Venezuela suddenly conciliatory now that Conoco is now seizing PdVSA assets
Venezuela suggests ready to pay after Conoco moves on its Caribbean assets
Alexandra Ulmer, Deisy Buitrago
CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela on Thursday rejected ConocoPhillips’s moves to seize the country’s Caribbean assets to collect on a $2 billion arbitration award, but in a sign the U.S. oil company’s pressure might be working, Caracas also suggested it was ready to pay.
In its first official comments since Reuters revealed Conoco’s actions over the weekend, Venezuela’s cash-squeezed leftist government said PDVSA [PDVSA.UL] wanted to solve the dispute through legal means. The dispute stems from Venezuela’s nationalization of Conoco’s assets a decade ago under late leader Hugo Chavez.
PDVSA “is committed to honoring the decisions stemming from the arbitration award,” the Oil Ministry said in a series of tweets.
The tweets disappeared about an hour later. Venezuela’s Oil Ministry and PDVSA did not respond to a request for comment.
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-conocophillips-pdvsa/venezuela-suggests-ready-to-pay-after-conoco-moves-on-its-caribbean-assets-idUSKBN1IB2XP