Exclusive: PDVSA seeks bids for Citgo in potential $10 billion deal - sources
Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA is seeking preliminary offers for its U.S. unit Citgo Petroleum Corp by the end of September, a deal that could fetch up to $10 billion, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Venezuela is selling Citgo in part due to a cash crunch stemming from repaying debts to Beijing with oil, rather than selling the crude to generate revenue, analysts say. The government denies a cashflow problem exists.
Within President Nicolas Maduro's government, the potential sale is controversial and seen as a privatization that would contradict years of socialist policies, including a nationalization of the oil industry in 2006 and 2007.
Investment bank Lazard Ltd, which is running the sale process for Citgo on behalf of PDVSA, has sent offering materials to potential buyers, the people said in recent days, asking not to be named because the matter is not public.
http://news.yahoo.com/exclusive-pdvsa-seeks-bids-citgo-potential-10-billion-011323312--sector.html
