its creditors simmered for years until 2018, when Crystallex—a small, defunct Canadian mining firm—secured a federal court ruling allowing it to go after Citgo’s assets to recover over $1 billion it claims to have lost when Venezuela seized foreign assets in 2011. Citgo officially severed operational ties with Venezuela in 2019. Both Crystallex and Conoco back the ruling in Elliott’s Amber’s favor.

Energy analysts note that most major oil and refining companies avoided the Citgo bidding due to the legal and geopolitical complexities involved.

Domestically, U.S. Representative Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky)—a frequent GOP critic of Trump—swiftly condemned the military actions in Venezuela and used the moment to attack Elliott. “Paul Singer, a globalist Republican mega-donor who’s already spent $1 million to defeat me in the next election, is set to make billions from his distressed Citgo investment now that this administration has taken control of Venezuela,” Massie posted on social media.

Venezuela and its state oil company PDVSA still assert ownership of Citgo. They view the auction as a fraudulent legal process held in a Delaware courtroom—located in an enemy nation.

Whether Maduro’s removal will affect Venezuela and PDVSA’s unlikely appeals to the federal Third Circuit Court of Appeals remains uncertain.

The sale also requires approval from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. The White House did not respond to requests for comment for this article.

Amber’s top bidding rival, Gold Reserve, is also appealing. The company submitted a larger but potentially riskier offer for Citgo that the court didn’t consider financially secure. Gold Reserve—a smaller creditor affected by expropriation—has lamented the detention of its Venezuelan lawyer, José Ignacio Moreno Suárez, who has been held for over two years and “subjected to severe torture and deprivation.” He remains in custody.

“We commend the Trump Administration’s actions to hold Maduro accountable, and we’re eager to contribute to restoring peace and prosperity in Venezuela and securing the prompt release of … Suárez,” Gold Reserve Vice Chairman Paul Rivett stated.

Chevron is ready to roll

A group of detained U.S. Citgo executives were freed in 2022 after five years in prison. The Houston-based team—five U.S. citizens and one permanent resident known as the “Citgo Six”—were arrested in Venezuela on embezzlement charges and accused of betraying the government. They were ultimately released as part of a prisoner exchange.

While Citgo and other Gulf Coast refiners—including Phillips 66, , and PBF Energy—could gain from a greater flow of Venezuelan oil, the biggest winner is likely , the only U.S. company to stay in Venezuela long-term, per Ajay Parmar, director of oil markets analytics at ICIS.

Operating under a special license now, Chevron could potentially expand its Venezuelan operations, producing more oil and shipping it to its U.S. refineries to capture the entire value chain.

“Chevron has wanted to produce more [Venezuelan] oil for a long time. They’re the big winner here,” Parmar said. “It’s still excellent; it’s still beneficial for [Citgo and other] U.S. refiners.”