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A U.S. court officer has recommended a $3.7 billion bid from Red Tree Investments, an affiliate of Contrarian Funds, to serve as the starting bid in the high-stakes auction of PDV Holding—parent company of Citgo Petroleum. The federal court in Delaware is overseeing the auction to repay up to $21.3 billion owed to 18 creditors due to Venezuela’s debt defaults and expropriations.
Red Tree’s offer includes $3.24 billion in cash and $458 million in non-cash considerations. Although not the highest bid submitted, the special master overseeing the process cited its low conditionality and high certainty as key factors in the recommendation. The decision now rests with Judge Leonard Stark.
Last year, a $7.3 billion bid from Elliott Investment Management was rejected due to unresolved legal disputes. This year, four stalking horse bids were submitted by the March 7 deadline. Among them was one from a consortium including Gold Reserve’s Dalinar Energy and units of Koch Industries.
Red Tree and another Contrarian affiliate are among the 18 creditors, jointly claiming $680 million plus interest and fees. If their offer wins, they would also receive part of the auction proceeds.
Analysts believe the $3.7 billion offer undervalues Citgo, which has a market valuation exceeding $10 billion. However, a competitive topping-off period may drive up the final price. The court’s final hearing is scheduled for July.
Citgo, based in Houston, is considered Venezuela’s most valuable foreign asset. President Nicolás Maduro has condemned the auction as a “robbery” and blamed U.S. sanctions for the ongoing crisis. If approved, the Red Tree deal would resolve disputes over PDVSA’s 2020 bonds while raising $1.5 billion for other creditors.
