The CITGO auction process continues to reveal valuable information, including the communication from Phillips Petroleum Company Venezuela Limited and ConocoPhillips Petrozuata B.V. to the First Circuit Court of Appeals informing that they received an additional compensation of USD 547,949, as ordered by the Court for the Southern District of New York.
Additionally, PDV Holding Inc. (PDVH) sent a letter to Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the Southern District of New York in support of its request for a partial stay pending the appeal against the decision to formally accept the Amber Energy offer and reject the Gold Reserve proposal.
Moreover, Judge Leonard P. Stark from the Delaware Court approved the payment of fees and expenses submitted by the auction’s expert, Robert Pincus, amounting to USD 6,878,610.44 for the period from July 1, 2025, to August 31, 2025.
Additional Compensation from ConocoPhillips against PDVSA
On December 11, 2025, Phillips Petroleum Company Venezuela Limited and ConocoPhillips Petrozuata B.V.—collectively known as ConocoPhillips—reported to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit about receiving additional indemnification in their favor.
The amount received totals USD 547,949, obtained on December 8, 2025. This represents a partial satisfaction of the ruling “Petrozuata/Hamaca Judgment,” issued on August 22, 2018, by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against PDVSA and its subsidiaries, PDVSA Petróleo S.A. and Corpoguanipa S.A.
This notification was made in compliance with a prior court order and is part of the Crystallex International Corp. case against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, overseen by Judge Leonard P. Stark. The update was presented according to Section 17 of the Court’s order dated November 29, 2025.
PDVH Requests Partial Stay of Pending Appeal Judgment
On December 3, 2025, PDV Holding Inc. (PDVH) submitted a supplemental letter to Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, supporting its motion for a partial stay of the execution of the pending appeal in the case of Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. against MUFG Union Bank N.A.
PDVH’s main argument revolves around Judge Stark’s recent decision in the related Crystallex case, formalizing the selection of the Amber Energy offer while rejecting the Gold Reserve offer.
PDVH argues that this decision removes the primary threat cited by bondholders against the stay since the risk of other creditors diminishing the value of the collateral—PDVH shares—has been neutralized. They estimate that the Amber proposal, which includes a Transaction Support Agreement (TSA), guarantees bondholders a recovery of at least USD 2.125 billion, providing adequate security and making additional bonding unnecessary.
However, despite these arguments, Katherine Polk Failla denied the stay motion on December 5, 2025, citing the reasons provided by the defendants. She specifically highlighted the court’s ongoing desire to “avoid interfering with the ongoing process” in the Crystallex case concerning the CITGO auction. The Court also clarified that the previous automatic stay had expired on December 2, 2025, earlier than what the parties suggested.
PDVH posits that a stay is the most effective mechanism to maintain stability while appeals are resolved in various courts. They also claimed that the defendants’ arguments were internally contradictory and outdated following Judge Stark’s decision.
Order for Payment to the Judicial Expert
On December 9, 2025, Judge Leonard P. Stark, presiding over the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware in the Crystallex International Corp. case against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela regarding the CITGO auction, ordered the payment of fees and expenses to judicial expert Robert B. Pincus, considering them “reasonable and customary.”
The invoice totals USD 6,878,610.44 for fees and expenses incurred during the period from July 1 to August 31, 2025. The order stipulates that various parties in the litigation, namely:
- Crystallex International Corp.
- ConocoPhillips
- The Venezuelan parties
- Additional judicial creditors
must make the payment within 30 days.